By Tim Glon
FRANKLIN, Ind. -- Ohio Northern rallied from a 16-0 halftime deficit to post a 27-22 victory at Franklin (Ind.) in the First Round of the NCAA III Football Playoffs on a wet and snowy Saturday afternoon at Faught Stadium.
The Polar Bears improve to 9-2 on the season and advance to the Second Round next Saturday, while the Grizzlies end their season with an 8-3 record.
Senior Justin Magazine ran 36 times for 153 yards and two touchdowns and sophomoreRicardo Johnson completed 13-of-17 passes for 190 yards and a TD to lead Ohio Northern.
Franklin was led by Chase Burton, who completed 21-of-44 passes for 290 yards and two TDs.
The Grizzlies scored in their first three possessions, going 4-for-4 on 4th down in the process, to take a quick 16-0 lead.
But the Polar Bears regained the momentum just before halftime, and despite missing a short field goal in the waning seconds, ONU was still alive despite trailing 16-0 at intermission.
Heavy snow began to fall during halftime and Northern's players responded.
"I thought our guys showed tremendous resolve," ONU head coach Dean Paul said. "We have been down before this season and our guys knew how to respond. We just kept fighting and got on a roll in the second half and beat a very good football team."
ONU scored on its next three possessions and out-gained FC 226-6 in total offense during that span.
Johnson hit senior Devon Price on a 79-yard touchdown pass on ONU's opening possession of the second half to make it a 16-7 game with 11:53 left in the third period.
On ONU's ensuing possession, Johnson scrambled in from three yards out and it was 16-14 with 4:29 left in the third period.
Magazine scored on a 24-yard run to cap a 62-yard drive to put the Polar Bears ahead 21-16 with 13:11 left in the game.
"Our players got excited to play in the snow," ONU head coach Dean Paul said. "We talk about not worrying about things you cannot control and they embraced the inclement weather."
Franklin regained the lead on a 20-yard run by Ty 'Ronte Pyles with 10:20 left in the game. FC's 2-point conversion try failed and the Grizzlies led 22-21.
Northern answered by marching 72 yards in 11 plays and took 5:11 off the clock. The score came on a 5-yard TD run by Magazine to make it 27-22 with 5:02 left.
ONU's 2-point try failed and it remained a 27-22 game.
"We never give up," Magazine said. "No matter what the score is, we will not give up. That's we do as a team. We keep fighting, keep fighting, keep fighting. I give all the credit to our offensive line. They did a great job of creating running space all day."
After an exchange of possessions, FC took over at its own 1-yard line with 3:11 left in the contest.
The Grizzlies got to their own 40, but a sack by juniors Scot Rapps and Mark Aguliar on a 4th and 10 gave ONU the ball at the FC 29-yard line with 2:15 left.
Ohio Northern then ran out the clock and improved to 4-0 in First Round games in the NCAA III Playoffs.
"We knew we needed to step up our play on defense in the second half," Rapps said. "We knew we were getting closer as the game wore on. We tightened it up and got the job done at the end when we needed to."
Franklin took the opening kickoff and marched 76 yards in 19 plays, taking 7:25 off the clock, to take 3-0 lead on a 21-yard field goal by Stephen Colligan.
Burton hit Mason Deal on an 89-yard touchdown pass with 4:19 left in the opening quarter to give the Grizzlies a 10-0 lead.
FC made it 16-0 when Burton hit Deal on a 20-yard TD pass on a fourth-and-6 play with 13:56 left in the opening half.
The Polar Bears had two opportunities to score in the first half, but an interception and a missed field goal thwarted both chances.
Price caught six passes for 117 yards and a score and ran the ball eight times for 46 yards and a TD.
"Our top goal this season was to make the playoffs," Price said. "We kept battling today and got a win. Now we want to keep it going next week."
The Polar Bears out-gained the Grizzlies 435-395 in total offense and had a 245-105 advantage on the ground.
ONU held the ball for 22:20 in the second half and 35:06 for the contest.
Northern will play either No. 3-ranked Wisconsin-Oshkosh or St. Scholastica (Minn.), who will play at 4 pm EST on Saturday. The site and time of next week's game will be announced on Sunday.