@UNCBearsFB Falls to North Dakota

Saturday, September 29

Greeley, Colo.

12 pm

University of Northern Colorado

North Dakota

Photo by: Woody Myers

9/29/2018 3:58:00 PM | Football

Northern Colorado football fell to North Dakota

By: By Ryan Pfeifer, UNCBears.com

Northern Colorado football started a two-game homestand on Saturday afternoon welcoming North Dakota to Nottingham Field. The visiting Fighting Hawks relied heavily on their run game and stingy defense to defeat UNC 38-13.

North Dakota established the pace they wanted to play from the opening drive when they went on a 15 play, 71-yard drive that lasted 8:18 leading to a 37-yard field goal from Brady Leach. While UND's offense established their game plan early on, UNC struggled to move the ball with only 14 yards from scrimmage in the first quarter.

Down 10-0 early in the second quarter, Northern Colorado's offense looked to gain traction on a 10 play 77-yard drive that was run heavy. The duo of Trae Riek and Milo Hall combined for 50 of the 77 yards, capped off by a 1 yard run from Riek to score.

North Dakota took to the ground after that, scoring a touchdown over its final three possessions of the half to lead 24-7. The Fighting Hawks accumulated 101 on the ground during the quarter and all three touchdowns came via the run.

With neither team exchanging points throughout the third quarter, UND closed the door on a Northern Colorado comeback with their fourth rushing touchdown of the game to begin the final quarter.

Both teams scored touchdowns late in the game a fifth rushing TD for UND and a Noah Sol 14-yard touchdown catch.

Scoring Plays (Drive Info)
1st Q – 6:42: 37-yard field goal by Brady Leach (15 plays, 71 yards)
2nd Q – 14:18: 5 yard run by Nate Ketteringham (3 plays, 8 yards)
2nd Q – 10:13: 1 yard run by Trae Riek (10 plays, 77 yards)
2nd Q – 6:39: 15 yard run by Brady Oliveira (8 plays, 85 yards)
2nd Q – 0:32: 2 yard run by Nate Ketteringham (12 plays, 68 yards)
4th Q –13:22: 13 yard run by Brady Oliveira (7 plays, 80 yards)
4th Q – 3:27: 3 yard run by Otis Weah (5 plays, 72 yards)
4th Q – 2:03: 14 yard pass Noah Sol from Conor Regan (5 plays, 60 yards)

What They Said
Head Coach Earnest Collins Jr
Overall Thoughts on the game
"For the first time this season we did not fight back like we normally have. This is the first time this year I can say we got physically dominated and didn't fight. My focus tomorrow is to find out what that is all about. Our coaching staff is going to find 22 guys who will go out there and fight every play and never give up. I know these guys care about each other and love each other, but today we didn't have the fight."

Running Back Trae Riek
On moving forward in the season
"0-5 is 0-5, it's frustrating. To all the fans out there that support Northern Colorado football, we are not going to quit. That's not who we are. We are going to come out every practice and game and fight."

Linebacker Luke Nelson
About who this team is
"We have a bunch of guys playing for each other and who love each other. That's who we are. We want to send the fans home happy, but we will always be playing for our brothers on this team."

Stat to Know
Ground and pound is the name of the game for North Dakota and that's exactly what they did on Saturday. The Fighting Hawks ran for 351 yards on 61 attempts and controlled the clock with a 38:51 to 21:09 advantage over the Bears.

Game Notes
- North Dakota tied the record for most rush attempts (61) and had the second most rushing yards (351).
- For only the second time this season Alex Wesley was held under 100 yards receiving. UND held the Bears receiver to two catches for 50 yards.
- Sherand Boyd Jr., recorded his second interception of the year, to take the team lead in picks.

What's Ahead
UNC stays home next week to host UC Davis for homecoming. Kickoff between UNC and UCD is set for 12 pm. Tickets for the game are available at UNCBears.com/Tickets.

To stay up to date on all things UNC football, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Twitter at @UNCBearsFB.