For the second year in a row, Colorado School of Mines’ national title hopes were dashed in McKinney, Texas.
Unable to stop the run, the Orediggers fell to Harding 38-7 on Saturday at McKinney ISD Stadium. It was Maine’s second one-sided loss in the championship game in as many years after being blasted by Ferris State 41-14 at the same stage last December.
Maines scored on first possession but was held wide the rest of the way as the Bison’s three-man attack with the flexing bone passed the ball at will. Harding, the top rushing team in Division II entering the game, finished with 502 yards on the ground for a whopping 8.7 yards per carry while attempting just two passes.
“They were the problem more than anything else (with their triple option),” Mainz coach Piet Sterbeek told reporters after the match. “Because of their offense, it’s a unique offense where you have to change your rules defensively. Tackles are always at an all-time high with this type of offense. There were times when we thought we got stops in the backfield (and we didn’t).”
The Orediggers struck first when quarterback John Matocha took off and found tailback Noah Roper in the flat for a 2-yard TD pass to go up 7-0 in less than six minutes.
But that was all Mainz fans had to cheer about.
The Bison returned a score on their opening drive as well, a 75-yard drive by Mines with eight rushing plays capped by a 10-yard run from Jhalen Spicer. Harding’s ability to efficiently grind the ball down the field foreshadowed what would happen the rest of the afternoon.
What. a. catch.
Keylon connects with Wallace to push the Bison 35 yards on the third drive. #D2FB s
Espno/ @harding_FB pic.twitter.com/cn0rgzb1zx – NCAA Division II (@NCAD) December 16, 2023
“Our defense has been great all year, and to withstand this type of offense with this type of elite quarterback was unbelievable,” Harding coach Paul Simmons told reporters. “We were not hesitant, and we were all composed (after the opening Mines TD).”
After Maines’ kick, another Harding-heavy drive ate up 10:23 of the clock and gave the Bison a 14-7 lead with 4:30 remaining in the first half on a 10-yard run by Braden Guy.
On Maines’ next drive, Landon Walker’s 52-yard touchdown run put the Orediggers in the red zone. But four plays later, Walker was stuffed on fourth-and-1. A botched fourth-down conversion proved to be the game’s early turning point.
Harding then took control with a six-play, 90-yard drive, all plays, capped by Gay’s 9-yard score to increase the tally to 21-7 late in the first half. Maine’s defense, which allowed just 64.4 yards per game and held five opponents to 10 or fewer yards on the ground, was on its heels and in serious trouble.
“Once they get forward, they don’t force you into panic mode, they force you to register,” Sterbeek said. “I felt like we could get some stops (to get back into the game), but things didn’t go our way.”
The Orediggers drove into Bison territory on the final possession of the half, but Jacob Click missed a 49-yard field goal on the final play of the quarter. Harding then came out and punched Maines in the mouth to start the second half, with Gay ripping off a 73-yard TD run to put the Bison up 28-7.
Maines turned the ball over on downs again on its next possession when Matocha’s pass to Max McLeod fell incomplete on fourth-and-6 in Bison territory. From there, the defeat began. Harding scored a field goal and another rushing TD on their next two drives to pull away while the Orediggers’ offense didn’t produce big plays and their defense could never figure out Harding’s triple option in front of a crowd of 12,552.
Even Simons was surprised by his team’s complete control over Mainz.
“I did not expect this kind of match to come,” he said.
Matocha’s career in Maine unceremoniously ended on the Orediggers’ final drive when the all-time TD leader in college football and the 2022 Harlon Hill Award winner threw an interception on his final pass from the Harding 4-yard line.
Maines, a balanced offensive team all year, managed just 71 yards rushing on top of 270 yards. The RMAC champion Orediggers finished 14-1 while the Bison finished 15-0 en route to their first national title, and Blake Delacruz set a championship game record with 212 yards rushing.
Want more sports news? Sign up for Sports Omelette to get all our analysis on Denver teams.
The Colorado School of Mines had a strong season, but unfortunately fell short in the Division II national title game against Harding University. Despite their efforts, Harding University emerged victorious with a final score of (insert score here). The loss was undoubtedly a disappointing outcome for the Colorado School of Mines, but their journey to the national title game was a testament to their talent and determination throughout the season.