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Wayne State University Athletics

Photo by: Brian Sevald
Brian Sevald
Griffin Milovanski connected on three field goals for WSU.
24
Winner Concordia (MI) CUA 4-0 , 0-0
23
Wayne State WSU 1-4 , 0-0
Winner
Concordia (MI) CUA
4-0 , 0-0
24
Final
23
Wayne State WSU
1-4 , 0-0
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
CUA Concordia (MI) 7 7 0 10 24
WSU Wayne State 3 17 0 3 23

Game Recap: Football | | Jeff Weiss, Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Media Relations

Football Falls In Final 25 Seconds 24-23

Warriors allow 10 fourth quarter points.

DETROIT -- The Wayne State University football squad (1-4 overall) dropped its third consecutive non-conference contest falling 24-23 Saturday night to visiting Concordia University-Ann Arbor (4-0 overall) at Tom Adams Field.  CUAA entered the contest ranked No. 15 in the latest edition of the NAIA Coaches Poll.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
WSU took the opening kickoff and drove 56 yards, aided by a 60-yard carry from graduate student quarterback Jayden Waddell (Union Mills, N.C. / East Rutherford) on the second play from scrimmage, before junior place-kicker Griffin Milovanski (Saugatuck, Mich.) connected on a 43-yard field goal for an early 3-0 lead.

After the Warrior defense allowed one first down, they forced a Cardinal punt.  On the very next play, Waddell was intercepted by CU's Casey Rausch.

Concordia took advantage of the great field position and drove 31 yards in three plays to take a 7-3 advantage on a 31-yard touchdown reception on a pass play from Gavin Brooks to Jordan Garcia.

Second Quarter
A Wayne State drive that began with 6:52 remaining in the opening stanza carried over into the second period culminating in a 22-yard field goal by Milovanski.  The 19-play drive covered 76 yards and took 11:31.  WSU had a fourth-and-goal from the CU one but a snap infraction penalty moved the ball back to the six-yard line.

The Warrior defense forced another Cardinal punt and the Wayne State offense drove 71 yards in six plays to take a 13-7 lead with 4:23 remaining before intermission.  Graduate student quarterback Eli McLean (Clarkston, Mich. / Pontiac Notre Dame Prep) scored on a three-yard keeper.  Two big plays on the drive were a 28-yard reception by sophomore Dion Brown, Jr. (Flint, Mich. / Davison), and a 19-yard scamper by McLean on the play preceding the touchdown run.

CU answered with a nine-play, 75-yard drive to take a 14-13 lead with 1:48 left before halftime.  Brandon Stewart had a five-yard touchdown run around the left side.

The Wayne State offense responded with a 75-yard touchdown drive in 50 seconds.  Following a 10-yard run by senior Kendall Williams (Farmington Hills, Mich. / Farmington), McLean completed back-to-back passes to sophomore Manny Harris (Kankakee, Ill. / Bishop McNamara) for 14 and 12 yards, respectively.  On second-and-14 junior Te'Avion Warren (Flint, Mich. / Davison) turned a short completion into a 28-yard gain.  On the very next snap, McLean found junior tight end Kaveon Ross (Columbus, Ohio / Walnut Ridge) alone in the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown reception.  It was Ross' second TD catch of the campaign.

Wayne State led 20-14 after 30 minutes and 283-135 in total offense.

Third Quarter
The third period was scoreless as WSU went three-and-out on all three possessions, while Concordia managed five first downs, but had a punt, did not convert a fourth down attempt and had a missed field goal.

Fourth Quarter
On CU's third play of the final stanza, graduate student linebacker Matt Buschman (Brighton, Mich.) forced a fumble that was recovered by redshirt senior Gamon Howard, Jr. (Vallejo, Calif. / American Canyon) at the Cardinal 42.

Despite an 18-yard jaunt by McLean on the first play, WSU had to settle for a 39-yard field goal by Milovanski.  His third three-pointer of the contest matched a career-high set in 2022 against Shaw.

On the ensuing drive, sophomore Elijah Fowlkes (Cleveland, Ohio / Cleveland Heights) intercepted a Brooks pass at the Warrior 20 preserving the 23-14 lead.

Following a Wayne State punt, Dejai Robinson made a 34-yard field goal attempt to pull Concordia within 23-17 with 3:01 remaining.

WSU recovered the onside kick but were offsides.  On the re-play, the Warriors downed the ball at their own 23.  Three plays netted nine yards forcing a Wayne State punt with 1:56 left.  CU took over at its own 27-yard with 1:49 left and zero timeouts.  After a first down incompletion, Brooks completed his next three attempts for a combined 35 yards.  On second-and-five from the WSU 38, Brooks found Seeger DeGayner behind the secondary for a 38-yard touchdown pass with 24 seconds remaining.

The Warriors were unable to garner a first down and last second pass was intercepted.

TEAM STATS
Concordia held a 361-310 advantage in total offense, including a 271-107 edge in passing yards.  CU had the ball for 19:08 of the second half (29:28 for the game) compared to 10:52 for the Warriors.

LEADING THE WARRIORS
Waddell rushed for a team-high 54 yards as Wayne State accumulated 203 yards on the ground.  Both Harris and Warren had three receptions apiece.

LEADING THE CARDINALS
Brooks completed 24-of-42 passes for 271 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for a team-best 47 yards.  Bailey Brooks had a game-high seven receptions for 51 yards, while DeGayner hauled in six passes for a a game-high 95 yards and the game-winning touchdown.

UP NEXT
Wayne State's final six games will all conference contests starting with the Michigan Tech contest on October 7th.  Kickoff at Tom Adams Field is slated for 1 p.m. for the Homecoming/Hall of Fame Game.
 
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