MILLERSVILLE, Pa. - Kutztown has been the bully of the PSAC East in recent years, winning two-straight division titles and last season's PSAC Championship. On Saturday at Biemesderfer Stadium, Millersville did not back down from the fight, going toe-to-toe with the Golden Bears until coming up short on its final drive. Kutztown, by a 20-13 final, won its fifth-straight game, getting a stop on downs with one minute remaining. 

Kutztown (7-2, 5-1 PSAC East) received 96 hard-fought yards on 23 carries from Darryl Davis-McNeil, 258 yards passing and two touchdowns from Donny Blaine, and 131 receiving yards from Jerome Kapp, including a 60-yard scoring strike with 10:57 to play that was ultimately the difference-maker for the Golden Bears. Millersville (3-6, 3-3 PSAC East) received a passing and rushing touchdown from freshman quarterback Robert Footman Jr.

The game was a grind for both offenses, especially for Footman, who was facing the PSAC's No. 1-ranked defense in his fifth career start. Four times Millersville pushed into Kutztown territory before stalling. Kutztown capitalized on both of Millersville's turnovers while Millersville could not make Kutztown pay for a second quarter fumble near midfield. The Golden Bears' first quarter touchdown, coming an eight-play, 57-yard drive, followed a Millersville fumble at the Kutztown 43. Early in the fourth quarter, Millersville turned the Golden Bears on downs, and Footman aggressively took a shot downfield on first down. Antuan Lloyd, however, picked off an under thrown pass at the Kutztown 35. For the second time, Kutztown turned a Millersville turnover into a touchdown as Blaine found Kapp down the sideline for 60 yards on third-and-five. That score gave Kutztown a 20-6 lead. Footman and the Marauders responded with a seven-play, 73-yard drive that took just over two minutes. Aided by a pair of face mask penalties, the Marauders quickly marched to the Kutztown 15. On first down, Footman found tight end Eli Workinger across the middle to six, cutting the deficit to 20-13 with nearly 11 minutes remaining.

Footman finished 14-of-28 for 160 yards and rushed for 24, taking five sacks. The Marauders finished with 246 yards of total offense but needed just 29 more in the final minute. Following Workinger's touchdown, Millersville forced three-straight three-and-outs. The Kutztown defense was unyielding as well, holding the Marauders to just two first downs on their final three drives. With 2:22 to play, Millersville took over on its own 34. Footman found Kam Taylor for 18 yards, and a targeting penalty pushed Millersville to the 33. Jaheim Morris ran for four yards on first down to reach the 29. The Marauders would go no further against the Golden Bears' D, however. On second-and-six, Footman was sack for a loss of nine and left the game with an injury. Jack Stagaard was greeted with a sack on third-and-15. On fourth-and-19, Stagaard looked to the end zone for Hakim Melvin, but the pass fell incomplete. Kutztown took three kneel downs to end the game.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• Millersville held Kutztown to its fewest points since the season opener. Kutztown had rushed for more than 200 yards in the three previous games, but Millersville allowed just 126. Millersville was the first team in four weeks to hold Davis-McNeil to fewer than 100 yards rushing. 
• Workinger caught a season-high four passes for 51 yards and scored his first touchdown of the season. 
• Alex Pelegrin, who celebreated Senior Day with Workinger prior to the game, recorded a career-high 10 tackles. 
• Tyler Tate, another of the Marauders' seniors, made eight tackles, a sack and 2 1/2 tackles for loss. 

POSTGAME REACTION FROM COACH J.C. MORGAN
•  On being unable to finish drives in KU territory: "We had some chances to make plays but just didn't finish the drives. We got to the last drive and got knocked back and didn't make a play. The great part was that we had a chance at the end. That's all you can ask for. We just didn't get it done. It was breakdowns here and there. The one thing about Kutztown defensively is that they are always in the right place at the right time. We had some moments and couldn't connect. We'll have to look at the film to see what went wrong but our guys played hard. I'm proud of them."
•  On the team fighting to through the final series: "Those guys have heart. Our team has heart. They keep fighting through situations. They trust the conditioning that they'll have enough stamina to outlast the other side. They are a fun group to watch. They play hard. When you talk about keep fighting back and staying alive, that's a mentality they've developed. That's going to be good for us finishing out the year and moving forward in the future."
.•  On lessons learned by a freshman QB against a good defense: "For Rob, the experience is very valuable. He's been able to get a lot of experience, and it will pay off for him as he continues to develop. We will go back and look at it, and focus on the details. Without seeing the film, I think it's going to be some things here and there to clean up and put ourselves in better position. That starts with me, putting everyone in position to succeed."
.•  On the team playing with confidence: "Their track record this year shows they will be ready to play next week. This was a team that was 0-4 and everyone wrote them off. They continue to get back up, keeping playing, keep preparing. What they've shown me speaks for itself. They'll be ready to finish PSAC East schedule the right way."

UP NEXT
• Millersville is on the road for its final two games of 2022, first traveling to Bloomsburg on Saturday, Nov. 5.