CHICAGO, Illinois—Knox football lost its first MWC South division game
on Saturday afternoon 37-6 against the University of Chicago.
Knox grabbed a quick first down to begin the game, but couldn’t convert
on the drive. After a punt to the 19-yard line, the Prairie Fire forced a
three-and-out playing tight against last week’s MWC player of the week,
Marco Cobian.
The Maroons eventually hit a stride with their rushing attack from
Vittorio Tricase. The junior running back ran in for a Chicago touchdown
to be the Maroons up 7-0. He finished the day with 59 yards on 15
carries.
Chicago added another touchdown on the ground on a quick drive that only
took 5 plays in 2:04. On the next play, the Maroons forced the first of
three interceptions on the day. The Knox defense held the Maroons to a
field goal, which put Chicago up 17-0.
Toward the end of the first half, Prairie Fire quarterback, Grant Graham
took a big hit on his attempt to gain a first down. The play resulted
in a first down after a targeting penalty was called on the Maroons. On
third and nine, Graham hit freshman running back, Derrick Jackson, on a
screen pass and it resulted in a 63-yard score for the Prairie Fire.
Graham threw for 167 yards in the contest.
In the second half, the Maroons scored 20 unanswered points and closed out their Homecoming weekend with their first MWC win.
“We had our chances today in all phases, but couldn’t capitalize,” said
head coach Damon Tomeo. “There were some sparks, but it was not enough
to ignite what we needed to finish ahead of a very good Chicago team.”
The Prairie Fire will be off next weekend and are back on the gridiron at Illinois College on October 26.
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