If he had more timeouts to burn, Marshall Sperbeck very well might have used them.
When your team is down on its luck – and down on bodies – you pull out all the stops to reverse karma.
Saturday afternoon, Sperbeck, the Sacramento State football coach, used back-to-back timeouts with a second to play to allow Northern Arizona kicker Matt Myers a bit more time to contemplate his 55-yard field-goal attempt.
Myers missed to the right as the red-hot No. 21-ranked Lumberjacks fell 27-24 to Sac State in a Big Sky Conference thriller at Hornet Stadium.
Sac State halted a 14-game losing streak to ranked teams in stopping Northern Arizona's four-game winning streak.
"The guys were laughing at me on the second time out, saying, 'Coach, he's frozen now,' '' Sperbeck said. "I feel good for the guys. It's a heck of a win for us."
And for the coach. Sperbeck has steadily built the Hornets in his three seasons. The Causeway Classic victory over UC Davis last season – when he was carried off the field – was one thing, but Saturday was clearly Sperbeck's most significant Big Sky triumph.
It moved Sac State to 3-3 in the Big Sky and 3-5 overall, and the Hornets could collectively exhale – finally – after facing a ranked foe for the fifth time this season.
The Hornets prevailed despite a rash of injuries, including being down to one tailback. What's more, defensive backs were shuttled in and out of the game with ailments. True freshman running back Sam McCowan had a career-best 130 yards on 27 carries and a touchdown. He also had a 62-yard kickoff return.
"I felt the pressure to step up because we didn't have any more runners," McCowan said. "I was the only one left. I had to step up. We needed this. We came together, kept battling."
The Hornets held a prolific Lumberjacks team that was 4-1 in the Big Sky coming in (5-2 overall) mostly in check. Turnovers set up 17 of Northern Arizona's points.
Defensively for Sac State, Zach Schrader and Durrell Oliver each had a turnover and defensive lineman Christian Clark had a record day for Sac State. His four sacks are the most for Sac State since it moved up to the Football Championship Subdivision – formerly Division I-AA – in 1993.
Clark looked the part of weary leader, covered in blades of grass and dirt, wearing an expression of profound relief.
"He had a warrior mentality for us," Sperbeck said.
Said Clark: "It's a great feeling. We know it starts with us on the defensive line. We've been so close in games this year. Today, we played a full game. We needed a win and we needed it bad."
Sac State had glowing moments in every facet. It did not allow a sack, and it committed a season-low two penalties. Jason Smith overcame two early interceptions to pass for 210 yards, including a beauty of a 42-yard touchdown to Brandyn Reed.
Though Myers, the Lumberjacks' kicker, was frustrated for going wide right, his counterpart, Chris Diniz, is still dealing with perfection. He kicked field goals of 22 and 23 yards, meaning he is 9 for 9 on the season. He is the only kicker in the country at this level – of those attempting at least five – to hit all of his attempts.
Call The Bee's Joe Davidson, (916) 321-1280.
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