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By David Boyce  |  Facebook Photo Album

TOPEKA, Kan. - The momentum shifted heavily against Northwest Missouri State. Washburn could smell a shockwave-type upset, knocking off the No. 1 ranked team and ending the longest current winning streak in all of college football.
 
The Ichabods had just scored a touchdown and forced a fumble. They got the ball to the Northwest 12 and faced fourth and one midway through the third quarter. Trailing by five points, Washburn went for it. Northwest's defense rose to the occasion and stopped the Ichabods.
 
Amazingly, the Bearcats won that pivotal moment playing without senior defensive linemen Caleb Mather, Bobby Gruenloh and Ben Spaeth, who all missed the game because of injuries.
 
"It was huge, absolutely huge," Northwest coach Rich Wright said of the defensive stop. "We told our kids on the sidelines (during a timeout) about the long count. I said you got to wait and go on movement. I am proud of those young kids who started on the defensive front tonight. I had four kids tonight who collectively started one game in their college career, and that was last week."
 
After the stop, Northwest regained control of the game and hung on to win 20-14 over Washburn Thursday evening at Yager Stadium. Northwest, 2-0, increased its winning streak to 32 straight games. Washburn dropped to 1-1.
 
"We needed this. We needed this," said Northwest senior running back Cameron Wilcox, who finished with 69 yards and one touchdown. "I trust my guys, and they trust us, and we came out with a win."
 
At the start of the third quarter, Northwest put together an efficient 78-yard drive that culminated with a 14-yard touchdown pass from senior Zach Martin to junior Shawn Bane to increase the Bearcats' lead to 12-0.
 
"That team (Washburn) is a good football team," said Northwest senior quarterback Zach Martin, who completed 30 of 40 passes for 238 yards and a touchdown. "They are physical. It is good for us to play in a long football game. Everyone has to play for the whole distance. We will have experience playing in this type of game when it comes to crunch time."
 
Undaunted by the 12-point deficit, Washburn answered with a touchdown drive and closed to 12-7. On the ensuing kickoff, the Ichabods forced a fumble and got the ball at Northwest 20 with 8:50 left in the third quarter.
 
After the scaring moment that saw Northwest nearly lose the lead midway through the third quarter, the Bearcats settled down. Washburn stopped Northwest, but the Ichabods returned the favor.
 
Early in the fourth quarter, Northwest put together a 10-play, 87-yard scoring drive. The big play was a 42-yard run by senior Jordan Grove that put the ball at the 3. Three plays later, Northwest scored when Wilcox leaped into the end zone. A two-point conversion gave Northwest a 20-7 lead.
 
"We had to get something going," said Grove, who finished with 65 yards rushing. "We were moving the ball in the first half, but we had lulls and couldn't keep it going. Finally, in the second half, the O-line dug in and were physical and opened some holes for us and we took advantage of it."
 
Washburn, though, refused to go away. The Ichabods scored a touchdown with 4:32 left and pulled to within six.
 
Northwest still needed to make a few plays to secure the win. Wilcox got it started with a 32-yard burst up the middle that put the ball at Washburn's 48. The Ichabods once again tightened their defense and forced a punt with 2:40 left.
 
An overly enthusiastic Washburn team ran into the Northwest punter. The 5-yard penalty gave Northwest a first down. Grove and Wilcox put together two nice runs to give the Bearcats another first down with 1:43 left.
 
"Those boys up there really blocked," Wilcox said of his offensive line. "They put themselves on the line for us. We got to follow them and make plays, and that is what we did."
 
Washburn got the ball back at its 14 with 18 seconds left. It was highly improbable that the Ichabods could go 86 yards with so little time left. And they didn't.
 
For the first time in nearly two years, Northwest needed to make plays in the waning minutes to win a football game. The last time the Bearcats had a single-digit victory was Sept. 26, 2015, when they beat Central Oklahoma 23-16 at Bearcat Stadium.
 
"Moving forward, we are looking to put together a complete game next week," Wright said.
 
In the first half, Northwest faced one of its sternest challenge in the last four years and still went into halftime with a 5-0 lead. And that speaks to the formidable defense by the Bearcats.
 
Early on, there was no indication that the first half was going to be so close. Northwest stopped the Ichabods on three plays and forced a punt. Starting at its 21, Northwest methodically moved down field and got inside the 10.
 
Facing fourth and goal from the 2, Northwest was stopped one-yard shy of the goal line. The stop showed that the Washburn defense was determined to match the Bearcats.
 
But Northwest defense is special. The Bearcats shutout a high-powered Emporia State team last week and quickly made a winning play against Washburn. On Washburn's next offensive play, the Bearcats tackled Washburn running back in the end zone for a safety.
 
"We knew we were going to be young on the defensive line while we are trying to get everybody healthy," said junior defensive end Austen Eskew. "You just got to get off the ball, get in your gap and do your assignment. That is what coach preached all week.
 
"We had some busts, but we are young and battled hard, and that can overcome a lot of errors. I feel this was a big confidence booster for the young guys, including myself, without those three seniors we have there. They were leaders all week, and they did what they could to get us ready."
 
Northwest got the ball back in good field position but was unable to move the ball. That became the theme for the rest of the first half. Northwest went into the second quarter ahead 2-0.
 
The Bearcats finally put together a scoring drive midway through the second quarter. They had to earn each yard. It took Northwest 12 plays and 6 minutes, 32 seconds to go 34 yards, setting up a 29-yard field goal by junior Brett Garner with 5:36 left in the second quarter.
 
A quarterback change by Washburn ignited the Ichabods' best drive of the game. Washburn started at its 50 and moved to the 27 before the drive stalled. Washburn attempted a 47-yard field goal that fell short.
 
The defense by Northwest was simply stellar. The Bearcats allowed only 43 total yards and three first downs in the first half.