MORRIS, Minn. – In dramatic fashion, the University of Minnesota Morris football team secured a 35-28 Homecoming victory over Martin Luther College in Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) play Saturday night in Morris, Minn. With under a minute left, quarterback Bryson Drake connected with Carter Watnaas for a 41-yard touchdown to deliver the Cougars' first win of the season.
 
The Cougars improve to 1-3 overall and 1-0 in the UMAC, while the Knights fall to 2-2 and 0-1 in conference play.
 
Martin Luther opened the scoring on the game's first drive, marching 65 yards and converting on a fourth-and-one before punching it in for a touchdown. The Cougar defense responded on the next Knights possession with a three-and-out, thanks to tackles by Jackson Viemeister, Arian Saenz, and Juan "JT" Garza III.
 
Starting at their own 41-yard line, the Cougars quickly answered. Sean-Keley Chinanga broke off a 25-yard run, followed by a 26-yard pass from Drake to Jacob Wilmes to reach the MLC 2-yard line. Drake finished the drive himself with a rushing touchdown, and Christian Davis added the extra point to tie the game, 7-7.
 
Martin Luther's next drive stalled after back-to-back first downs, as Jesse Davies recorded UMM's first sack of the night to force a punt.
 
Martin Luther retook the lead early in the second quarter with a four-play touchdown drive. On the ensuing possession, UMM lined up to punt but surprised the Knights as punter Trever Cockerill took off for a 33-yard gain on a fake, putting the Cougars in enemy territory. However, a fourth-down attempt later in the drive came up short.
 
MLC capitalized with another scoring drive to take a two-touchdown lead with under six minutes left in the half. But two costly penalties from the Knights set UMM up at the MLC 45. Chinanga burst through the middle for a 13-yard gain, and a pass from Drake to Watnaas moved the Cougars into the red zone. Chinanga finished the drive with an 11-yard touchdown run.
 
The Cougars forced their first turnover of the game on the next MLC possession. Nathaniel Edwards-Gaona sacked the quarterback and Dylan Young recovered the fumble. UMM had one final drive before halftime, but a deep pass attempt by Drake was intercepted as time expired.
 
The Cougars opened the third quarter with a methodical drive capped by a 33-yard touchdown run from Oscar Weah Jr., pulling within one. A botched snap on the PAT left UMM trailing 21-20.
 
As the fourth quarter began, the Cougars were deep in the red zone. Chinanga rushed for consecutive gains of nine and 11 yards, capping the drive with his second touchdown of the game. UMM opted to go for two, and Drake powered into the end zone to give the Cougars a 28-21 lead.
 
MLC answered with a scoring drive of its own to tie the game, 28-28. On their next possession, the Knights appeared poised to take the lead, reaching field goal range. But a huge third-down sack by Chayce Meyer and Dominic Garza for a 14-yard loss pushed them out of range.
 
After a pair of unsuccessful drives, Minnesota Morris regained possession at the MLC 41-yard line with just 36 seconds remaining. Facing third and long, Drake found a wide-open Watnaas downfield for a 41-yard, go-ahead touchdown. The Cougars led 35-28 with just 17 seconds to play.
 
The Knights had one final opportunity, but Gregory Ohman got to the quarterback for the game-ending sack, sealing the Cougars' Homecoming victory.
 
Drake totaled 122 passing yards with a touchdown and interception. On the ground he rushed for 18 yards and another touchdown. Chinanga had a career-high with 154 rushing yards, averaging 8.5 yards per carry. The sophomore also had two touchdowns. Through the air, Watnaas had a team-high 60 yards with the winning touchdown.
 
Defensively, Ohman led the team with a career-high 18 tackles, including two sacks and one forced fumble. Saenz followed with 14 tackles. The Cougars broke up six passes with Jackson Viemeister leading the way with two. Edwards-Gaona also forced a fumble.
 
Punting, Cockerill totaled 207 yards, averaging 41.4 yards per kick with three inside the 20. Davis went three-for-three for extra points.
 
Minnesota Morris travels to Westminster next week for a 12 p.m., UMAC contest in Fulton, Mo.