Marquette wasted no time flexing their offensive muscles in the first quarter. Austin Ridl sent a 64-yard touchdown pass out to Kam Karp in the first moments of the game to put the Redmen up 7-0 over the Eskymos immediately.
Escanaba’s Ty Lawson almost had an answer for the Redmen, making a 63-yard dash for the end zone look easy. However, a penalty negated the touchdown and backed the Eskymos up to first down instead.
The Eskymos looked like they were going to shake off the penalty and serve up their answer anyway, but a Brock Retaskie tackle allowed for an interception by Ty Lotterman to protect the Redmen lead.
The scoreboard did not change, but Desmond Mullen had an electrifying 35-yard run to put the Redmen in a great position going into the second quarter.
A scoring drought held strong as the Redmen began the second quarter with an unsuccessful field goal attempt, handing possession over to the Eskymos early.
The Redmen celebrate!The Eskymos were on the hunt for an opportunity to get something going offensively. Trevor Simon came up with the sack to push Escanaba back, however, as the Marquette defense took care of business. Brady Wright followed up with a defensive play resulting in another loss for Escanaba and another foiled drive.
Marquette took over at the Escanaba 46-yard line with less than five minutes to go in the first half. Again the Redmen wasted no time. Brady Wright went to the house on a 29-yard touchdown run to give the Redmen the 14-0 advantage.
Escanaba got within the Marquette 18-yard line on their last drive of the half, but the Redmen defense was characteristically merciless in the waning minutes of the half to protect their 14-0 lead as time ran out for the Eskymos.
The Eskymos fumbled the snap to hand it over to the Redmen early in the third quarter. Marquette, however, did not find the end zone as the final quarter drew nearer.
Escanaba made moves down the field, looking to complete a drive and put some points on the board. Finally, the Eskymos found the end zone to catch up to Marquette. Escanaba improved to 14-6 behind the Redmen.
Ty Lotterman made an impossible 32-yard catch on their next possession as Marquette found themselves at the Escanaba 29-yard line. Ridl found Karp on the next play to get down to the 2-yard line. Wright punched into the end zone for his second touchdown of the game to put Marquette at 21-6 going into the fourth quarter.
Escanaba started the final quarter with another promising drive, but Marquette’s defense once again put a stop to their efforts.
Some rain/snow mix made an appearance and put a damper on things. The Eskymos got within striking distance once again, but as the weather worsened so did Escanaba’s chances and getting back in this game. They were not able to convert on the drive, and Marquette took over once again with six minutes to go in the game.
Justin Jurmu made the 69-yard touchdown catch from an incredible Austin Ridl pass almost immediately on their next possession, Marquette wasting no time putting the final touches on a sure victory over the Eskymos. The score settled at 27-6 late in the fourth quarter.
The field got sloppy with the mid-October surprise snow storm as Marquette ran out the clock to ensure their 27-6 victory. This victory also means another GNC title for the Redmen, their second consecutive following their outright title in 2019.
The Redmen will be back in action Friday, October 23rd on Fox Sports Marquette 105.1-99.9 and 103 WFXD against Calumet. Tune in at 6:30 pm for the pregame show, kick off is at 7:00 pm.
Listen to a recording of the live broadcast.
