ALBION -- Allowing just three points in the second half, the Albion College football team grinded out a tough 23-20 win over Wisconsin-Eau Claire on a beautiful fall Saturday. Winners of four straight this season, Albion concludes the non-conference portion of their schedule with a perfect 4-0 record.
Senior quarterback Kyle Thomas was 10 of 17 for 205 yards and a pair of touchdowns -- both to his brother. Justin Thomas hauled in six catches for 176 yards while increasing his conference lead in receiving touchdowns to seven.
Last week's MIAA Defensive Player of the Week, Jeremiah Major, had another great day on offense. The junior tallied a team-high eight tackles in the win. Drew Shafer added seven tackles for the Brits.
Albion held Austin Belot -- Division III's leading rusher -- to just 96 yards. The Brits outgained UWEC, 332-266.
Sophomore Brendan Teal exploded down the Albion sideline to return the opening kick 98 yards for a touchdown. A PAT from Jackson Cooney gave the Britons a 7-0 lead just 16 seconds in.
On the ensuing possession, the Brits forced UWEC into a three and out, helped by a QB hurry from Bobby Willis. With the ball on their own 38, a pass interference penalty on the Blugolds aided Albion and gave the Brits the ball in UWEC territory.
Two plays later, Thomas connected with his brother for a 49-yard score, inflating the lead to 13-0 after a missed PAT.
Midway through the first quarter, the Blugolds threatened with the ball at the Albion eight. On third and goal, Jonathan Malueg's pass was picked in the end zone by Levi Ladd, keeping the Blugolds off the scoreboard.
The visitors got on the board on their next drive on a 3-yard touchdown pass, cutting the Albion lead to 13-7.
A 65-yard pass to Thomas put the Britons back in the red zone on their next possession. Unable to cash in, as a 20-yard field goal attempt was blocked and the first quarter ended with a 13-7 Briton lead.
On a 4th and three from the Albion 15, it appeared the Blugolds would kick a 32-yard field goal to bring them within three. The Brits were whistled for a penalty, giving the ball back to UWEC and a fresh set of downs. The visitors capitalized with a 10-yard rushing touchdown and a 14-13 lead.
The teams traded field goals on their final two drives, as a 29-yarder from Cooney was followed by a UWEC field goal to end the half, as the Blugolds were up 17-16 at the break.
With the ball out of the half the Blugolds could not extend their lead, as Willis picked off a pass at the 5-yard line, setting the Britons up for a long drive. The 8-play, 89-yard drive was capped by a Thomas to Thomas touchdown, vaulting the hosts ahead, 23-17.
A 36-yard field goal by the Blugolds opened the fourth quarter, but could not tack on more points as the Albion defense held tough in the second half.
Albion continued to eat clock throughout the remainder of the game, helped by a few big runs on short distances by Ryan Roberts.
The Blugolds had one final opportunity -- with 37 seconds on the clock and no timeouts. On the first play of the drive, John Wester Jr. stepped in front of a Malueg pass to seal the win and complete a spotless non-conference record for the Britons.
NOTABLE QUOTES
"I knew they were definitely going to try to pass," said Wester Jr. "The quarterback was on me and I read his eyes and made the play."
"It was a team win and I thought that 4-minute drive at the end sealed it," said head coach Dustin Beurer. "We have to continue to clean up our red zone offense, but I think the defense did what they needed to do."
Beurer on heading into bye week 4-0: "It doesn't matter if it was pretty or ugly, we were going to take a win today … We've got some grit as a team and we're going to find a way to grit it out … We had a really good feeling coming out in the second half."
Albion has not lost a non-conference game since 2017.
The Britons will have a bye next weekend before commencing conference play. On Oct.9, Albion travels to Adrian for a 5 p.m. kickoff.
