It was a cold night in Arlington Heights, Illinois as the Saint Xavier Cougars rolled into town to play the Robert Morris Eagles. The Cougars entered the game with a 2-2 record and were ranked as the 13th best team in the country from the NAIA. Meanwhile, the Eagles entered the game with a 2-3 record.
The game started with SXU getting ahold of the ball. Despite a lengthy drive from the Cougars’ offense they could not get anything started. The Cougars turned the ball over on downs. Then, Robert Morris offense took immediate advantage of this when running back Ke’von Johnson scored a 37-yard rushing touchdown to put the Eagles up 6-0.
However, a failed extra-point kick prevented the Eagles from taking a seven-point lead. A few drives later, the Cougars struck back when quarterback Alex Martinez threw a 30 -yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Chris Simmons to give SXU a 7-6 lead.
After a failed Eagles drive, Martinez struck again when he threw a 48-yard bomb to Cougars’ wide receiver Harold Davis, who ran the ball into the endzone for a touchdown to put SXU up 14-6 to end the first quarter.
The second quarter started with Robert Morris marching down the field. Eventually, Ke’von Johnson ran the ball 22 yards into the endzone to make it 14-12 in favor of the Cougars. The Eagles tried to tack on the two-point conversion, but they failed and kept the score at 14-12.
A few drives later, SXU responded when Alex Martinez threw a five-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Nick Czeszewski putting them at 21-12. This would be the only pass that Martinez completed in the second quarter, and he definitely made it count. Neither team scored again during the first half..
The third half started with the Cougars defense standing strong against Robert Morris’ offense. The SXU offense took advantage of the defense’s strong play when Martinez threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Harold Davis to put Saint Xavier up 28-12.
The Eagles responded with a big 63-yard rushing touchdown from Ke’von Johnson to make it 28-18. Robert Morris then successfully converted the two-point conversion to make it 28-20 in favor of the Cougars. The third quarter ended with the Eagles successfully stopping a Cougars drive.
The fourth quarter started with Robert Morris quarterback Jack Sheehan throwing a five-yard touchdown pass to Noah Comerford to make it 28-26 in favor of SXU. The Eagles converted the two-point conversion to tie the game up at 28. The Cougars then marched down the field eventually getting the Eagles’ 32-yard line.
However, the Robert Morris defense held strong and forced the Cougars to attempt a field goal. Kicker Mike Iturbe, trotted out onto the field and nailed a 57-yard field goal to put Saint Xavier up 31-28. After a failed Eagles drive, the Cougars ran out the clock and eventually won 31-28. The Cougars improved to 3-2 with the win, while the Eagles fell to 2-4 with the loss. Saint Xavier travels to St. Louis, Missouri next week to play the Missouri Baptist Spartans.