Postgame Press Conference 1 |
Postgame Press Conference 2
Final Stats
Photo Gallery
KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Northwest Missouri State captured its fifth national championship in school history with a 34-7 win over Shepherd on Saturday in front of a record crowd at Sporting Park.
The Bearcats (15-0) sacked Shepherd quarterback Jeff Ziemba 10 times and held Shepherd to just 97 yards of total offense in the victory. Collin Bevins had four of those sacks for Northwest Missouri State and Jacob Vollstedt led the team with 12 total tackles and a pair of sacks.
Bearcat quarterback Brady Bolles was 20-of-27 for 233 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. Phil Jackson had 109 yards rushing and Jorda Grove had five catches for 104 yards to lead the offense.
Ziemba was 11-of-16 for 136 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Billy Brown had six of those catches for 95 yards and one TD. Allen Cross managed only 27 yards on 11 carries. Defensively, James Gupton had 19 tackles to lead all players on the day.
Shepherd (13-1) got off to a tough start with its first snap getting away from Ziemba and Northwest Missouri State covering it. Just two plays later and less than a minute into the game, NWMSU had a 7-0 lead.
The score remained until the middle of the second quarter when Shane Williams hauled in a one-yard touchdown pass from Bolles. The drive was set up by a 74-yard reception from Grove. The Bearcats added a field goal with less than a minute left in the half, but a good return on the ensuing kickoff by C.J. Davis gave the Rams hope of scoring before the end of the half. However, Ziemba was intercepted by Bryce Enyard who took it back 59 yards to make give Northwest Missouri State a 24-0 lead going into the break.
The Rams were able to get on the scoreboard early in the third quarter after a muffed punt that led to a Brown 21-yard touchdown reception, but was unable to capitalize on any momentum. Simon Mathieson capped a 10-play drive with his second field goal of the day, and the Bearcats iced the game with another 10-play drive in the fourth quarter that ended with a touchdown from Grove.