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In closing minutes, Darren Walker rushes across the 5. Photo credit: John Gilbert

...Walker hurtles toward the end zone, escaping Winona’s clutches Photo credit: John Gilbert

...and lands in the end zone with the game-winning TD. Photo credit: John Gilbert

UMD’s Beau Bates (43) went over while Karl Finkel went low to sack Winona quarterback Jack Nelson and end the Warriors final threat. Photo credit: John Gilbert

Look around at the mismatches of last weekend, when teams from the power conferences scheduled feeble opposition, such as Troy, Western Kentucky, Charleston Southern, Lamar, Central Florida, Howard, and Florida International, and Indiana State. All of these cupcakes played major college powers for a cheap payday, willing to absorb huge beatings for the sake of a nice paycheck. You could tell this wasn’t the Division II Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, where every game is a conference counter.

UMD lost its opener at Southwest Minnesota, which meant that the Bulldogs would have to approach the rest of the season as do-or-die. For UMD, that doing or dying meant Winona State in last Armed Forces Appreciation Day at Malosky Stadium last Saturday.

“This was a huge, huge team win,” said Drew Bauer, the senior quarterback who led UMD to a scintillating 34-31 victory, remaining calm and poised in the face of extreme closing pressure, as an all-time home record crowd of 6,357. “We had our backs to the wall for all four quarters, and there were a lot of big plays -- we’d make a big play, then they’d make a big play against us.”

Bauer was 20-for-31 passing for 282 yards and three touchdowns, and he ran in a 10-yard touchdown halfway through the explosive first quarter that lifted the Bulldogs to a 13-13 tie. Bauer had an entertaining match against Winona State senior Jack Nelson, who was 18-34 for 304 yards and four touchdowns. It wasn’t until the last few minutes that Bauer and his teammates were able to convert their strength.

To say the momentum swung back and forth is an understatement. The Bulldogs knew Nelson was a potent passer, and the game plan was to rush him hard. On the third play after the Warriors took the opening kickoff, on third and 19 from their 32, Nelson fired a perfect pass to Will Claussen up the right sideline, and the 68-yard touchdown made it 6-0.

It only took Bauer three plays to counter, hitting Nate Ricci and letting the speedy junior do the rest for a 54-yard TD. Nelson came back with another touchdown pass for a 13-6 edge, and Bauer faked a pass and ran up the middle for a 10-yard touchdown to make it 13-13. It looked like the Bulldogs might take control when Bauer passed to Jason Baits for a 13-yard score and a 20-13 lead. But Nelson threw his second TD pass to Cameron Johnson and Winona closed to within 20-19.
And that was just the first quarter! The big crowd could relax in the second period, except for interceptions, fumbles and blocked kicks, but the scoring pace let up – except for Ricci’s dynamic 62-yard punt return that gave the Bulldogs a 27-19 halftime lead.

Winona State used its littlest weapon in the third quarter to make it 27-25. Paul Preston, who is listed at 5-foot-4 but isn’t nearly that tall if you stand next to him, is a senior escape artist who can run, and after the Warriors recovered a UMD fumble at the 23, Nelson dispatched Preston on second down, and he went all 23 yards for the touchdown. For some reason, neither side seemed capable of making a big kick, so late in the third quarter, when Nelson moved Winona State to the red zone, it looked like the Bulldog defense might hold on third and 10 from the 16. But Nelson sent 6-4 senior tight end Nick Margiotta over the middle and hit him for the touchdown that suddenly vaulted Winona State to a 31-27 lead with a quarter to go.

That indicated the offense had to come through, but coach Curt Wiese’s world spins around defense, and the Bulldogs overcame plenty of adversity, such as a rare double personal foul penalty where their Warrior adversaries were deemed innocent of any participation. It put the Warriors at first down on the UMD 13. But Kegan Wirtz came up with a vital interception – as if his game-leading seven tackles weren’t sufficient.

The teams exchanged missed chances because of the big plays on defense, with Zach Bassuener coming up with a huge sack on Nelson, setting the stage for UMD’s best offensive drive of the night. Bauer brought the Bulldogs resolutely down the field with a series of short passes, but he was sacked himself to make it second and 15 at Winona’s 41. No problem. Bauer fired a pass up the left sideline that D.J. Hebert carried for 31 yards to the 10.

On the next play, Bauer flipped the ball ahed to Darren Walker, and he charged straight up the middle, hurtling past the last two defenders and landing in the end zone. Under pressure, the 77-yard drive in 10 plays thrust UMD into a 34-31 lead.

“That was Drew Bauer doing what he’s done for us for four years – making plays when we had to have them,” said Wiese. “Walker is a tough back, and this was a special game for our defense. It had to be, because their quarterback is as good as there is.”

Trouble was, 4 minutes still remained, and the defense had to show its stuff one more time. Nelson wound up getting sandwiched by UMD’s Karl Finkel on the bottom and Beau Bates over the top for the third-down sack that ended the last Warriors chance. The Bulldogs got the ball back and Bauer made a couple of first downs before taking a knee on the last three plays to end an exhausting and thoroughly entertaining 34-31 victory.