(Staten Island, NY) Concordia football rounded out their trip to New York on Staten Island with a Saturday afternoon matinee versus an NCAA Division 1 FCS opponent, Wagner College. The Cardinals were outmatched by the Seahawks and blanked on the scoreboard 38-0.
The Seahawks showed their speed off the ball right from the start. On the very second play of the game, Wagner running back, Denzel Knight rushed to the end zone on a 71-yard play to take an early lead. After a 3 and out series from the Cardinal offense, the Seahawks again drove the ball and were posed to score a second early touchdown. Ready to make a stand, Ty Peterson (SR/Milan, MI) (SR/Milan, MI) sacked the quarter back to take them out of the red zone and the defense forced a turnover on downs three plays later.
Although they were held to 116 yards of offense, CUAA completed a few noteworthy drives that took them into Seahawks territory. After the defense forced the turnover on downs, Joe Conner (SO/Flat Rock, MI) (SO/Flat Rock, MI) carried the ball and several defenders for a 32-yard run that gave the Cardinals a first down and the ball at mid-field. Three plays later, Seth Suida (JR/Livonia, MI) (JR/Livonia, MI) kept the chains moving when he found Bryant Hudson (JR/Flint, MI) (JR/Flint, MI) open for a 10-yard connection. Hudson led the team with 3 receptions and 30 yards in the game. Concordia made it down to the Seahawk 30 before being turned over on downs.
The Cardinals offense would struggle to move the ball effectively enough to put a scoring drive together but did manage to control possession. The Cardinals would have the ball for a total of 29:49 minutes compared to a 30:11 time log for the Seahawks. Despite unchartered territory, the Cardinals would remain disciplined throughout the game only getting flagged for 3 penalties for a total of 35 yards. The Seahawks recorded 12 for a total of 92 hards.
Wagner College scored three times in the second quarter to take 28-0 with all three scores coming in the last 7 minutes. The Cardinal defense came back sharper in the second half allowing 10 points in the last 30 minutes of play. Peterson led the effort with 9 total tackles and 1.5 sacks. Nick Holsohe and Jay Koski (SO/Portage, MI) both had 7 tackles for Concordia while Andrew O'Hara (SO/Cleveland, OH) contributed 5. O'Hara recorded two sacks on third down that both forced a Seahawk three-and-out on consecutive drives to start the second quarter.
After a memorable week in New York, the Cardinals will look to settle back into their routine and shift their focus to conference rival, Siena Heights. The Cardinals will play their first game of the 2016 season at Cardinal Stadium when they welcome the Saints to Ann Arbor, Saturday, September 17th at 1pm. The Cardinals and Saints squared off in an epic game last year under the lights in Adrian, Michigan with the Cardinals winning in dramatic comeback fashion, 28-27.
