Collapse of special teams led ‘Yotes to fall short against Montana
Losing once in the final minutes of the game is hard enough, doing it twice in two straight weeks is devastating.
That’s just what the University of South Dakota football team has done after what head coach Joe Glenn described as a “devastating loss,” losing 31-27 to the University of Montana.
“Just like last week, the loss was devastating to the team, staff, fans,” Glenn said. “We gift wrapped it for them. I guess you can say they made the plays to win, but our kids outplayed them.”
The story last week was the collapse of the defense, giving up 38 points to Youngstown State, which included a touchdown with under 20 seconds to go.
The story today was a collapse on special teams. USD took a 27-24 lead with 1:48 remaining. With the defense shutting Montana out in the second half, victory looked minutes away. That quickly changed when Grizzlies sophomore wide receiver Eillis Henderson busted a 98-yard kick return touchdown on the ensuing kickoff.
“It was perfect blocking, all I had to do was run straight,” Henderson said.
Glenn said he takes the blame for even kicking it to Henderson.
“That’s my fault, it never should’ve happened,” Glenn said. “Should’ve never kicked it to (Henderson.) I know that, and I didn’t change it.”
Henderson was a thorn in the Coyotes’ back all afternoon, racking up 188 yards receiving and two touchdowns, including a 71-yard touchdown in the second quarter. In the end, the sophomore wideout racked up 315 total yards and three touchdowns.
First-year running back Trevor Bouma was fighting injuries all afternoon, but still picked 147 yards on the ground and a score. The low-point of the game for him came with seven minutes remaining in the game. The Coyotes were up 24-17 with the ball when Bouma put the ball on the ground and Sioux Falls native Matt Hermanson took advantage by returning it 35 yards for the score.
“Trevor will be the first to tell you that you can’t do that,” Glenn said.
Two bright spots for the Coyotes Saturday afternoon were senior safety Aaron Swift and junior wide receiver Josh Vander Maten. Swift got on the board 55 seconds into the game with a 60-yard interception return.
“(Tyler) Starr got some pressure on the quarterback,” Swift said. “We were in cover two and I made a play on the ball.”
Vander Maten found the endzone for the second straight week, coming down with a two-yard touchdown catch with 9:22 left in the second quarter. Vander Maten also displayed his versatility, going in at running back for a couple series with Bouma and backup first-year Jordan Roberts dealing with nagging injuries.
“He made a lot of plays for us,” Glenn said. “He’s a good competitor and a good man.”
Up next is in-state rival South Dakota State. It will be interesting to see how the Coyotes bounce back after two straight gut-wrenching losses.
“These tough losses are making us stronger and we’re going to bounce back next week,” sophomore quarterback Kevin Earl said. “I can promise you every guy on this team is going to be ready to go next week.”
