Mistakes costly in 17-point loss to second-ranked Reivers

Garden City, KS-Tom Minnick may want to burn the film of this one.  

Hunter Watson threw for 138 yards and ran for 150 more, Bryant Williams caught seven balls for 80 yards and a touchdown, and No. 2 Iowa Western blew past Garden City, 44-27 Saturday afternoon at Broncbuster Stadium. It was Garden City's second straight loss, dropping them to 1-2 overall.  

This game was riddled with mistakes by both squads, especially on special teams. In fact, Minnick had to burn all three of his first-half timeouts because he didn't have enough personnel on the field on fourth down. And even beyond than that, the first few minutes of the first quarter pretty much epitomized Garden City's afternoon.  

On the first play from scrimmage, Watson completed a pass to Williams, who raced 56 yards untouched up the left sideline for a touchdown. Then, after a Broncbuster punt, the Reivers struck again, this time Watson called his own number and sprinted for an 81-yard score that put the defending national champions up 14-0 less than three minutes into the contest. 

Credit Garden City though, who responded the next time they had the ball, driving 57 yards in 11 plays. On second-and-11 at the Iowa Western 30, freshman quarterback Jalen Daniels ran for 15 yards and a first. Five plays later, Mercer transfer Fred Davis plowed in from three yards out, trimming the Reivers' lead to 14-7 with 6:20 to go in the period. 

Later in the quarter, the Broncbusters had a chance to tie it following an Iowa Western three-and-out. But Davis's 47-yard run on first down was wiped out due to offsetting penalties.  Garden City eventually had to punt.

When the home team got the ball back with less than two minutes to play in the first, Daniels was strip sacked by Walt Gray. Ahmad Johnson, who had a game-high nine tackles, recovered at the Garden City 20. Four plays later, Williams found the end zone again, this time from three yards out to give the Reivers a 21-7 advantage.  

Even after Minnick's squad answered on the first play of the second period when James Jones, who hit the century mark on the ground for a third straight week, sprinted 66 yards for a touchdown to make it a seven-point game, the Broncbusters could never get over the hump. With another chance to tie, Garden City went three-and-out. After the Reivers punted again, the Broncbusters failed on a fourth-and-2 at the Iowa Western 37.  

But nothing hurt more than a sequence midway through the second quarter when a snap went over Reivers' punter Max Bartachek's head giving the Broncbusters the ball at the Iowa Western 9. But four plays lost two yards, and on fourth-and-goal, Daniels' pass to Jaylan Bean was knocked away by Legend Doggett.  

Garden City also failed to capitalize on another Iowa Western mistake after Nate Sullivan was picked off in the end zone by BJ Blake with less than three minutes to go in the half. But the Broncbusters managed just one first down, and the Reivers responded with an eight-play, 43-yard drive that resulted in Shawn Gary's four-yard rushing touchdown that put Iowa Western up, 28-14. The play was in question because it appeared Gary's elbow touched down inside the 1 before the ball crossed the goal line. But after review, the call on the field stood, and the Reivers had a two-touchdown advantage going into the locker room. 

In the second half, with the offense struggling to move the ball, Minnick pulled Daniels for backup Kody Kirk, who immediately infused life into the cause. Trailing by 14 late in the third, the redshirt freshman hooked up with Demond Demas for a 92-yard score that pulled the Broncbusters within a touchdown again. 

But that was really the lone highlight of the second half for Garden City. Early in the fourth, Kirk was sacked inside his own 1-yard line. To add insult to injury, Kaliem Croswell was flagged for holding in the end zone resulting in a safety, which eventually led to Watson's 46-yard touchdown run that gave the Reivers a 16-point cushion. 

Even Jones' 63-yard dash to the end zone was overshadowed when Kirk was picked off in the end zone on the ensuing two-point conversion. 

Iowa Western eventually put the game on ice after Kirk was sacked on fourth-and-14 late in the fourth. Two plays after that, Jonathan Humpal blasted in from three yards out cementing the Reivers first victory in Garden City in six years.  

Watson finished 14-of-30 for 138 yards and a touchdown for Iowa Western. He added 11 carries for 150 yards and two scores.  

Daniels was 10-of-26 for 59 yards and lost a fumble for a second straight week for Garden City. The Broncbusters were just 3-of-16 on third down, and they allowed seven sacks.