'It was a great team win'

FINDLAY – It looked as though the University of Findlay's football team was going to go into halftime facing a two score deficit.Indianapolis – the No. 17-ranked team in Division II – grabbed a 17-7 advantage when Devin Nelson plowed into the end zone from 3 yards out.It was Nelson's second TD of the game.Just 57 seconds remained in the second quarter.But the Oilers made the most of that time, and changed the course of Saturday's season opener against the Greyhounds, coming back for a 38-35 victory at Donnell Stadium."It was a great team win," Findlay quarterback Chase Harrison said afterward. "I just couldn't be more proud."The win was made possible by Findlay hitting a few big plays right after the Greyhounds' second-quarter score.With the offense facing a third and 8 at the UF 37, the Oilers Dominic Bennett took a handoff and raced into Indianapolis secondary, finally being corralled at the Greyhounds 5.Two plays later, Jayden Farmer bounced into the end zone. Indianapolis' lead was cut to 17-14, with just 22 seconds before halftime.It seemed that would be the score going into the break.But then Findlay special teams player Justin Finkbine caused Indianapolis returner Wrigley Franklin to fumble, and the Oilers' Elijah Engleman pounced on the ball at the Greyhounds 38.Back on the field, and with 18 seconds now on the clock, Harrison found receiver Mitch Nielsen for 11 yards to the 27.UF burned its final timeout. Eight seconds remained.With the team in a huddle on the sideline, Findlay receiver Bryan Hunt – who already had a 27-yard touchdown run – called for the ball."I said, 'Throw it my way, I've got it,'" Hunt said.There didn't appear to be a lot of disagreement. "It was a really easy decision, seeing Bryan outside, 1-on-1," Harrison said, "and he's just the type of player that if you give a shot to him, or a 50-50 ball, it's not 50-50 anymore.""Chase isn't wrong," Findlay head coach Kory Allen said.So, Harrison launched a pass to the near side of the end zone. Hunt went up with the Indianapolis defender, and came down with the ball.Touchdown. Findlay led 21-17 with three seconds remaining in the half.Harrison – who was starting his first game for UF after transferring from Ball State – said the play was the result of the whole offense executing."It was great all around by all 10 guys," Harrison said. "It makes my job really easy when 10 guys around me are executing like that."Findlay never lost the lead.But Indianapolis, behind quarterback Gavin Sukup, kept things interesting.Andrew Herron's 31-yard field goal capped the Greyhounds first drive of the third quarter. It was Herron's second field goal, and it brought Indianapolis to within 21-20.After a Findlay punt, Sukup appeared to be leading the Greyhounds to a potential go-ahead score. Running back Garrett Sherrell's 9-yard carry pushed Indianapolis to the Findlay 43, where it had a first down.But a bad snap caused the Greyhounds to lose 22 yards, killing the drive and forcing a punt.With the ball again, the Oilers marched 71 yards in 12 plays, taking more than seven minutes off the clock. With less than 12 minutes left in the game, and with the ball at the Greyhounds 12, Harrison found fullback Tristan Cross over the middle for a touchdown. The Oilers led 28-20.On the ensuing Indianapolis possession, a Sukup pass was deflected and intercepted by the Oilers' Kevin Henderson. Henderson fumbled the ball, but teammate Londyn Claxton recovered, and UF was set up at the Greyhounds' 26.That led to the first college field goal attempt for Findlay's freshman kicker, Zachary Barzd. Barzd hit from 35 yards, extending UF's lead to 31-20 with 6:14 left.Still, Indianapolis didn't fold.Instead, Sukup needed just 2:09 to drive the Greyhounds to a touchdown, finishing the job himself with a 5-yard touchdown run.After Sukup ran in the 2-point conversion, Indianapolis trailed 31-28 with four minutes left."That's an outstanding offense, and an outstanding quarterback," Allen said of the Greyhounds and Sukup. "I think that was evident today (with) his ability to extend plays and make throws."And the last thing Allen and his team wanted was to give the ball back to that offense for a shot to win.But Findlay's ensuing drive didn't have a promising start.To begin with, Bennett—the UF kick returner – only was able to take the kickoff back to his own 7 before getting tackled.Findlay tried to run the ball twice, but ended up losing a yard.Looking at a third and 11 from the 6 with less than three minutes on the clock, Harrison found receiver Denny Furlong deep down the far side. Furlong caught the ball at the 30, and got to the 35 just as the two-minute timeout arrived.It was just Furlong's second catch of the game."That was unbelievable," Allen said. "That's a quarterback making a play, and then, what a catch by Denny Furlong, just proud of them for their execution, fight."On the next play, Findlay tailback Christian Davis provided an exclamation point, for Oilers and their running game.Davis took the handoff, got a block from Cross and broke an ankle tackle."Off to the races," he said.The sophomore galloped 65 yards to the end zone, the final rush in a game where the Oilers collected 272 yards on the ground.Davis finished with 109 yards on 11 carries.Seven players had a carry for the Oilers. Five of them had at least 34 yards."We have multiple backs that are capable of running the ball," Allen said, "and when you can keep fresh guys coming in, what an advantage."Davis said the ball carriers on the team like the setup."There's no selfish back," he said. "Fullback, running back, we all want each other to succeed."Indianapolis found the end zone one more time, when Sukup connected with Cobi Lewis on a 26-yard completion with 19 seconds left.Sukup, the two-time GLVC Player of the Year, finished 21 of 32 passing for 255 yards, two TDs and an interception.Allen said the Oilers did a nice job against a tough player."I was proud of our defense," he said. "Our defense just continued to fight."Trailing by three and needing to recover an onside kick, Herron's attempt was fielded on a bounce by Hunt.It was a fitting finish for the senior receiver, who made the big play at the end of the first half."Bryan's a football player," Allen said. "He's not just a receiver."In his debut, Harrison – who hadn't played in a collegiate game since he was playing with Marshall in 2022 – completed 14 of 19 passes for 155 yards and two scores.He also threw two first-half interceptions, both to Indianapolis linebacker Kaleb Dotson.Harrison said he had hoped to settle in faster than he did. But he played better as the game went on.For that, Harrison credited his teammates."It's easier," he said, "when you have guys around you picking you up."Harrison and the Oilers will be back home next week against Hillsdale. The Greyhounds are 1-1 and will host Ashland. The victory over Indianapolis was Findlay's first under Allen against a top-25 team. The last time the Oilers beat a ranked squad was Nov. 10, 2018 against No. 24 Tiffin.Allen was asked if Saturday's win was his biggest as a head coach."I know this," he said. "It's the biggest win so far in 2025." Indianapolis 0 17 3 15 – 35 Findlay 0 21 0 17 -- 38 SECOND QUARTER IND – Devin Nelson 15 pass from Gavin Sukup (Andrew Herron kick), 14:19 IND – Herron 37 field goal, 6:37 UF – Bryan Hunt 34 run (Zachary Barzd kick), 2:45 IND – Nelson 3 run (Herron kick), :57 UF – Jayden Farmer 1 run (Barzd kick):22 UF – Hunt 27 pass from Chase Harrison (Barzd kick), :03 THIRD QUARTER IND – Herron 31 field goal, 10:26 FOURTH QUARTER UF – Tristan Cross 12 pass from Harrison (Barzd kick), 11:38 UF – Barzd 35 field goal, 6:14 IND – Sukup 5 run (Sukup run), 4:09 UF – Christian Davis 65 run (Barzd kick), 1:49 IND – Cobi Lewis 26 pass from Sukup (Herron kick), :19