Southern Utah Drops Fourth Straight Game In Close Loss To SFA
Oct 22, 2022, 6:37 PM
Southern Utah running back Braedon Wissler (Courtesy of SUU Athletics)
(Courtesy of SUU Athletics)
SALT LAKE CITY – The Southern Utah football program suffered its fourth consecutive defeat in a home loss to the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks.
The Thunderbirds hosted the Lumberjacks at Eccles Coliseum in Cedar City, Utah on Saturday, October 22.
SUU fell to Stephen F. Austin, 41-38.
FINAL.#FocusFightFinish x #TBirdNation pic.twitter.com/2VGASlI9OX
— Southern Utah Football (@SUUFB_) October 22, 2022
After trailing at halftime, Southern Utah took the lead midway through the final quarter, but the T-Birds were unable to hang on over the last few minutes of game time.
In the Saturday matinee, the Thunderbirds got the scoring started on a 1-yard touchdown pass form Justin Miller to Brennon Hutchings with 12:05 left in the opening quarter.
Five minutes later, the Lumberjacks responded with their first score. Late in the quarter, Miller tossed his second touchdown pass when he found Steve Jenkins for 37 yards and six points to give the Thunderbirds another lead.
Q1 | Justin Miller with the deeeeep bomb to Steve Jenkins for the TD 💣
SUU: 13
SFA: 7#TBirdNation pic.twitter.com/HwK53px3HD— Southern Utah Football (@SUUFB_) October 22, 2022
Five minutes later, the Lumberjacks responded with their first score. Late in the quarter, Miller tossed his second touchdown.
Miller opened the second half with a 76-yard touchdown pass to Wooden before SUU’s Micah Pettit added a 49-yard field goal to help the T-Birds regain the lead.
Q3 | Big time players make big time plays ✊
Isaiah Wooden is a big time player. Justin finds him for 7️⃣6️⃣ yards and the TD‼️
Thunderbirds back on 🔝
SUU: 29
SFA: 28#TBirdNation pic.twitter.com/bUsZNDz6N7— Southern Utah Football (@SUUFB_) October 22, 2022
Over the final 15 minutes, Braedon Wissler scored on a 27-yard run for the Thunderbirds’ final points of the afternoon.
Q4 | @Wiss_Mode won't be denied on this carry 😤
TOUCHDOWN SUU 👊
SUU: 38
SFA: 34#TBirdNation pic.twitter.com/DgFlFXu8jY— Southern Utah Football (@SUUFB_) October 22, 2022
However, the Lumberjacks outscored the T-Birds 10-6 in the fourth quarter, including a go-ahead, game-winning touchdown run with 6:14 to go.
Southern Utah had 506 yards compared to Stephen F. Austin’s 555 yards of total offense.
Miller finished the game 22/34 passing for 297 yards and three touchdowns. Wissler added 14 carries for 155 yards and a touchdown. Wooden led SUU’s receivers with six receptions for 132 yards and a touchdown.
With the loss, the T-Birds fell to a 3-5 record this season, including 1-3 in Western Athletic Conference games.
Southern Utah’s next game is on the road against the Utah Tech Trailblazers on November 5 at 6 p.m. (MDT). The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
