OMAHA NIGHTHAWKS BEAT SACRAMENTO 20-17

Special to Sacramento Sports News

    OMAHA, Neb. (Oct. 2, 2010) - Before a second straight sellout crowd at Rosenblatt Stadium, the Omaha Nighthawks treated their fans to another thrilling win, rallying for the second straight game in the fourth quarter to beat the Sacramento Mountain Lions 20-17 on Saturday night.
    Nighthawks’ quarterback Jeff Garcia found tight end Jeb Putzier wide open in the back of the end zone for a 13-yard touchdown with 4:59 left in the fourth quarter to give the Nighthawks the lead for good. The win wasn’t a sure thing, though, until Sacramento’s Fabrizio Scaccia missed wide right on a 55-yard field goal attempt with 1:46 left in the game. From there, Omaha was able to run out the clock and improve to 2-0 on the year, while the Mountain Lions dropped to 1-2.
    Up until the fourth quarter, the two defenses had dominated what was expected to be an electrifying showdown between two Pro Bowl quarterbacks. Fans just had to wait until the final frame for the offensive fireworks they’d anticipated.

Sacramento's Cory Ross (20) struggles to escape Omaha's Nick Greisen (53) in the Mountain Lion's 20-17 loss to the Nighthawks. Photo by Dennis Hubbard

    The Mountain Lions, trailing 12-10, began the fourth quarter with great field position at the Nighthawks’ 40-yard line because of a 16-yard punt by Omaha. Culpepper needed just eight plays to punch the ball in the end zone, and he did so with a perfectly placed 11-yard toss into the corner of the end zone to wide receiver Taye Biddle with 11:28 to play.
    With 9:07 to play, Garcia and the Nighthawks took possession at their own 26-yard line. Garcia hit Robert Ferguson for 19 yards on 3rd and 18, and then found Biren Ealy for his first career reception, a 44-yarder that set up 1st and Goal at the 8-yard line.

   A false start penalty moved the Nighthawks back five yards, and after two incomplete passes, Garcia scrambled to his left, then to his right and found Putzier standing all alone in the back of the end zone underneath the goal posts. Putzier made the easy grab, and the Nighthawks converted the two-point try when Garcia hit Devard Darling in the back of the end zone for a 20-17 lead.
    "We made some plays at the end there,” Omaha Head Coach Jeff Jagodzinski said. “We're making plays at the most critical times. When you have to make them, we've made them."
    Culpepper and the Mountain Lions wouldn’t go down without a fight, though. Taking control of the ball at his own 32 with 4:53 to play, Culpepper led the Mountain Lions down to the Nighthawks’ 40-yard line on a 23-yard pass to Joe West.
    However, the Nighthawks’ defense stood tall. Cato June sacked Culpepper for a loss of three yards, and Ricardo Colclough broke up a long pass into the end zone to set up fourth down for Sacramento at the 37-yard line. Scaccia’s attempt didn’t miss by much to the right, though, but when it did, Nighthawks fans went into a raucous celebration for the second straight week.
    Early on, Omaha hurt itself numerous times with costly penalties. Quarterback Jeff Garcia connected on a 23-yard pass to Robert Ferguson and a 42-yard pass to Mike Hass on a drive that spanned the end of the first quarter and the beginning of the second quarter, but the Nighthawks had to settle for a 46-yard Jeff Wolfert field goal, in part because of three penalties committed in Mountain Lions’ territory.
    Omaha later drove 57 yards, but Garcia overthrew his receiver and Sacramento’s Ronnie Prude picked off the pass at his own one-yard line. Although the Nighthawks’ fans were disappointed in the drive ending in that manner, Daunte Culpepper’s first snap of the next possession resulted in two more points for Omaha. Culpepper mishandled the snap, then stepped on the back line of the end zone trying to get away from the on-rushing Charles Grant, resulting in a safety and a 5-0 Nighthawks lead.
    Then with 1:51 left in the first half, Garcia hit Darling down the sideline for a 41-yard touchdown and a 12-0 Nighthawks lead. But Culpepper wasn’t about to let the Nighthawks start to pull away, driving his team 69 yards in five plays over the next 1:15, concluding the drive with a 47-yard touchdown pass to Rod Windsor to make it 12-7 at the half.
    The third quarter was dominated by the defenses, as Omaha gained just 28 total yards and Sacramento just 64. Through three quarters, Garcia was 13-for-26 for 191 yards, with one touchdown and two interceptions. The Nighthawks were unable to establish any kind of offensive rhythm, in part due to the Mountain Lions’ defense, but also in part due to their 10 penalties for 136 yards through the first three quarters.
    “It's a lack of discipline, and that falls on me,” Jagodzinski said. “We'll get that fixed - fast.”
    While penalties repeatedly stalled drives for the Nighthawks’ offense, the defense was on top of its game, constantly chasing Culpepper out of the pocket and hammering him for five sacks. Culpepper finished the game 23-of-37 for 212 yards and two touchdowns. Garcia finished 19-of-36 for 283 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
    Mountain Lions’ running back Cory Ross led the team with a game-high 33 rushing yards on 12 carries and 46 receiving yards on seven receptions. He left the game in the third quarter with a head injury, though, and did not return.
    “Cory's really a tremendous player,” Sacramento Head Coach Dennis Green said. “We're just not as productive as we should be on the offensive line. You have to be able to run the ball at times.”
    For the Nighthawks, Ferguson grabbed seven passes for a game-high 94 yards, while Ahman Green carried nine times for 25 yards. Maurice Clarett got his first touches of the season at running back, and he gained 12 yards on five carries.

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