Wildcat Offense Struggles In Homecoming Setback

MARQUETTE---The Northern Michigan University Wildcat offense had a hard time getting into a rhythm on Saturday, as the ‘Cats suffered a 21-7 loss to the Davenport Panthers on NMU Homecoming at the Superior Dome.

The Wildcats had just one rushing yard in the first half and missed out on several scoring chances before finally finding the end zone late in the fourth quarter.

"The reality is that it's my responsibility to get them prepared, and I don't know if they were prepared with what it takes to play in this league with the urgency right off the bat," NMU Offensive Coordinator Dan Fodrocy said. "We couldn't sustain drives. We would get something going, then I felt like we would bog down on a play."

"I give Davenport a ton of credit. I thought their approach was really well-orchestrated."

Wildcats quarterback Ryan Johnson completed just nine of 25 passes for 154 yards, with many of those yards coming on the team’s final drive when he hooked up with Ryan Knight for a 42-yard reception, followed by a diving catch by Ravon Johnson inside the ten yard-line.

Freshman Tyshon King ran it in from one yard out for the touchdown, but it was far too late as the Panthers beat the ‘Cats for the second straight year.

"We just couldn't sustain anything out there and it's a tough pill to swallow," Fodrocy said. "I do believe it will help us improve moving forward."

Davenport struck first when quarterback Deondre Ford hooked up with Nate Couturier for a 61-yard pass-and-catch on the first series. Michael Catching ran it in from three yards out to put the Panthers on the board.

NMU had several chances to score in the first half, but a failed 4^th-and-1 run from the Davenport 25 yard-line prevented the team from tying the contest.

On another occasion, the ‘Cats lined up for a 50-yard field goal attempt, but a false start penalty knocked them back and they ended up punting.

Meanwhile, the NMU defense held the Panthers at bay deep into the second half, and the Wildcat offense finally got something going on the first possession of the third quarter.

The ‘Cats went on a drive that took six minutes off of the clock, stringing together four first downs, but came away with no points as Daniel Riser’s 42-yard field goal attempt sailed wide left.

Davenport responded with a long drive of its own, taking nearly nine minutes off of the clock before Keion Powers punched it in from one yard out on the final play of the third quarter. Then after the Wildcats went three-and-out on offense, Davenport essentially put the game away with a 53-yard touchdown run by Catching, his second touchdown of the game.

"We were down by two scores and we were running out of time, so I had to start blitzing," said NMU Head Coach Kyle Nystom, who called the defensive plays. "I don't fault our effort, how tough we are, how physical we are. What we have to do is look at the film, and find out where our deficiencies are as far as schenes and productivity on offense, and how we can help the defense more."

Catching had 99 yards on 16 carries to lead the Panthers (2-0). Ford, who suffered a broken wrist last year, completed 17-of-30 passes for 184 yards.

Neither team had a turnover in the game, and NMU had just three penalties, down from the 13 infractions last week at Texas-Permian Basin.

One of the highlights for NMU was the play of punter John Kwiecinski. The senior kicked nine times for 381 yards, good for an average of 42.3 yards. He had a long kick of 53 yards, and nailed the Panthers inside their own 20 yard line twice.

"We were just changing it up," Kwiecinski said. "We were going directional all game. We kinow they have a really good returner, so we were just trying to keep the ball away from him or force him to call a fair catch. As a unit, as a whole, I think we did a really good job covering and bringing him down and cutting down that return."

"I thought special teams were good," Nystrom agreed. "And we covered well. But I need Daniel to make that field goal from the hash."

King led the Wildcats on the ground with 63 yards on 17 carries.

NMU (1-2) travels to Ferris State University next Saturday for a match-up against Nystrom’s former team, and the current #2-ranked team in the country.

"I told our players after the game, let's just be honest, this is a great opportunity," Nystrom said. "They're a real good football program. Everybdoy knows that. They're winning a lot of ball games right now. But it's a real good opportunity if we do some good things. And that's possible for us."

Game time is 3:00 for Bulldogs Homecoming. The game will be broadcast live on WUPT-FM (100.3 The Point), WCHT-AM (NewsTalk 600), and on-line at www.rrnsports.com.

Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box above to see photos and videos taken by Nate Belleville. Also, listen to post-game comments from Nystrom, Kwiecinski, and Fodrocy. And hear player spotlight interviews with offensive lineman Gabe Baumann and center Jay Young.