Box Score

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – No. 8/9 Saint John's football erased a 7-3 halftime deficit with 28 unanswered points en route to a 31-7 win in the regular-season finale at Concordia-Moorhead on Saturday, Nov. 12.

SJU (9-1, 7-1 MIAC) finds out if it is one of the six at-large bids to the NCAA Division III playoffs when the selection show airs at 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 13, on www.ncaa.com. 

The win was SJU's 450th in MIAC play (450-177-22 record, .710).
 
The Johnnies scored 21 points in a span of 4:14 in the fourth quarter and out-gained Concordia (7-3, 6-2 MIAC) 298-73 in the second half. SJU won the clash between NCAA Division III's second-best defense (197.4 ypg.) and third-best run defense (50.6 ypg.), and the eighth-best rushing attack (277.4 ypg.) from Concordia. The Cobbers picked up only six first downs and totaled 179 yards, 145 of which came on the ground, in the game.

Junior running back Dusty Krueger (Lake Elmo, Minn./Hill-Murray) rushed for 173 yards on 26 carries, including an 80-yard touchdown that gave the Johnnies a 24-7 lead with 4:48 remaining. The 100-yard rushing performance was SJU's first of the season and first against Concordia since Kent Crowley's 127 yards in the 34-9 win on Oct. 26, 2002, in Moorhead. Krueger's total of 173 fell five yards short of the Johnnies' series record of 178 recorded by Matt Malmberg in the 44-21 win on Nov. 13, 1993, at the FargoDome.

Sophomore quarterback Ben Alvord (St. Joseph, Minn./St. Cloud Apollo) ended the day 10 of 14 passing for 136 and a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns. He connected with sophomore tight end Jared Streit (Watkins, Minn./Eden Valley-Watkins) for a 32-yard touchdown with 6:11 left and hit senior wide receiver Evan Clark (Phoenix, Ariz./Apollo) for a 28-yard score, on fourth down, with 1:57 remaining.

The receiving touchdown was Clark's 13th of the season and has now scored at least one touchdown in each of SJU's 10 games this fall (for a total of 15). The 13 receiving touchdowns are the most by a Johnnie in a single season since three-time All-American Blake Elliott (2000-03) caught 13 during SJU's national-championship 2003 campaign. Kyle Gearman (2004-06) caught 12 touchdowns in 2006.

SJU took advantage of a roughing-the-passer penalty on an incomplete, third-down pass to find the scoreboard first following a scoreless first quarter. Krueger leaped over the pile on third down and looked to have broken the plane for a touchdown, but was ruled short. A false-start penalty negated SJU's attempt on fourth-and-one, so senior kicker Alexi Johnson (Shakopee, Minn.) made a 23-yard field goal with 10:16 left in the second quarter. The field goal was Johnson's second of the season and 25th of his career, which enabled him to break his tie with Jimmie Mattson (2010-12) for second in school history.

The Johnnies looked to have CC's Chad Johnson stopped for little to no gain on third-and-four on the ensuing drive, but the MIAC's leading rusher (710 rushing yards overall, 634 in MIAC play) broke a number of tackles and cut across the grain for a 36-yard touchdown with 7:03 left in the first half. It was the first time SJU had allowed a scoring drive of 20 yards or more and trailed since Oct. 1 at Bethel. Johnson totaled 115 yards from scrimmage, 64.2 percent of the team's total, including 103 yards on 18 carries.

Sophomore running back Adam Essler (New London, Minn./New London-Spicer), a Cobber last season, capped a 90-yard scoring drive with a 27-yard touchdown run to give SJU a 10-7 lead with 5:55 left in the third quarter.

SJU turned the ball over on downs on Concordia's two-yard line with 11:21 remaining, but forced a three-and-out, which led to Alvord's touchdown pass to Streit on the ensuing possession.

Senior defensive lineman Peyton Thiry (Lester Prairie, Minn./Lester Prairie-Holy Trinity), junior linebacker Mack Short (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley) and sophomore defensive lineman Nathan Brinker (Avon, Minn./Holdingford) led SJU with seven tackles apiece. Thiry added a quarterback sack and recovered a fumble forced by sophomore defensive lineman Ted Kalina (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson), which led to Clark's touchdown reception.