Titans Survive For A Homecoming Victory
UW-Oshkosh withstood a UW-Stout (2-3/1-1 WIAC) second-half rally and held on for a 23-13 victory in its Homecoming football game held Saturday (Oct. 6) at J.J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium.
UW-Oshkosh quarterback Joe Patek (Sr. • Cedarburg) threw for 302 yards in the game's first 31 minutes as the Titans (4-1/1-1 WIAC) captured their first conference victory of the year.
The Titans held a 16-0 advantage at the half and took a 23-0 lead early in the third quarter before the Blue Devils started their comeback. UW-Stout quarterback Tanner Kattre pulled down the ball repeatedly and ran to keep his team within striking distance. Kattre scored on runs of eight yards and one yard in the third and fourth quarters.
UW-Oshkosh running back Andy Moriarty (Sr. • Mequon) got the scoring started on the Titans' opening drive. After free safety Josh Wara (Sr. • Oshkosh) intercepted a UW-Stout pass, Patek threw a short swing pass to Moriarty, who took it 53 yards for a touchdown. Placekicker Lucas Raschke (Sr. • Clintonville) then nailed a 50-yard field goal later in the quarter to give UW-Oshkosh a 9-0 lead. It was Raschke's third career field goal of 50 yards or longer. Raschke now ranks third in NCAA Division III history with 44 career field goals.
UW-Oshkosh expanded its lead late in the second quarter thanks to a long pass completion to Tyler Jandrin (Sr. • Casco). Patek found his fullback over the middle of the field and Jandrin rumbled 69 yards down to the one-yard line. Moriarty then punched the ball in on the ground with a one-yard touchdown to give UW-Oshkosh a 16-0 advantage.
Patek threw for 222 yards in the first half and started off the third quarter right where he left off. Titans' wide receiver Andy Heiman (Sr. • Clintonville) caught a quick screen pass and took it the distance down the sideline for an 80-yard touchdown on the first play of the second half. Patek finished the game with 327 yards and two touchdowns while completing 13-of-24 passes without an interception. He had pass completions covering 48, 53, 69 and 80 yards against the Blue Devils.
UW-Stout quarterback Tanner Kattre entered the game with 109 yards rushing, but he exceeded that total in one game against the Titans. Kattre converted numerous third-and-long situations with his legs and recorded 145 yards on 27 carries. His two touchdown runs pulled the Blue Devils within 10 points early in the fourth quarter, but he was stopped on the two-point conversion attempt and UW-Stout couldn't get any closer.
The Titans' defense gave up 408 yards on the day, but they came up with clutch stops when needed. Bryan Kent's (Sr. • Pewaukee) interception in the end zone with 3:40 left in the fourth quarter dealt a huge blow to UW-Stout's comeback hopes. The Blue Devils had a chance to make it a one-score game with 35 seconds to play, but Kyle Martin's 28-yard field goal try missed wide left.
Moriarty posted a solid effort on the ground, running for 72 yards on 23 attempts. He also caught three passes for 67 yards and one score. Wideout Steve Stoltz (Sr. • Greendale) caught three passes for 68 yards. Other contributors for the Titans included Jandrin with 80 yards on two receptions and Heiman with 93 yards on two catches.
The Blue Devils top rusher behind Kattre was Andy Reese with 75 yards on 19 carries. Kattre completed 13 of 30 attempts through the air for 140 yards and was intercepted three times. Kyle Provos threw five passes, completing three for 31 yards and also had an interception. Dan Lytle caught five passes for 63 yards and Calvin White pulled in five receptions for 47 yards to pace UW-Stout.
UW-Stout gained more first downs than the Titans with a 27 to 13 advantage and also won the time of possession battle, 35:33 minutes to 24:27. UW-Oshkosh made up for these shortcomings by winning the takeaway battle, 4-0. Kent had two of the Titans' four interceptions on the day while Wara and Eric Hebel (So. • Howard) each picked off one pass.
Linebacker Dave Dejewski (Sr. • Hartland) led UW-Oshkosh with 11 tackles in the game, while Kyle Radke (Jr. • Oshkosh) totaled nine, including seven solo. Mike Mayer (Sr. • Chilton), James Taraboi (So. • Grafton), Cameron Adams (Sr. • Elm Grove) and Eric Stenbroten (Sr. • Monticello) all had one sack apiece for the Titans. Nate Heard (Fr. • Milwaukee) deflected three passes on the day and Taraboi broke up two.
The Blue Devils' leading tackler was Marshal Lehman with nine stops. Jake Pomputis recorded seven tackles and a pass brake-up for UW-Stout. Brock Stenson brought down the Titans' quarterback once with Chad Parker and Scott Riha each posting half of a sack.
The Titans travel to two-time defending WIAC champion UW-Whitewater (4-1/3-0 WIAC) next Saturday (Oct.13).