Tag Archives: interception

Browns’ Shedeur Sanders Sends Pointed Message to Doubters After First Career Win

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Cleveland Browns rookie Shedeur Sanders stepped into his first NFL start, and he came away with a big win. Through four quarters, he mostly played mistake-free football, helping propel the team to a 3-8 record. Following the win, the rookie signal caller sent a pointed message to his doubters. Read more: How Did Shedeur Sanders Do in First Browns Start? Pundits, fans, and more have been calling for Sanders to get a shot at starting, but the Browns kept fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel behind center for six games. Gabriel suffered a concussion in Week 11, leading to Sanders finally getting his first NFL start. Sanders showcased some elite skills, especially in a bomb downfield for 53 yards to Isaiah Bond. The rookie ended his day with 11-for-20 attempts, 209 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Despite playing against the Las Vegas Raiders, Sanders put together an impressive performance that led to a dominant 24-10 final score. Granted, the nine sacks the Browns got against Geno Smith also helped a great deal. More news: Chiefs’ Travis Kelce Brings Back Hilarious Patrick Mahomes Impression After Colts Win That said, Sanders took the podium following his first career start and win, offering a pointed message to his doubters. “A lot of people want to see me fail. It ain’t gonna happen,” Sanders said with confidence. There are a lot of people who have had many things to say about Sanders, but he now has a win in his first career start. Not only that, but his final stat line and performance were certainly not terrible by any stretch of the imagination. Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski will now have a big decision to make. Should Gabriel clear concussion protocol, will he make the big change? Gabriel has only won one game in his six starts. The Browns’ offense clearly needs some help, but Sanders was able to inject some much-needed confidence in the group to walk away with a big win. The Browns take on the San Francisco 49ers in Week 13, and it is anyone’s guess who will be behind center for that game. Stefanski has not been the most consistent with his comments on Sanders, so Gabriel might be back if he is healthy to play. For more on the Browns, head to Newsweek Sports.
https://www.newsweek.com/sports/nfl/browns-shedeur-sanders-sends-pointed-message-to-doubters-after-first-career-win-11096543

Dak Prescott’s TD run brings Cowboys back to 21-21

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The Eagles had a chance to build on their 21-14 lead, but Jake Elliott’s 56-yard field goal try was wide right. That gave the Cowboys good field position. In only three plays, the Cowboys covered the 54 yards to the end zone. Dak Prescott completed a 43-yard pass to George Pickens and Javonte Williams ran for 3 yards to set up Prescott’s 8-yard touchdown run. The Cowboys have come all the way back from down 21-0 to tie the game at 21-21. Prescott is 19-of-27 for 297 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.
https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/dak-prescotts-td-run-brings-cowboys-back-to-21-21

Frederick: This Vikings’ offense is woeful, and seems to be getting worse

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The Vikings’ offensive performance on Sunday in Green Bay was the kind you’d see from a 3-12 team playing out the string in a pointless Week 17 tilt long after being eliminated from playoff contention. Of a team that was on its backup quarterback and had its fanbase saying, “We have to get a better No. 2 next offseason so we don’t have to go through THIS again.” Of a team that did not have any interest in opening up its playbook, and when it was finally forced to, you understood why. Minnesota managed 4 total yards of offense in the second half of a 23-6 loss to Green Bay on Sunday. That number dips below zero if you include a 5-yard loss on a false start infraction. The second half drive chart: 3 and out 3 and out 3 and out interception interception The offensive highlights of the final 30 minutes were sacks of J. J. McCarthy, where the quarterback was ruled down at his own 1-yard line rather than them being ruled safeties. The game was over the moment Minnesota went down multiple scores after a blunder by Myles Price on a punt return. The Vikings couldn’t block Packers star edge rusher Micah Parsons, or anyone else on Green Bay’s defensive front. McCarthy isn’t nearly good enough at this juncture to operate the offense under the most optimal conditions, as proven last week in a 19-17 loss to Chicago wherein Minnesota played 58 minutes of putrid offense . at home . against one of the worst defenses in football. When facing a good defense in a bad script? Forget it, it’s over. It’s non-competitive. Minnesota’s offense is an eyesore. Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell admitted postgame to reporters that his team’s margin for error is “razor thin” at the moment. The narrow path to victory he described sounded like a team hoping to milk the clock to shorten the game and win 13-10. Never would you have thought this was possible in the O’Connell era. In the coach’s previous three seasons guiding the Vikings’ offense, Minnesota has ranked sixth, fifth and sixth in the NFL in passing yards. That includes a season in which Josh Dobbs, Nick Mullens and Jaren Hall took turns filling in after Kirk Cousins went down with a season-ending injury. Minnesota is averaging 138 yards through the air in McCarthy’s six starts. On a day when they lost by three scores, the Vikings attempted only 19 passes, and even that somehow felt like too many. There was never a guarantee Minnesota would always be good, but with O’Connell, Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, the assumption was the Vikings would always be fun. Yet this neutered offense is currently one of the toughest watches in football. It can be enjoyable to watch a youthful signal caller learn, develop and blossom, even amid growing pains. But this experiment is getting worse every week. O’Connell and McCarthy keep referring to mechanical changes the 22-year-old is attempting to master and implement on the fly. That process, frankly, feels impossible to complete midseason. It’s currently going about as poorly as you’d expect. As a result, fans likely feel worse and worse about this team with each passing performance. And with playoff odds now sitting south of 5% after this latest loss, what’s the point of tuning in? It’s certainly not for entertainment; there was none of that to be found on Sunday.
https://www.thedickinsonpress.com/sports/pro/frederick-this-vikings-offense-is-woeful-and-seems-to-be-getting-worse

Nashoba Tech football team edged by Randoph in state semifinal, 20-12

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WAYLAND The Nashoba Tech football team did everything it could to avenge last year’s state semifinal loss to Randolph when the teams met again on Saturday afternoon. The Vikings held advantages in almost every statistical category: 265 total yards of offense to 165; 15 first downs to 8; Time of possession 26: 22 to 21: 38. And trick plays, Nashoba Tech 4-0 with two onside kicks and two fake punts. But all of that together still wasn’t enough as the fourth-seeded Blue Devils upset the top-seeded Vikings, 20-12, in a Division 8 state semifinal game at Wayland High School. “This is tough. They are a real good team. It’s tough to get back here twice and get to the final four, but what are you going to do? They are a great team,” said Vikings’ head coach Danny Kelly. “They were the better team today and they won the line of scrimmage.” Undefeated Randolph (11-0) took a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter. After a short punt moved the ball just 16 yards, it took just five running plays before Abraham Cornet scored on a 6-yard TD run, and the PAT kick by Alin Norisca was good. The score remained that way until the wild fourth quarter. After Nashoba turned the ball over on a muffed punt, the Blue Devils extended their lead to 14-0 with 11: 36 left in the game after a two-yard run by Mekhi White. The Vikings stormed right back. Behind a 36-yard gain by sophomore Zack Deschenes (22 carries, 122 yards), it took just five plays before Nashoba Tech got into the end zone with Jayden Garshong taking it in from four yards out. The conversion rush failed. Trailing 14-6 with 9: 47 to go, Nashoba elected for the onside kick, but Randolph recovered it, before scoring 2: 52 later thanks to a 29-yard run by White, coming on fourth-and-two. Trailing 20-6, Nashoba went to the air. Quarterback Nick Sloboda (7 for 15, 83 yards), who started the game off completing just 1 of 7 passes for five yards, connected on four attempts, all to Dylan Hall, of 2, 12, 38 and 9 yards with the last turning into a touchdown. The conversion pass failed. Trailing 20-12 with four minutes to go and all three timeouts left, Kelly called for the onside kick again and Randolph recovered it. “We didn’t want them to get the ball back. I know that they could kill the clock, so we didn’t want them to have the ball back. We took chances throughout the game. We had two fake punts, and we were willing to take all the risks,” said Kelly. Randolph managed a first down but eventually had to punt. Nashoba had one last shot, starting out on its own 15 with 1: 25 to go. Sloboda completed two passes for a combined 17 yards before throwing an interception into the hands of White, who is headed to UMass Lowell next year on a track scholarship. “I thought we played well. Our defense played well. We should’ve gotten the job done today, but we didn’t. They were better,” said Kelly. Nashoba (8-3) has now have been eliminated by Randolph for the second straight time in a state semifinal game. “It’s been an unbelievable season,” said Kelly, noting that the team will face Monty Tech on Thanksgiving to end the season. “To get to the final four again, these seniors are 9-0 against the league in the past two years, three out of four league titles so it’s going to be tough to replace them, honestly. We do have so much coming back next year. We return everybody but three starters on the line, so we’ll be back. These guys are hurting, and this one is going to sting more than last year because they were so close. We felt like we had our chances today, more so than last year.” Nashoba Tech played a brutually tough schedule. The Vikings moved up a couple of divisions in taking on Stoneham. They really turned heads when they moved up six divisions to take on Division 2 powerhouse Catholic Memorial. These Vikings didn’t back down against any challenge this season.
https://www.lowellsun.com/2025/11/22/nashoba-tech-football-team-edged-by-randoph-in-state-semifinal-20-12/

Martin completes redemption tour with 8-Player Division 1 football state title win over Montabella

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The final stop on the Martin redemption tour was successful, making the hours at practice and on the farm worthwhile. The Clippers, who were knocked out in the second round of the 2024 playoffs, earned their third state title in four years, running past Blanchard Montabella for a 52-8 win Saturday in the 2025 8-Player Division 1 championship game at Northern Michigan University. “From Day One, we wanted to redeem ourselves,” Martin coach Brad Blauvelt said. “It was heartbreaking last year. We thought we could win four in a row. We wanted to get back this year and finish it right. “This senior class was special. They’re friends. They hung out with each other. I was super tight with them. They helped me move. They worked on my farm. I will miss these seniors.” The Clippers won the 2022 state title, beating Merrill, 74-24, before tacking on the 2023 championship with a 30-26 win over Indian River Inland Lakes. But Martin lost to Mendon, 26-22, in a 2024 regional final. In Saturday’s state final, Montabella scored first, with Brady Kieff running for a 3-yard touchdown and a 2-point conversion. “They came out swinging for sure,” Blauvelt said. “There were a couple mistakes on that first drive. We didn’t panic. These boys have been in so many tough situations a couple years ago where we won. Once we settled in, we were OK.” Senior quarterback Haylen Buell, who played in Martin’s previous two state finals, was more than OK. Buell capped his career with three touchdown runs and a TD pass against the 11-2 Mustangs. Buell finished with 179 yards rushing on nine carries and completed 7 of 7 passes for 134 yards, with one interception. “He was a monster today, and he has been all season,” Blauvelt said. “He wanted the third title. He was the driving force. I talk a lot about the senior class and how special they were. They wanted it. Haylen likes football. He likes to be physical, and that mindset rubbed off on everyone.” After Montabella’s opening touchdown, Martin answered with a 3-yard run and 2-point conversion by Buell for an 8-8 tie after one quarter. The Clippers took over the game in the second quarter, scoring 30 points for a 38-8 halftime lead. Bryer Watson began the scoring with an 81-yard TD run, with Buell tacking on a 44-yard TD run. After Seth Toris ran for a 1-yard score, Buell found Anderson Keeler for a 25-yard touchdown pass. Toris also ran for a pair of 2-point conversions. Elkins, who ran for a 2-pointer in the second quarter, scored on a 52-yard run in the third quarter, with Buell hitting Watson for the conversion. Buell finished the scoring with a 62-yard TD run in the fourth quarter. Martin totaled 498 yards of offense, including 364 on the ground. Montabella was held to 101 yards rushing and 87 passing. Watson added six carries for 111 yards for the Clippers, with Ethan Greene catching four passes for 23 yards. Watson added two catches for 68 yards. Isaac Suk paced the Martin defense with six tackles, while Buell added five unassisted tackles and two assists. Noah Carlson had five tackles for Montabella, which made its first state final appearance. Gabriel Kauffman led Montabella with eight carries for 54 yards, completing 9 of 22 passes for 87 yards. “This class, this team was special,” Blauvelt said. “Before the season, we asked them to play with great effort, be selfless and be a teammate. “And they did.”.
https://www.mlive.com/highschoolsports/2025/11/martin-completes-redemption-tour-with-8-player-division-1-football-state-title-win-over-montabella.html

Browns Announce Roster Moves Before Shedeur Sanders’ First NFL Start

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After months of anticipation, the Cleveland Browns are finally starting quarterback Shedeur Sanders on Sunday, Nov. 23, against the Las Vegas Raiders on the road. Sanders has been patiently serving as a backup quarterback all season, but the Browns’ starting quarterback, Dillon Gabriel, suffered a concussion during the team’s game on Sunday, Nov. 16, against the Baltimore Ravens, and won’t be able to take the field in Week 12. So, this is Sanders’ chance to shine. He didn’t have a great performance during his NFL debut, and the Browns fell to the Ravens with a 23-16 final score. At the final buzzer, Sanders had 4-of-16 for 47 yards, was sacked twice and threw one interception. But that’s in the past, and now, Sanders is getting his first NFL start and the chance to make history. Ahead of the game, the Cleveland Browns have announced multiple roster moves to get the team ready for Geno Smith and the Raiders. On Wednesday, the team announced that they’re adding cornerback D’Angelo Ross from Houston’s practice squad and cornerback Sam Webb from Tennessee’s practice squad to their lineup. Ross, according to the team, is in his fourth season out of New Mexico. “Originally signed by New England as an undrafted free agent in 2019, he has appeared in 29 career games with the Patriots (2021) and Houston Texans (2023-25), including three games this season,” the Browns state on their official website. Ross will wear No. 20 on his jersey. Webb, meanwhile, is in his third season out of Missouri Western State. “Originally signed by Las Vegas as an undrafted free agent 2022, he has appeared in 29 career games with the Raiders (2022, 2024) and Carolina Panthers (2023),” the team states, adding that Webb will wear No. 27. While these players are on the defense end, if the defense can hold Smith and the Raiders, that will certainly help the former Colorado standout. Following Sanders’ NFL debut, he was honest about his performance. Read more: Browns Make Final Shedeur Sanders Decision for Week 12 “I don’t think I played good,” Sanders said after the game. “I don’t think I played good at all. I think there’s a lot of things we need to look at during the week and go and just get comfortable with even throwing routes with Jerry [Jeudy] and throwing routes with all those guys. I think that was my first ball to him all year. But other than that, I just think overall, we just got to go next week and understand, so that we have a week to prepare stuff I like to do.” Read more: Shedeur Sanders Predicted to Get One-Upped for Browns’ Starting Job Now, Sanders has a chance to show the NFL what he’s capable of against the Las Vegas Raiders.
https://www.newsweek.com/sports/nfl/browns-announce-roster-moves-before-shedeur-sanders-first-nfl-start-11075682

Christian Watson’s late TD catch helps Packers escape with win over Giants

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The Green Bay Packers secured a crucial late touchdown and a game-sealing interception to hold off an upset bid from the New York Giants on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.

Quarterback Jordan Love connected with Christian Watson on a 17-yard touchdown pass—Watson’s second score of the afternoon—that gave the Packers a 27-20 lead following a two-point conversion run by Emanuel Wilson. Later, with under a minute remaining, defensive back Evan Williams intercepted Giants quarterback Jameis Winston in the end zone, ending New York’s late rally and recording the defense’s first takeaway of the game.

The victory was a must-win for Green Bay, and while the contest was far from pretty, Coach Matt LaFleur’s team improved to 6-3-1 thanks to several big plays in the final minutes.

Watson’s spinning touchdown catch came on a critical 2nd-and-7 with 4:02 left, demonstrating his agility and sure hands. Then, with just 36 seconds left, Williams made the game-clinching interception, solidifying the Packers’ hold on the lead.

Adding to the defensive effort, Micah Parsons wrapped up the win with a strip sack of Winston in the waning seconds, further stifling the Giants’ hopes.

The Giants had jumped out to an early 7-0 lead and managed to retake the lead 20-19 in the fourth quarter. However, on the decisive touchdown drive, Love completed four passes for 71 yards—including a key 32-yard connection to Savion Williams on 3rd-and-10—before finding Christian Watson in the end zone.

With this hard-fought win, the Packers now turn their attention to next week’s home game against the Minnesota Vikings, who suffered a defeat at the hands of the Chicago Bears on Sunday. The matchup at Lambeau Field promises to be another opportunity for Green Bay to solidify its position as the season progresses.
https://sports.yahoo.com/article/christian-watsons-td-catch-helps-211029795.html

Jordan Johnson’s pick-6 sends Wagner on its way to 20-14 win over Stonehill

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NEW YORK (AP) — Jordan Johnson’s 30-yard pick-6 opened the scoring, and Wagner led the rest of the way in a 20-14 win over Stonehill on Saturday.

The Seahawks (5-6, 4-2 Northeast Conference) have won four consecutive games for the first time since Wagner’s nine-game winning streak in 2012. Johnson’s first-quarter interception return for a touchdown was Wagner’s first pick-6 since Zachary Ricci went 49 yards for a score against Stonehill earlier in 2023.

Andre Hines extended the Seahawks’ lead to 16-7 late in the third quarter with a 9-yard touchdown run. Nicholas Romero added the second of his two field goals early in the fourth quarter, pushing the lead to 13 points.

Hines was the offensive standout for Wagner, rushing for 139 yards on 26 carries. Overall, Wagner finished with 245 yards of offense—just two yards fewer than the Skyhawks.

Stonehill (3-8, 2-4) narrowed the gap to 20-13 when Joshua Roberson broke free for a 31-yard touchdown run with nine minutes remaining in the game.

Zavion Woodard led the Skyhawks on the ground with 90 yards on 10 carries. Quarterback Jack O’Connell threw for 89 yards, recorded an interception, and scored on a 1-yard rushing touchdown.

Wagner’s defense and balanced offense proved enough to hold off Stonehill for the victory.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/jordan-johnsons-pick-6-sends-201019910.html

San Jose State needs snap long Reno drought to keep bowl hopes alive

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SAN JOSE — Now that San Jose State must win its final three games just to become bowl eligible, a matchup against the last-place Nevada Wolfpack would seem to be just what the Spartans need. However, they’ll have to do something they haven’t accomplished in 25 years.

Saturday afternoon’s game takes place in Reno, where the Spartans have only won once in the history of the program. They have lost 10 straight games in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada since Jarmar Julien scored three rushing touchdowns in the final eight minutes to seal a 49-30 win back in 2000.

San Jose State (3-6, 2-3 Mountain West) also has yet to win on the road this season and is coming off a frustrating home loss to Air Force.

“It’s not like we’re Ohio State, we’re struggling ourselves,” San Jose State coach Ken Niumatalolo said. “We just need to focus on ourselves. They’ve been in a lot of close games and had opportunities to win, just like us.”

The Spartans have let fourth-quarter leads slip away in three of their losses. But in the 26-16 loss to Air Force, it was the offense that struggled to keep San Jose State in the contest, contributing to their third loss in the past four games.

Despite leading the FBS in passing yards per game (332.6), the Spartans had three turnovers and allowed a safety against the Falcons. Their defense, ranked No. 8 in the Mountain West by allowing 419.56 yards per game, limited the conference’s third-ranked scoring offense to seven points below its season average.

Entering the Air Force game, quarterback Eget had not thrown an interception since September 7 against Texas. However, against the Falcons, he threw two picks. Meanwhile, FBS-leading receiver Danny Scudero (1,126 yards) was held to just 41 yards receiving and did not find the end zone in the loss.

“It never felt in the game that the defense was stopping us,” offensive coordinator Craig Stutzmann said. “We stopped ourselves.”

Up next is Nevada (1-8, 0-5 MW), which has played some of the top teams in the Mountain West close, including a 20-17 loss to Fresno State and a 24-22 loss to New Mexico. Wolfpack defensive lineman Dylan Labarbera is second in the Mountain West in sacks with 6.5.

San Jose State struggled to give Eget time to throw the ball against Air Force, which resulted in heavy pressure and batted passes at the line. In the Spartans’ three wins, they have a plus-four turnover margin, but in their six losses, they have a minus-eight turnover margin.

Niumatalolo emphasizes the importance of the team getting off to a fast start against the Wolfpack. The Spartans’ defense achieved this last week against the Falcons by forcing them to go three-and-out on their first two drives, but the offense was not able to match the effort, settling for a field goal and losing a fumble on their first two drives.

“Starting fast is our mantra every week,” Niumatalolo said. “Our offense came out fast against Hawaii, but our players are human. It’s not like you can press a button and they will come out fast.”

The Spartans’ defense had one of their stronger showings of the season, limiting Air Force to 302 yards of total offense. The Falcons average 438 total yards of offense per game. The Spartans, who have struggled in pass coverage this season, were not tested too much by an Air Force offense that is option-heavy and had 63 rushing attempts compared to just 10 passing attempts.

This week against Nevada, San Jose State faces the worst passing offense in the Mountain West. Nevada ranks last in passing yards per game (153.67), last in total passing touchdowns (7), and has thrown the most interceptions (17).

The Wolfpack started the year with Chubba Purdy, brother of 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, before giving the keys to true freshman quarterback Carter Jones after Purdy struggled. Carter has thrown for 661 yards, three touchdowns, and eight interceptions.

San Jose State’s defense ranks 11th in passing yards allowed (281 yards per game), and defensive coordinator Derrick Odum hopes the unit can build upon one of its better outings of the 2025 season.

“There have been some moments that we would have liked to get better at, that’s just football,” Odum said. “There’s been no pointing fingers. They’re a close-knit group and always looking to improve every week.”

Nevada’s defense ranks around the middle of the pack in both rushing defense (152.89 yards allowed per game, sixth in MW) and passing defense (230.67 yards allowed per game, seventh in MW).

San Jose State’s offense hopes to get back on track after a rough outing against Air Force. Their wide receiving corps features Scudero paired with Kyri Shoels (680 receiving yards, fourth in MW) and Leland Smith (643 receiving yards, sixth in MW), making one of the most dynamic receiving rooms in the country.

Eget leads all of FBS with 2,941 passing yards.

While the passing offense has always excelled, the Spartans have seen a boost in their ground game since freshman running back Steve Chavez-Soto emerged as part of a dual-headed backfield alongside Lamar Radcliffe.

Chavez-Soto earned significant playing time during SJSU’s win against New Mexico on October 3. The week prior, he was only on the scout team and received playing time due to injuries to Floyd Chalk IV (who redshirted), Jabari Bates, and Viliami Teu.

Since getting his shot, Chavez-Soto has rushed for 300 yards, scored seven touchdowns, and is averaging 5.7 yards per carry in five games played.

“He approached everything like he’s the starter from day one,” running backs coach Michael Smith said. “That builds confidence in not only me but the whole coaching staff.”

With bowl eligibility on the line, San Jose State cannot overlook any opponent in its remaining three games.

“We recognize it’s a hard place to win,” Niumatalolo said. “We’re looking forward to this challenge.”
https://www.mercurynews.com/2025/11/14/san-jose-state-college-football-mountain-west-bowl-nevada-reno/

Williams’ 100-yard kickoff return sparks North Dakota State in 38-30 win over Youngstown State

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FARGO, N.D. (AP) — Cole Payton threw for 194 yards, Barika Kpeenu ran for three touchdowns, and North Dakota State secured its 13th straight win by defeating Youngstown State 38-30 on Saturday.

Youngstown State started strong, posting early leads of 3-0 and 10-7. The Penguins’ first touchdown came on a 10-yard run by quarterback Beau Brungard.

North Dakota State responded effectively, ultimately pulling away to maintain their winning streak with a solid offensive performance.
https://mymotherlode.com/sports/college-sports-general-news/10133568/williams-100-yard-kickoff-return-sparks-north-dakota-state-in-38-30-win-over-youngstown-state.html