A fumble by Wabash College deep in its own territory late in the third quarter, leading to the game-winning touchdown as Allegheny defeated the Little Giants 7-6 in Meadville, Pennsylvania on Saturday afternoon.
On a field that was better suited to a monster truck rally than a college football game, the Little Giants amassed 256 yards of total offense but could not find the endzone until sophomore quarterback Russ Harbaugh (Evansville, IN/Evansville Bosse) connected on a six-yard pass to senior tight end Nick Dawson (LaFontaine, IN/Southwood) to give Wabash a 6-0 lead. But in the swamp that made up the east half of the field, the Little Giants could not convert on the extra point.
The only scoring drive went for 34 yards on nine plays, including a key fourth down conversion. With Wabash facing a fourth-and-one scenario, Harbaugh blasted up the middle on a quarterback keeper to sustain the drive that ended six plays later with the TD strike to Dawson.
Two series later made all the difference in the game for the Little Giants. A punt by Allegheny died at the Wabash seven. Three plays later the football squirted loose on an exchange in the backfield. The Gators recovered at the nine and punched it in on third down to tie the game at 6-6. The extra point attempt by senior kicker Aaron Polack went through the uprights to give Allegheny the lead and the eventual win.
The Little Giants made a final offensive push on the final series of the game. The Little Giants moved the football to the Allegheny 35 yard line with timing running out in the final quarter. Harbaugh and Dawson nearly connected again on a big play that may have given Wabash a chance to kick a game-winning field goal, but the pass was knocked away by Allegheny’s Steve Williams at the last second. The Little Giants fired another shot downfield to senior receiver Josh Bronaugh (New Ross, IN/North Montgomery), who tried to race for the sidelines to stop the clock. But the officials ruled him down just short of the out-of-bounds line, and the clock ran out on a Wabash comeback effort.
Harbaugh finished the day 18-of-27 for 128 yards and one touchdown. He also threw one interception. Freshman Aaron Lafitte (Goodyear, AZ/Ironwood) led the Little Giant receivers with six catches for 52 yards. He also led the ground attack with 83 yards on 21 carries. Allegheny senior quarterback Bubba Smith threw for 74 yards (10-18), including the game-winning pass from nine yards out to Will McMahon. Jon Turner led the Gators with three catches for 20 yards. Jamie Sye finished with 23 carries for 99 yards.
The loss was the first for the Little Giants in North Coast Athletic Conference in 14 outings, moving Wabash to 2-2 for the year and 0-1 in the NCAC. Allegheny ends a three-game losing streak to go to 1-3 and 1-0 in the conference.
The Little Giants will look to regroup next weekend against the Wittenberg Tigers. The game is set to kickoff at 2 p.m. at Hollett Little Giant Stadium in Crawfordsville, Indiana as part of Wabash’s Homecoming.