Football 9/8/2001 10:39:00 PM Gary Pine

Defense Spearheads Comeback

AZUSA, Calif. – The scoreboard may not reflect it. Neither may the first quarter statistics. But the Azusa Pacific defense stepped up tonight leading the NAIA's No. 21-ranked Cougars to a 31-27 come-from-behind victory over NCAA Division III power Pacific Lutheran University, avoiding what would have been an 0-2 start for the first time since 1997.

With the comeback win, the Cougars are now 19-2 in games decided by a TD or less since the 1998 national championship season.

For the first 15 minutes, Pacific Lutheran sliced through the Cougar defense to the tune of 186 yards and a disheartening 21-0 lead. Yet, the Cougars failed to throw in the towel. They responded with an eye-popping three-quarter performance in which they suffocated the Lutes to a paltry 73 yards and six points.

"Our guys never stopped," said Azusa Pacific third-year head coach Peter Shinnick, who has yet to lose back-to-back games in his career. "They worked hard and put themselves in position to win this game. The defense did a great job of shutting them down in the second half. I'm really happy with the adjustments we made."

After struggling to find its rhythm in the opening quarter, the Azusa Pacific offense responded like clockwork, compiling 393 yards and coming up with big plays down the stretch. The biggest play was a backbreaker.

With 13:34 remaining in the game and clinging to a 27-24 lead, the Lutes botched a punt attempt on their own 19-yard line. Three plays later, senior Shane Minton (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach CC) strolled into the end zone for his second TD in the game, this time from 5 yards out to hand the Cougars a 30-27 lead, completing the Azusa Pacific comeback.
Two minutes earlier, Minton lunged in from 2 yards out as time expired in the third quarter to bring the Cougars to within a field goal at 27-24.

From the outset, it appeared as if PLU would stroll to an easy victory. The Lutes stormed out of the gate, scoring on their first 2 possessions. After the Cougars stalled on its opening drive, PLU needed just 2 plays and 47 yards to get on the board. Lute QB Tyler Teeple hit Aaron Binger on a 42-yard strike down the middle of the field.

Their next possession took a bit longer, but was just as productive. Teeple connected with Kyle Brown on an 8-yard toss, highlighting a 6 play, 46-yard drive over 2:18. Just 5 minutes later, Teeple once again connected with Todd McDevitt on a 31-yard pass, putting the Lute's up 21-0 with just 2:44 left in the opening quarter.

On the Lute's first possession of the second quarter, Azusa Pacific safety Davin Lum (Kailua, HI) intercepted a Teeple pass on the Lute's second play. That seemed to spark the Cougar offense as one play later Luke Winslow (Seattle, Wash./Shorecrest HS) connected with Frankie Tapia on a 27-yard toss with 1:30 gone by, putting the Cougars on the board.

"Personally, I was dead and it looked like the whole team was dead," said Winslow about the Cougars falling down 21-0. "Playing a good team like Pacific Lutheran and falling behind 21-0 on the heels of getting blown out by San Diego last week, we were looking around thinking we might go 2-8 this season. What changed it were the defensive turnovers."

The Cougars picked Teeple off 4 times, 2 that led to 10 Cougar points and the final, by Anthony Aikala' (Seattle, Wash./Edmonds Woodway HS) that sealed the victory with 5:41.
After the 2 teams exchanged possessions twice, the Cougars needed 7 plays to march 44 yards, highlighted by a Lathian Tyler (Walnut, Calif./Diamond Bar HS) one-yard plunge, making it a one-touchdown deficit. On the drive, Tyler carried the ball 4 times for 26 yards.

Sophomore Matt Ryburn (La Crescenta, Calif./Village Christian HS) booted a 36-yard field goal with 2:47 left in the third quarter, making it 21-17. It appeared that would be the halftime score until Teeple connected with Brown for the second time on a 13-yard pass with just 9 seconds remaining, giving the Lutes a 27-17 lead.
Winslow finished the game 19-of-32 passing with 197 yards and 1 TD. Tyler rushed for 117 yards on 22 carries. Minton finished with 56 yards on 14 carries and 2 TDs. Teeple's 17-of-30 passing for 191 yards and 4 TDs all in the first half paced Pacific Lutheran.

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