But the Concordia Cobbers have been there and done that – 16 times. Augsburg has been there and done it – once. In 1928.
None of that mattered Saturday afternoon, as the Auggies made a strong bid for their first title in 69 years with a 13-10 victory over Concordia Saturday afternoon at Anderson-Nelson Field.
Martin Hlinka’s 29-yard field goal with 17 seconds left was the game-winner. Hlinka, a junior from Bratislava, Slovakia, tied the game with nine minutes left with a 30-yarder.
"We had our chance today," said Concordia coach Jim Christopherson, referring to the Cobbers’ MIAC title hopes. "And that may have been our last chance. Augsburg may go all the way. But they still have to play Bethel."
With two weeks to go in the regular season, Augsburg now holds a one-game lead over the Cobbers, St. Thomas, Bethel and St. John’s.
Two weeks ago, the Cobbers held a one-game lead atop the MIAC standings. But last week’s 20-12 loss to St. John’s and this loss to Augsburg have left the Cobbers reeling.
"We are shocked," said Cobbers junior quarterback Ethan Pole. "It was just a lot of mistakes today that killed us. Turnovers took a lot out of us. Turnovers can do that."
The Cobbers turned the ball over six times – on four Pole interceptions and two fumbles.
A fumble with five minutes to go led to Hlinka’s winning kick. With 5:48 left and the game tied, the Cobbers took over at their own 20 following a missed 34-yarder by Hlinka.
The Cobbers, who struggled with their rushing attack the entire game, showed the beginnings of a game-winning drive of their own when running back Len Crouse battered his way for back-to-back runs of 15 and 10 yards. Crouse fumbled on the next play, however, and Augsburg’s Joe Stanton fell on it at the Concordia 43 with 5:05 left.
Augsburg then used 13 plays and nearly the rest of the game to move in for the kill. Hlinka’s winning kick gave the Auggies a school-record seven wins (achieved just once before, in 1973) and sole possession of first place in the league.
"You can’t say that at Augsburg in too many sports," said Auggies quarterback Derrin Lamker about being No. 1. "Its great. I thought it was going to be a shoot-out today, but our defense did the job."
A shoot-out was expected, but Augsburg’s defense was able to choke off the Cobbers’ ground game and the Concordia defense – for the most part – held its own against the Auggies’ powerful passing attack. Augsburg finished with a 333-183 edge in total yards.
"We lost the game offensively today," Christopherson said. "We didn’t score the points necessary to win. When you keep turning the ball over, you aren’t going to be very effective."
Two interceptions by the Cobbers and a blocked punt helped Concordia start four first-half possessions inside the Augsburg 37. Yet, all the Cobbers managed to come away with was Clayton Horgen’s 31-yard field goal midway through the first quarter.
The Auggies later answered with a 14-play, 98-yard drive to lead 7-3 at halftime. Lamker capped the drive with a 4-yard scoring pass to Scott Hvistendahl.
The Cobbers’ best drive of the day gave them a 10-7 lead late in the third quarter. Concordia went 91 yards on 11 plays and scored on Pole’s one-yard sneak.
Augsburg began the fourth quarter by moving from its own 23 to the Concordia 12 in 13 plays to set up Hlinka’s tying field goal with 9:12 to go.
"It seems like Augsburg is a team of destiny," Christopherson said. "They seemed to catch all the breaks today."
Concordia 3 0 7 0 –10
Augsburg 0 7 0 6 –13
C–Horgen 31 FG
A–Hvistendahl 4 pass from Lamker (Hlinka kick)
C–Pole 1 run (Horgen kick)
A–Hlinka 30 FG
A–Hlinka 29 FG
TEAM STATISTICS
CC A
First downs 11 23
Rushes-yards 34-105 39-82
Yards passing 78 251
Total yards 183 333
Passing 7-20-4 30-50-2
Punts-average 5-40 4-23
Fumbles-lost 3-2 3-0
Penalties-yards 2-29 3-10
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING: C, Cruse 14-78, Ludtke 15-28. A, Hvistendahl 4-45, Peterson 11-36, Anthony 7-13.
PASSING: C, Pole 7-20-4 78. A, Lamker 30-49-2 251, Joseph 0-1-0.
RECEIVING: Con, Langemo 2-44, Howell 2-17, Rice 2-12, Ludtke 1-5. A, Hvistendahl 12-113, Schultz 10-72, Peterson 3-32, Hamer 4-28, Drier 1-6.