By Brad Welborn, Northwestern State Assistant Sports Information Director; featured photo by Brad Welborn
OGDEN, Utah – Against a mountain backdrop on Saturday night in Northwestern State’s first trip to Utah, the first five minutes created a mountain the Demons could not quite climb.
The Demons (0-4) fell behind 21-0 in the opening 5:18 before settling in and battling Weber State (2-2) for the remainder of the night in a 49-20 loss at Stewart Stadium.
“For three quarters I think we played about as good as we’ve played since we’ve been here, but you’ve got to play four,” head coach Blaine McCorkle said. “And usually when you say that it’s the fourth quarter but tonight it was the first. We spotted them 21 right off the bat with some bad special teams. Our guys fought really hard. They battled and stayed in it but the early start really was the story of the game.”
Weber State marched 51 yards on six plays on the opening possession to take the early lead before Northwestern State answered with one of its better drives of the night.
Making his first start in a Demon uniform, quarterback Zach Wilcke moved NSU 75 yards in eight plays, including a 40-yard completion to Camryn Davis on a fade down the right sideline.
The drive stalled inside the Weber State red zone, however, and a 36-yard field goal attempt was blocked and returned for a touchdown, giving the Wildcats a 14-0 lead with 9:42 left in the first quarter.
A fumble on the next NSU possession gave Weber State a short field, and the Wildcats needed just two plays to turn it into a 23-yard touchdown run and a 21-0 advantage.
All three touchdowns came in just five minutes, 18 seconds.
The Demons responded by settling into the game.
Wilcke directed an 18-play, 70-yard drive on the ensuing possession that consumed nearly seven minutes, helping Northwestern State regain its footing despite the drive ultimately ending without points.
“Really proud of Zach tonight,” McCorkle said. “It was his first start and he put a lot into this game in his preparation. He wanted to play well and he did. He gave us a chance to compete and stay in the game. He’s going to be sore tomorrow. He ran the ball hard and played extremely hard.”
Wilcke finished 26-for-52 for 291 yards and three touchdowns, all career highs. He also rushed for 49 yards.
His 52 pass attempts were the most by a Northwestern State quarterback since Zachary Clement attempted 52 passes against Incarnate Word in 2022, while his three touchdown passes were the most by a Demon quarterback since Clement threw three against East Texas A&M that same season.
The Demons’ defense provided the next spark.
On the second play of the ensuing Weber State possession, Diego Sanchez intercepted his first pass as a Demon, giving NSU possession at midfield.
Nine plays later, Wilcke found Brendan Webb for a four-yard touchdown on an out route, putting Northwestern State on the board. The Wildcats blocked the ensuing extra point, making the score 21-6.
After forcing a punt and holding for a missed field goal, the Demons had a chance to further cut into the deficit with an 11-play drive that reached the Weber State 15-yard line, but again came away without points.
Weber State closed the half with a 10-play, 61-yard touchdown drive to take a 28-6 lead into the break.
Despite the deficit and the rough start, the Demons moved the ball effectively, totaling 238 yards in the first half compared to 214 for the Wildcats.
The Wildcats extended their lead with touchdowns on their first two possessions of the second half, but the Demons continued to fight.
KB Anderson-Dale jumped a route late in the third quarter for his first career interception, giving the Demons the ball at the Weber State nine-yard line. They capitalized on their second takeaway of the night, with Wilcke finding Joseph Moreland on fourth-and-goal from the 5-yard line for a touchdown.
“The defense has the ability to make some plays but we really have no room for error,” McCorkle said. “We’re still a little bit thin in some spots, have to play smarter in some spots and have to tackle better. That’s been a theme for us and it’s a really hard answer to get to, but we’re going to keep working on it.”
Northwestern State added one more touchdown in the fourth quarter, a 28-yard touchdown pass from Wilcke to Zay Davis on a misdirection play that developed into a screen.
The Demons continued to make plays on offense while the defense generated two interceptions, but Weber State’s early cushion proved too much to overcome.
For the second straight week, Northwestern State showed stretches of the type of football it believes it is capable of playing. This time, however, the Demons had to do it after spotting an opponent a three-touchdown advantage before the game was six minutes old.
The 389 yards of total offense by the Demons were the most against an FCS opponent under McCorkle
“This football team played really hard against a really good opponent in a really tough situation coming across the country,” McCorkle said. “I’m proud of them.”