WAUWATOSA, Wis. -- The Rockford University football team fell to Wisconsin Lutheran College, 13-7, in overtime Saturday afternoon in a defensive battle. The game marked the Regents' first overtime contest since a 49-48 loss to the Warriors at Sam Greeley Field in 2024.
After a defensive struggle through the first three quarters, Wisconsin Lutheran opened the scoring late in the third quarter. Following a fake punt that failed from a rushing attempt from
Goodnews Oloyede that lost yardage, it gave the Warriors possession at the Rockford 20-yard line. Roman Morales connected with Elian Ojeda for a 12-yard touchdown to give Wisconsin Lutheran a 7-0 lead as a result.
The Regents answered early in the fourth quarter when
Matthew Hill recorded a strip sack and
Jeremyah Johnson recovered the fumble and returned it 62 yards for a touchdown, tying the game at 7-7.
Hill turned in a record-setting performance, recording five sacks to establish a new Rockford single-game record. He broke the previous mark of 3.5 sacks, set by Mike Roscoe against Blackburn College on Oct. 6, 2001. Hill also finished with six tackles for loss and forced two fumbles. His five sacks brought his season total to 5.5, tying him for eighth in program history for sacks in a single season.
As a team, Rockford recorded eight sacks to establish a new program single-game record, surpassing the previous mark of seven, which the Regents reached against Thomas More University on Nov. 6, 2004, and Maranatha Baptist University on Oct. 26, 2013.
Neither team scored again in regulation, sending the game to overtime tied at 7-7.
Rockford received the ball first in overtime but was unable to score. The Regents turned the ball over on downs after
Cliffton Nunnally Jr. was stopped for a four-yard gain on fourth-and-nine. Wisconsin Lutheran then secured the victory when Morales connected with Ojeda for an eight-yard touchdown reception on third-and-three.
Wisconsin Lutheran held a 202-157 advantage in total offense.
Jamirh Jolly started at quarterback and completed five of 17 passes for 34 yards. Nunnally Jr. took over in the second half, completing eight of 22 passes for 51 yards with two interceptions. He also led Rockford's rushing attack with 40 yards on five carries.
David Chew led the Regents with 32 receiving yards on two catches, while
Napoleon Williams recorded a team-high seven receptions for 22 yards.
Hill finished with nine tackles, six tackles for loss and two forced fumbles to go along with his five sacks.
Joey Alvarez led Rockford with 17 tackles and added two pass breakups. Johnson recorded five tackles, one sack and three tackles for loss in addition to his 62-yard fumble return for a touchdown.
The Regents will return to Sam Greeley Field on Saturday, Oct. 31, for their home season finale against #RV Benedictine University. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Senior Day.
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