Box Score

ERIE, PA – Quarterback Pat Smith (Hollidaysburg/Hollidaysburg) led a 73-yard drive with 47 seconds left in the fourth quarter that resulted in a game-tying 18-yard field goal by Brett Ullman (Baltimore, Md./Perry Hall) and Teddy Blakeman (Penn Hills/Penn Hills) plunged in from five yards out on the first overtime possession to help IUP to a come-from-behind 35-28 victory over Mercyhurst at Tullio Field in Erie on Saturday afternoon.

The win was the 497th in the history of the IUP football program, as the Crimson Hawks approach the milestone of 500 all-time wins.

The Crimson Hawks (3-2, 2-1) rallied from 10 points back with 7:57 remaining in the fourth to tie the score at 28-28 as time expired.

A 37-yard touchdown pass from Anthony Vendemia to Trevor Kennedy put the Lakers ahead 28-18 with 7:57 remaining. Vendemia, who was filling in for an injured Trevor Rearick, completed 15-of-29 passes for 224 yards and three scores in his first career start.

Smith, who had entered for injured starter Mike Box (Lawrenceville, GA/Collins Hill) at the end of the third quarter, then engineered his first scoring drive, driving the Crimson Hawks 70 yards in 4:51 for a touchdown. The most important play on the drive came on a fourth-and-one at the IUP 39, as Harvie Tuck (Akron, OH/St. Vincent-St. Mary) converted with a three-yard rush to keep the drive alive.

After a sack and a one-yard run by James Johnson (Philadelphia/Glen Mills) put the Crimson Hawks in a third-and-16, Smith went to work, first completing a pass to Javon Rowan (Erie/Cathedral Prep) for 18 yards, before finding Terrill Barnes (Gettysburg/Gettysburg) for 23 and Jon Ditto (Monroeville/Gateway) for five more to get to the Lakers 18-yard line.

Smith then used his legs, scrambling out of the pocket for 17 yards before handing the ball off to Johnson for the one-yard score. Ullman's extra point made it 28-25 Mercyhurst with 3:02 remaining.

The Crimson Hawks would then try an onside kick, however the Lakers recovered at the IUP 48 and would then get a 13-yard run on first down to seemingly end the game.

The IUP defense would then toughen up, forcing the Lakers into a fourth-and-one at the Crimson Hawks 26-yard line. After a timeout, Mercyhurst decided to go for it, but Vendemia's pass to Kennedy fell incomplete as IUP took over with 47 seconds remaining at its own 26-yard line.

After an incomplete pass on first down, Smith found Rowan for a 21-yard gain out to the 47. He then found Ben Simmen (Oakdale/West Allegheny) on a 28-yard catch-and-run down to the Mercyhurst 25-yard line with less than 20 seconds remaining.

Smith then went back to his legs again, scrambling for 10 yards to the 15, then for 14 more yards on the next play where he was pushed out at the Lakers one-yard line with 1.4 seconds remaining. Scrambling to set the offense up before the time ran out, Smith spiked the ball with one second left on the clock, bringing in Ullman for the game-tying field goal as time expired.

After Mercyhurst won the toss and elected to take the ball second in overtime, it took just four plays for the Crimson Hawks to score, with Blakeman getting the five-yard touchdown run for the go-ahead score.

The IUP defense started off with a sack of Vendemia in overtime, as Mark Jackson (Canton, OH/McKinley) and Stephen Meadows (Spotsylvania/James Monroe) got to him on first down for a six-yard loss. Vendemia then picked up those lost yards and then some, connecting with Steve Yarbrough for 18 yards to the 13-yard line.

After a complete pass that lost two yards, Vendemia's next two throws fell incomplete to force a fourth-and-12. After a Lakers timeout, Vendemia found Yarbrough for 13 yards for a first down, setting Mercyhurst up with a first-and-goal at the IUP two-yard line.

The Crimson Hawks then came through, as Larry Gooden (McKeesport/McKeesport) tackled Allen Jones in the backfield for a four-yard loss to the six. Meadows and Errol Brewster (Harlem, NY/Springbrook (MD)) then sacked Vendemia for a three-yard loss on second down to give the Lakers a third-and-goal from the nine.

Vendemia looked for his go-to receiver in Kennedy on the next two plays, but IUP broke up both passes with Randy Louis (Washington, DC/Quince Orchard) and Jackson coming up with the big plays to seal the win and the huge comeback for the Crimson Hawks.

After totaling just three sacks in the first four games of the season, the Crimson Hawks defense came through with seven against the Lakers, with six players getting into the action, including a pair from Akeem Smith (Philadelphia/Frankford).

Jackson and Carl Thornton (Beaver Falls/Beaver Falls) continued their inspired play, as both finished with eight total tackles and a sack, while Jackson had three tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Alex Berdahl, Brewster and Meadows each added a sack.

Mercyhurst scored the game's first two touchdowns, getting a 62-yard halfback pass from Richie Sanders to Paris Bruner to open the game and then capitalized on an IUP turnover with a two-yard pass from Vendemia to Ryan Bartizal.

Tuck's two-yard run in the second quarter brought it to 14-7, while the Mercyhurst lead increased in the third with a 53-yard pass from Vendemia to Bruner before a 23-yard Ullman field goal made it 21-10 Lakers entering the fourth.

IUP got another touchdown run from Tuck early in the fourth, followed by a Smith pass to Rowan for a two-point conversion, to cut the deficit to 21-18 with 13:24 left. The touchdown pass from Vendemia to Kennedy came 5:27 later, setting up the game's final exhilarating minutes.

Kennedy finished the game with five catches for 102 yards and a touchdown while Bruner added two catches, both for scores, for 115 yards. Jones was the leading ground gainer for the Lakers, finishing with 72 yards as the Crimson Hawks defense allowed just 77 yards rushing on the day.

Offensively for IUP, Tuck just missed getting his eighth-straight 100-yard day, finishing with 99 yards on 28 carries and those two scores. Johnson came off the bench to run for 47 on nine carries while Smith had 34 and Blakeman 19 yards.

Smith finished 7-of-11 through the air for 104 yards and a touchdown while Box went 9-of-15 for 96 yards and an interception.

Simmen was IUP's leading receiver with four catches for 70 yards, with Ditto and Tuck each grabbing three and Rowan and Barnes adding two catches apiece.

The Crimson Hawks are on the road again next weekend, traveling to Clarion to face the Golden Eagles, who just posted their first win of the year against Lock Haven today. Kickoff is set for 3:00 p.m.