Football Claims Dramatic 24-21 Win Over Northern Michigan

OVERVIEW – NORTHERN MICHIGAN

SCORE: Northwood Timberwolves 24, Northern Michigan Wildcats 21
RECORDS: Northwood (7-4, 5-4 GLIAC), Northern Michigan (1-9, 1-8 GLIAC)
LOCATION: Superior Dome – Marquette, Mich.
RECAP: Northwood closed out the 2017 season with a dramatic 24-21 road win over Northern Michigan Saturday (November 11).

INSIDE THE GAME

• Northwood opened the scoring late in the first quarter. Keyed by a Joe Garbarino 54-yard run to open the drive, the Timberwolves went 92 yards in five plays. The drive was capped by a Garbarino to John Hall 23-yard touchdown to put Northwood on top 7-0.
• The score remained that way until the Wildcats got a big play with 5:22 remaining in the second quarter. NMU scored on an 80-yard TD pass, leveling the score at 7-7. Neither team was able to score the rest of the way, sending the game to the break tied.
• Northwood took the second half kickoff and marched down the field. The Timberwolves went 65 yards in seven plays, taking 3:37 off the clock. T.J. Schepperly ended the drive with a nine-yard touchdown run to put Northwood back on top 14-7.
• NU extended their lead early in the fourth quarter, thanks to a 14-play drive. The Timberwolves went 47 yards on a possession that took up 7:29. David Riser connected on a field goal from 40-yards out, making the score 17-7 with 10:53 remaining.
• Northern Michigan fought back, however, getting right back into the game with under six minutes remaining. The Wildcats drove 67 yards in just 1:33, scoring a touchdown with 5:48 remaining.
• After the Wildcats got a stop on defense, Northern Michigan stunned the Northwood defense on the first play of the following series. NMU scored on a 75-yard touchdown run, giving the Wildcats their first lead of the day at 21-17 with 3:30 remaining.
• Northwood responded one final time with a game-winning touchdown drive. Taking over from their own 35 yard line, the Timberwolves drove 65 yards in 2:38. On 4^th and seven from the Northern Michigan 12 yard line, backup quarterback Grant Dunatchik found Gary Landless on a touchdown pass, putting NU back on top 24-21 with 52 seconds remaining.
• The Northwood defense then held, giving the Timberwolves the victory.

GAME STATS

• FIRST DOWNS: Northwood 21, Northern Michigan 16
• RUSHES-YARDS: Northwood 61-292, Northern Michigan 34-233
• PASSING COMPLETIONS-ATTEMPTS-YARDS: Northwood 8-20-87, Northern Michigan 13-24-178
• TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS: Northwood 81-379, Northern Michigan 58-411
• THIRD DOWN CONVERSIONS: Northwood 8-19, Northern Michigan 2-11
• TIME OF POSSESSION: Northwood 39:40, Northern Michigan 20:20

STAT LEADERS

• Vashon Nutt: six carries, 70 yards
• Garbarino: 69 yards rushing (three carries), 33 yards passing, passing TD
• Grant Dunatchik: 54 yards passing, TDD, 48 yards rushing
• Hall: 51 yards receiving, TD
• Charles Williams: Eight tackles, two tackles for loss

GAME NOTES

• Northwood posted a four-game improvement from last season (3-8 in 2016).