Never Quit Attitude Leads to Another 'Berg Win
It does not matter who leads throughout a game, but what matters most is who is on top in the end. This is the mindset of the Heidelberg College football team and second-year head coach Mike Hallett, as the Berg put together a winning drive in the final minute of the game to top host Muskingum College 45-41 in an Ohio Athletic Conference match up in New Concord, Ohio.
It was the second-straight week that the Berg has come from behind in the final minute of the game to post a victory. As a matter of fact, the Berg has closed out the year winners of three of its last four outings, all of which have included game-winning drives as time expired.
The win closes out the year for the Berg at 4-6 overall and 3-6 in the OAC, while Muskingum stands at 3-7 and 2-7. The win over the Muskies is the second-straight for the Berg under Hallett’s direction.
Muskingum led the entire contest until Andrew Miller (Dalton, Ohio / Dalton) connected with Mike Preston (Maple Heights, Ohio / Euclid) for a 28-yard touchdown reception and gave the Berg a 38-34 lead with 6:58 to play in the game. Jesse Hawkins (Georgetown, Ky. / Scott County) connected on the point after. Heidelberg and Muskingum traded possessions and then things began to get interesting.
The Muskies regained the scoreboard on a 32-yard TD pass from Jake Burns to Josh Grafton with 54 seconds left in the game. Nick Stevens registered the PAT to put the game in favor of the Muskies 41-38.
On the ensuing possession, Heidelberg took control, marching 59 yards in 33 seconds to score the game-winning touchdown. Miller found Dawond Roddy (Sidney, Ohio / Sidney) across the middle of the field for 51 yards up the left sideline to the end zone. Hawkins hit the point after to push the final score to 45-41 in favor of the Berg.
Muskingum held a 463-446 advantage in total offensive yards. Heidelberg threw for 298 yards, while Muskingum picked up the majority of its offense on the ground, picking up 263 rushing yards.
Miller connected on 21-of-38 passes for 298 yards and six touchdowns. He threw TD passes to three different receivers, led by Roddy’s career-best three. Roddy had the game-winning 51-yard TD, along with a 25-yard one and a three-yard score. Lucas Bauer (Huron, Ohio /Huron) led the way with 112 yards in the air on seven receptions and scored twice. Bauer had TD catches of 30 and 12 yards. Roddy backed Bauer with his fourth 100-yard receiving game on the year, finishing with 101 yards on six catches. Preston had three catches for 42 yards and one touchdown.
On the ground, Jemar Lewis (Bedford Heights, Ohio / Bedford) had 88 yards in 23 carries, while Adrian Balser (Junction City, Ohio /Sheridan) picked up 64 yards in nine rushes.
Justin Dawson (Westminster, Calif. / Golden West JC) led the Berg defense with 10 tackles, including nine solo stops. Shawn Shriver (Bellevue, Ohio / Western Reserve) finished with nine stops and one interception, while Brian West (Huron, Ohio / Huron) had seven solo tackles.