FINAL STATS
SAN DIEGO, Calif. -- Morehead State football had the ball with less than two minutes remaining, trailing only by six at San Diego, Saturday but a last ditch effort came up empty as the Eagles dropped a 17-11 decision to the Toreros in the Sunshine State.
MSU's defense recorded three takeaways, including two interceptions, but the offense was stymied. The Eagles (3-5/2-3 PFL) finished with just 31 rushing yards and lost the time of possession battle by 17 minutes. It's the third consecutive setback to USD by a touchdown margin or less.
Defensive backs
Jihad McCall and
Kaleb Lyons each tallied their third pick-offs of the 2023 season, while lineman
Paul O'Brien jumped on his first career fumble recovery. However, San Diego's defense forced the Eagles into just 3-of-14 on third downs. MSU managed 239 total yards. The Eagle defense allowed only 330 yards to USD, but MSU could not also take advantage of USD's 13 penalties for 100 yards.
Quarterback
Carter Cravens passed for 208 yards but was just 22-of-47. He did score the Eagles' lone TD and was also picked off on his final throw to seal the game for the hosts.
MSU had the opportunity to take an early lead, but a missed field goal thwarted that chance. USD then went ahead 7-0 on a two-yard rushing score with 1:02 left in the first quarter.
Nathan Hazlett redeemed his missed FG with a made boot that split the uprights at the 8:11 mark of the second quarter to make it a 7-3 deficit.
The Toreros pushed their lead to 14-3 at 6:35 in the third quarter, but Cravens crashed in from two yards away on the first play of the fourth quarter. He also dove across the goal line for the two-point conversion to cap the four-play, 49-yard drive.
Late in the game, the defense forced a stop and a punt. Cravens engineered the Eagles to the 35-yard line but a final pass was corralled by the defense to end the game.
Receiver
Ryan Upp hauled in a team-best eight catches for 89 yards. Defensively,
Keenan Wolf's eight tackles led the way, while
Noah Benza and
Isaac Armstrong each had two tackles for loss.
After three weeks of road games, Morehead State returns home for Homecoming Saturday against Butler. Game time is 2 p.m. ET.
