Football drops Victory Bowl to Olivet Nazarene, ends with eight wins

GREENVILLE, Ill. - The football team qualified for their sixth NCCAA Victory Bowl and were defeated 69-8 by Olivet Nazarene on Saturday.

The Panthers fell behind by three touchdowns after the first quarter and faced a 21-0 deficit.

Olivet Nazarene added three more touchdowns in the second quarter to carry a 42-0 lead at halftime.

In the third quarter, ONU scored two of their three touchdowns on special teams and extended their advantage to 62-0.

Greenville broke up the shutout in the fourth quarter when George Harris moved the Panthers 80 yards on four plays, capped by a one yard touchdown run from Harris. Christian Moss converted the two-point conversion to make the score 62-8.

Before the game ended, Olivet Nazarene scored another touchdown.

Overall, ONU outgained Greenville 503-273 in total offense. The Panthers had a difficult time running the ball, losing 16 yards on 21 carries, but the Panther passing game came up with 289 yards on 20 receptions and 37 attempts.

Harris completed 20-of-34 passes for 289 yards, including a long pass play of 70 yards.

Eric Kranh caught four passes for 105 yards, and Kyler Henson had nine catches for 73 yards. Derreion Twitty had a 52-yard receptions.

After the game, the NCCAA presented the defensive player of the game award to Gavin Jordan of Greenville who had 11 tackles and one and half tackles for a loss of yards.

Bryson Johnson and Anthony Esquivel added quarterback sacks for Greenville.

The Panthers concluded their season with a record of 8-3.