SENATOBIA – Whatever was said at halftime resonated loud and clear in the second half for the Rangers.
Northwest responded from a 7-6 halftime deficit with 21 unanswered points to knock off No. 10 Itawamba 27-13 Thursday night in a battle of NJCAA Top 10 teams at Bobby Franklin Field.
The Rangers won their seventh straight game overall and ninth consecutive at home to improve to 3-0 and 1-0 in the division, while ICC dropped to 2-1 and 0-1. It was also Northwest's eighth win over the Indians in the last nine meetings.
Two
Drake McCarter field goals was all Northwest could manage in the opening 30 minutes, with Dan Ellington's 6-yard touchdown run for the Indians giving them a 7-6 lead at the break.
But the second half was an entirely different story, with Northwest's capacity crowd coming to life.
Northwest took its opening drive of the third quarter 75 yards on just four plays, capped by
Quarderman Sloan's 16-yard touchdown run.
Clay Holgorsen was 3-for-3 for 59 yards on the drive, highlighted by a 50-yard completion to
Jerrick Orr.
After forcing Itawamba to punt two drives later, Northwest capitalized off a short field and punched it in on Holgorsen's 27-yard touchdown strike to
Alex Norwood to extend the lead to two scores.
The Rangers' very next drive also resulted in a touchdown, with
KyKy Austin catching a 12-yard pass from Holgorsen to cap a 6-play, 60-yard drive and give Northwest a 27-7 lead with 13 minutes to play.
ICC closed out the scoring with 5:01 to play when Peyton Bender found Dorian Gaston for an 8-yard touchdown.
After struggling the first half with 13 incompletions, Holgorsen was superb in the second half for Northwest. The Memphis transfer was 13-for-14 for 163 yards and two touchdowns. He finished 23-for-37 for 263 yards and the two scores, connecting with 10 different receivers on the night.
Darius Thomas had a career night, hauling in seven receptions for 80 yards.
Marquisian Chapman added five grabs for 31 yards, while Norwood and Austin hauled in both Holgorsen touchdown passes of 27 and 12 yards.
Sloan scored for the third time in three games and finished with 50 yards on 13 carries, while
Tywun Walters added 67 yards on the ground.
Northwest's defense showed out in a big way again, closing the night with 12 tackles-for-loss, 11 breakups, eight quarterback hurries and four sacks. They have not allowed a point in the third quarter all season, outscoring opponents 42-0.
Turner Rotenberry had a career-high nine tackles, followed by three other Rangers with six. Windham added his second interception of the season to go with two breakups, while
Kaleb Chalmers finished with five tackles and three breakups.
ICC's quarterback duo of Peyton Bender and Dan Ellington finished 28-for-52 for 331 yards, a touchdown and interception. Terry Williams had a game-high 13 receptions for 186 yards.
Northwest will head to Moorhead on Thursday, Sept. 22 for a 7 p.m. kickoff at Mississippi Delta.
