SEARCY, Ark. — The final 22 seconds of the NCAA Division II Super Region 3 semifinal between Central Missouri and Harding came with a whirlwind of emotions.
First, the Mules capped off a 10-play, 69-yard drive with a six-yard touchdown pass from redshirt junior quarterback Zach Zebrowski to redshirt senior wide receiver Arkell Smith.
Then, Bisons junior defensive lineman Gage Price blocked UCM sophomore kicker Luke Dobson’s extra point. The miss was the difference in a 35-34 Mules loss Saturday, Nov. 25, at First Security Stadium.
“We were going to kick the field goal,” Central Missouri head coach Josh Lamberson said. “We felt like that was the right all in the right moment. Unfortunately, we didn’t get it. It didn’t go our way. That’s life. We’ll learn from that. That’s a tough pill to swallow.”
Price said he had the possibility of defending a two-point conversion in the back of its mind, matching a scenario Central Missouri (11-2) attempted in its 38-37 loss to Pittsburg State on Sept. 16.
Dobson and the field goal unit took the field instead, setting up the block Price had his eye on all game. It marked Dobson’s first missed PAT on the year, going 68-of-67. He appeared in 11 games while starting 10.
“When I saw their field goal unit go out, their kicker was actually kicking kind of low, I had a good chance,” Price said. “The call was over right victory. We left the right side up. I had big Wes [Wesley Coleman] beside me to help me with the guard. I just had to time it right. I tried to time the snap. I got off the ball. I felt them push the guard back. I tried to time it right and put my hands up. I just smacked the ball.”
Central Missouri trailed 35-21 with 6:52 remaining. The Mules proceeded to produce a three-play, 95-yard drive that concluded with a 87-yard touchdown connection between Zebrowski and Smith.
UCM’s defense forced Harding (12-0) to punt for the first time on the next drive. Beginning with the ball at the Central Missouri 31, Zebrowski slowly began to lead the Mules down field.
The possession ended with his third touchdown pass to Smith.
“Down 14 with six minutes left with the ball around the five, there were some people behind the endzone talking,” Zebrowski said. “I said ‘watch this.’ I knew our team steps up when moments happen like that. Arkell Smith, you saw him, that’s why he leads the country in receiving yards. He’s just a guy. He’s just a dude. Those are the guys that I feel most bad for, the seniors ... It’s a terrible way to go out. I don’t think there’s any other way we’d want to go out together. Just fighting until the last whistle. That’s been the motto of our team all year.”
The Mules took a 7-0 lead on the game’s opening drive, striking through a 30-yard connection between Zebrowski and redshirt senior Zion Perry.
Harding answered with a 14-play, 68-yard drive that concluded with a one-yard touchdown run from sophomore quarterback Cole Keylon.
The Bisons had two additional scores ahead of halftime, arriving on a one-yard run from junior Blake Delacruz and 38-yard run from junior running back Chauncey Martin.
Combined with a 5-yard touchdown between Zebrowski and Smith, Central Missouri trailed 21-14 at halftime.
The second half opened with the Mules defense forcing a turnover on downs at their own 22.
Central Missouri capitalized taking the ball down to Harding’s goalline, before failing to convert on downs itself.
The Bisons responded with a three-play, 94-yard drive that concluded with a 89-yard touchdown run from Martin to go up 28-14 with 4:16 remaining in the third quarter.
The Mules shortened the gap back to a possession prior to the frame ending with a 28-yard touchdown pass from Zebrowski to redshirt sophomore wide receiver Michael Fitzgerald, making it a 28-21 game ahead of the final 15 minutes.
“What a game, what a day,” Harding head coach Paul Simmons said. “Central Missouri has an excellent football team. They’re the most dangerous offense we’ve seen all year. It was, I guess, an instant classic … I’m disappointed a little bit with how many times we gave them chances. I felt like we had chances to put the game away in the fourth quarter. We didn’t do it. We let a great opponent and a great offense hang around that many times.”
Harding chopped the clock away to open the fourth with a 16-play, 69-yard drive that concluded with a 12-yard run from Delacruz to make it 35-21 ahead of the final 6:52.
Zebrowski and Smith took 43 seconds to connect for the second time of the day. The defense responded, leading to the stop that forced the Bisons to punt.
“Throughout the game, it was about making changes and correcting those as a unit through each drive,” Central Missouri redshirt junior linebacker Curtis Appleton II said. “Again, we believe in our offense and our offense believes in us. After they scored, we knew we just had to get one more stop to get our offense back on the field so they could score.”
The Bisons ran for 384 yards and five touchdowns on 59 carries, averaging 6.5 yards per game. Delacruz ran for 154 yards on 34 carries while Chauncey ran for 123 yards on four carries.
Appleton led UCM with 13 tackles (8 solo, 5 assists) to go along with 12 from redshirt junior Noah Blair (6 solo, 6 assists) and 10 from redshirt sophomore linebacker Isaac Montgomery (2 solo, 8 assists).
Redshirt junior linebacker Cale Miller tallied the Mules’ lone tackle for loss.
Zebrowski completed 34-of-44 passes for 425 yards and five touchdowns, anchored by Smith’s nine receptions for 150 yards and three touchdowns. Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jack Pospisil had nine catches for 66 yards.
Zebrowski also ran for 94 yards on 16 tries. He was sacked once for a loss of five yards.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the individuals I’ve been associated with,” Lamberson said. “From the coaching staff, to our players with how special each of them have been to come together and have committed to each other, sacrificed for each other and loved each other for a group that was ultimately picked seventh in the conference coming into the season … to finish 11-2 and have two one-point losses, it's tough.
"It’s going to sting right now. It’s going to sting for a while.”
Joe Andrews can be reached at 660-747-8123.
