How Portland St. Orchestrated a Scoring Drive Against SUU

During a drive starting at the 25-yard line, Portland State University advanced down the field against Southern Utah University, capped by a 6-yard rushing touchdown from Cru Newman with 46 seconds remaining.

The possession began at the 9:25 mark with Portland State taking over at their own 25-yard line. Delon Thompson opened the sequence with a 7-yard run to the 32, followed by a 2-yard carry that brought up a short yardage situation. Cru Newman converted the initial first down with a 4-yard rush to the 38-yard line.

Sagapolutele Leads Offensive Drives Through Consecutive First Downs

John-Keawe Sagapolutele connected with Terence Loville for a 4-yard gain to push the ball to the 42. After a 2-yard run by Niall Raby, Sagapolutele found Zui Shelton on a 19-yard completion down to the 37-yard line for another first down.

Thompson picked up consecutive short gains before Sagapolutele completed an 11-yard pass to Tanner Beaman across the middle to move the chains once more. Following a 1-yard quarterback rush and a 9-yard run by Thompson, the offense faced a tougher challenge when Myles Amey dropped Thompson for a 6-yard loss at the 19-yard line.

Sagapolutele hit Loville for a 7-yard completion, and an incomplete pass intended for Shelton brought up fourth down. Joshua Hossmann Lees attempted a 29-yard field goal, but a leverage penalty called against Southern Utah’s Khaleb Hampton-Purifoy nullified the kick and awarded Portland State a first down at the 6-yard line.

The Scoring Touchdown

Newman found a opening on the left side of the line for a 6-yard touchdown run with 46 seconds on the clock. Hossmann Lees converted the extra point attempt, and the ensuing kickoff resulted in a touchback at the opposite end of the field.

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