Fourth quarter surge not enough as Pride fall to Culver-Stockton 38-21

CANTON, Mo. - In their final game of the 2024 season, the Clarke University football team was unable to end on a high note in a 38-21 road loss to Culver-Stockton College on Saturday afternoon in Canton, Mo.

It was all Wildcats through three quarters as they held a 38-2 lead heading into the fourth quarter before the Pride were able to score three touchdowns while also recovering two onside kicks to maintain possession to cut the deficit close but not close enough by the final horn.

For the second-straight week, long touchdown passing plays would hinder CU as they would give up a 64-yard touchdown pass from Drake Day to Kyle Dixon on CSC's first offensive play of the game, then Day to Dixon would connect again for a 61-yard strike later in the first after a missed Clarke field goal in the possession between.

A back-breaking end to the first quarter would be a potential 14-point swing as the Pride were set up with a second and goal from the one yard line as Clarke's Bradey Huseman would be stripped of the ball by Culver-Stockton's Zeshaun Adams for Robert Jones to return the fumble 97 yards for a touchdown as the first quarter clock expired to change the game from a potential 14-7 Wildcats lead to a 21-0 lead for CSC.

CU's lone points in the first three quarters came via a safety as Stanley Cadet was able to tackle Demarion Cobb for a loss into the Wildcats' own end zone after a nice Garrett Atkinson punt pineed the Wildcats on their own one yard line for Cadet to get Clarke on the board with the safety.

Day would throw two more touchdown passes in the third quarter to pull CSC up by that 38-2 score before Clarke got their offense going a little too late for a full comeback, but showing fight as Pride quarterback Carson Estrada would find Roland Hazard Jr. and Isaac Guerrero for separate passing touchdowns with a rushing touchdown from Estrada sandwiched in between.

Clarke was able to get three-straight offensive possessions due to their ability to recover a pair of Steele Fredricks onside kicks as they even recovered a third but were called offsides to be forced to rekick, as Culver-Stockton would eventually recover another onside attempt.

Estrada would finish the game with a career-high 63 attempts and a career-high 373 passing yards while also finishing with his highest completion percentage as Clarke's starter while Hazard Jr. and Jackson Ostrander both made nine catches for over 100 yards with Hazard Jr. at 135 and Ostrander at 125.

Day finished with 276 yards and four touchdowns while Dixon had three more catches outside of those two long touchdowns to finish with all but 100 of the receiving yards for the Wildcats in the game.

Clarke football finishes the 2024 season with a 1-10 record on the season, going winless in the Heart North as they will head into the offseason returning a majority of their skill position players from the 2024 squad.