Box Score: UW-Oshkosh 9, UW-Stout 7
Photo Gallery
MENOMONIE - UW-Stout combined missed opportunities with a sluggish first-half offense, Saturday, resulting in a 9-7 loss to UW-Oshkosh at Don and Nona Williams Stadium.
Both offenses got off to a slow start in the first quarter. The furthest either team drove was to their opponent's 40-yard line and all of the first-quarter drives ended in punts.
At the beginning of the second half, the Titans put together their most impressive drive of the half when they took the ball 69 yards, resulting in a 28 yard field goal by James Taraboi.
The rest of the half was a punt fest until Stout got the ball on their own 43-yard line with 20 ticks remaining in the half . After Stout's longest play of the day, a 22-yard pass from Kyle Provos (Jr, Brooklyn Park, Minn.) to Eric Cieslak (Sr, Rochester, Minn.), the Blue Devils attempted to put points on the board, but Kyle Martin (Jr, Hubertus) could not convert on a 48-yard field goal attempt as it solidly hit the right upright as time expired.
Stout's defense opened up the second half with a defensive stop, giving their struggling offense the ball on their own 23. The offensive woes continued on the first play when running back Craig Warminski (Fr, Stanley) coughed up the ball, handing the Titans the ball deep into Blue Devil territory.
A Steve Leveonowich rush to the five yard line set up first and goal for the Titans, but the defense came up big with four straight stops, keeping the Titans from putting any more points on the board.
Stout's offense then turned it up a notch. They converted on a third-and-one deep in their own territory, followed by back to back first downs, driving them to the Oshkosh 45. Later, a
Trevor Fiege (Fr, Menomonie) 10-yard run put the ball on the 29, which is where the drive halted. Martin's number was called again to get Stout on the board, but the 42-yard field goal was missed left, and the Titans took over.
After a three-and-out from their own 26, Oshkosh set up to punt, but Justin Crooks (Jr, Wausau) got a hand on it, and the ball was recovered on the Oshkosh 31-yard line, setting up a short field for the Blue Devils.
A Warminski rush for a first down brought the third quarter to a close with Stout in the red zone for the first time of the day. On the first play of the final stanza, Oshkosh was called for defensive holding, resulting in a Stout first-and-goal from the 9. Warminski was called upon on first down, but lost handle of the ball again. Fortunately, the ball rolled out of bounds and Stout maintained possession. Provos was then sacked on the next play, setting up a third and goal from the 18-yard line. Things turned around on the ensuing play when Provos was flushed out of the pocket to his left, then forced back across the field, finally firing a strike to Antawan Walker (Jr, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) in the back of the end zone to give Stout the lead.
Stout appeared to make a defensive stop on the following drive, forcing Oshkosh into a third-and-13. But a 37-yard completion to Charlie Weissman resulted in a first down at Stout's 11 yard line. A couple rushes later, Oshkosh was in the end zone and back on top on the scoreboard, 9-7, following a missed extra point.
The Blue Devils received the ball and their offense took over, still showing a little life. After a couple of Fiege runs, and a 15-yard face mask penalty, Stout quickly found themselves in Titan territory. The drive ended, however, on a fourth-and-one quarterback sneak, which left them just inches short of the stick.
The rest of the game was played in Blue Devil territory, as Stout never put together a game-winning drive.
Provos ended the game 17-31 with a pick and a touchdown. Fiege was again the Blue Devils' leading rusher with 37 yards on 12 carries,
Oshkosh is now 3-1 on the season, despite having scored no more than 17 points in a game. Overall, they have been outscored by their opponents, 70-40.
Stout's seven point performance was its lowest scoring output since their 49-0 loss to UW-Whitewater in the 2006 season.
The Blue Devils will stay at home next weekend as they host UW-Stevens Point in their homecoming game at 1 p.m. at Don and Nona Williams Stadium.
