Welcome to the Darkside: Reivers’ Defense smothers Broncbusters for Sixth Straight Victory

Council Bluffs, IA

Home fans finally invaded Titan Stadium for the first time in over a month and those that braved the first 'football weather' day of the season were treated to an entertaining Iowa Western win.

#11 Garden City (5-3) landed the first shot, but the second-ranked Reivers (7-1) answered, eventually pulling away 35–21 at Titan Stadium to win their sixth straight.

The Broncbusters struck midway through the opening quarter on an 11-play, 51-yard march capped by quarterback Tanner Helton's 8-yard keeper, but IWCC turned in a steady dose of Malachi Marshall to Tre Brown to move the sticks. Marshall connected with Brown four times for 43 yards before Corey Washington bounced a third-and-5 into the open field for a 31-yard sprint to tie the game at 7-7 on the Gus Bashore PAT.

Early in the second, Garden City took advantage of the Reivers' first turnover of the day to take their second and final lead of the game at 14-7 before Marshall and the Reivers 'O' went to work again.

The Reivers strung together a nine-play, 69-yard response, with Marshall hitting Drew Francois for his first Reivers' touchdown on a 10-yard slant to even it again. After a defensive stop and a Dax Noles punt return to midfield helped flip field position, the Reivers took their first lead just before the break: on third-and-4 from the 16, Marshall zipped a strike to Washington for his second score of the game and a 21-14 halftime edge.

Garden City didn't quit, tying the game at 21 early in the third when Helton hit a wide open Cenard Bennett for a 29-yard score.

From there the Reivers leaned on the run game offensively and the 'Darkside' shut things down defensively. Daniel Swinney helped to take the lead back for good, carrying the load on a 10-play, 73-yard march, punching it in from three yards out to restore the advantage and then, less than a minute later, cornerback Asa Locks jumped a route on the Garden City sideline and housed it 31 yards for a pick-six, stretching the cushion to 35–21.

Marshall distributed efficiently, finishing 21-of-30 for 203 yards with two touchdowns, connecting with nine different receivers. Brown was the top target as he hauled in his first 100 yard receiving day on 7 catches and Swinney continued his climb up the all-time rushing chart with 23 carries for 121 yards. In all the Reivers rushed for 218-yards as a team and gained over five yards per snap.

The defense continues to be the stalwart, piling up nine sacks in a single game for the second time this season and even more importantly held GCCC to just 251 total yards, over 150 yards less then their average. Linebacker Jerome Baker posted 10 tackles with two sacks and defensive lineman Andy Burburija added two more. De'Veion McLilley-Bulo, Jemir Hall, Blake Hawkins and company combined for the rest as the pass rush took over late. The defense has now piled up 48.5 sacks on the season, an average of over six per game. No other Reiver team has ever earned nine or more sacks in a game twice in a single season until this year's squad.

Next up for the Reivers, another battle with NJCAA #11, this time the 11th ranked Butler Grizzlies. BUCO is 5-2 and fresh off disappointment in their annual battle with #1 Hutchinson. While the Reivers hold the all-time advantage against the Grizzlies, BG Products stadium has produced mixed results, with the Reivers splitting four games with the home team. 

Kickoff is set for 5:00 pm Central at BG Products Veterans Sports Complex in El Dorado, Kansas. 

All the action can be heard, free of charge, on the Reiver Sports Network. The game, with Jake Ryan, Russ Nelsen, Josh Odson, and Tony Boone on the call, can also be found on Iowa Western's 100,000-watt FM radio station, 89.7 The River. The RSN Countdown to Kickoff begins at 4:30 PM.

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