POST-GAME NOTES: at Portland State
COMPLETE STATISTICS: Game 11
POST-GAME QUOTES: Cristian Sarmento, Bryan Waggener, Coach Downing

PORTLAND, Ore. - In the final game of the 2008 season, the University of Northern Colorado football team made a late comeback, but it fell short as they lost 24-21 at Portland State Saturday afternoon. The Bears end the year 1-10, while Portland State finishes 4-7.

Northern Colorado out-gained Portland State in offensive yards 431 to 426, tallying 254 yards passing and 177 rushing and they had 24 first downs compared to 17 for the Vikings.

For the second straight game, senior running back David Woods rushed for over 100 yards, notching 121 yards and two touchdowns. Junior quarterback Bryan Waggener threw for 254 yards and ran for another 49, throwing one touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Cory Fauver, who ended the day with five catches for 21 yards. Freshman receiver Dominic Gunn had a team-high 60 receiving yards on four catches and tallied 109 all-purpose yards with 17 punt return and 32 kickoff return yards.

Defensively, senior linebacker Cristian Sarmento led the team with 12 tackles, recording two tackles for loss, two pass breakups and a fumble recovery. Sophomore safety Max Hewitt had nine tackles and forced one fumble.

"I thought our offensive line did a great job of blocking today," said Head Coach Scott Downing. "David (Woods) ran hard, he hit the holes, ran north and south, broke a lot of tackles and did a very good job. We were really excited to see him get loose like that, we came in with injuries and sickness with one experienced running back but I thought he did a good job of carrying the load today."

Portland State was led by Bobby McClintock with 70 rushing yards, quarterback Drew Hubel with 343 yards passing and three touchdowns and receivers Aaron Woods and Daniel Wolverton with 113 and 112 reception yards each, respectively. Erik Pedersen led the game with 13 tackles, while senior linebacker Andy Schantz notched 11.

"We figured out early in the game we weren't going to be able to get to them with pressure," said Downing.  "So we were just going to have to get to them with good zone drops, mix up three and four man rushes and drop eight or drop seven and I thought Coach Deti and the defensive staff did a good job of adjusting."

On the opening drive of the game, Waggener marched the Bears down the field 75 yards on 13 plays with Woods rushing the final two yards for the touchdown. Woods carried the ball five times during the drive, while Thompson caught two passes for 20 yards.

The Vikings answered on their first drive with a six play, 65 yard drive, capped off by a five yard pass from Hubel to D'Ambrosio to tie the score at 7-7 with 5:23 left in the first quarter.

Woods continued running well through the first quarter, rushing for an eight-yard touchdown and the 14-7 lead at the 1:23 mark of the first quarter. He rushed for 38 yards on the drive. The Bears drove 62 yards in 12 plays in 3:52 as the team continued to spread the ball around. Through the first two drives, three players had carried the ball and five student-athletes caught at least one pass.

Waggener completed his first seven passes on the day and finished the first quarter 8-for-11 with 52 passing yards giving him 2,344 on the year vaulting him from 11th on the school's single season list to eighth.

Portland State's offense again answered as they drove 71 yards in nine plays, ending with a 21 yard touchdown catch by Lavonte Kirven from Hubel.

On the Bears' first punt of the game, Cameron Kaman punted and Casey Herron was there for the immediate hit, pinning the Vikings on the nine-yard line. The Vikings offense, however, continued to play well, scoring on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Hubel to D'Ambrosio after driving 91 yards on eight plays and scoring in 3:23 to take the 21-14 lead.

Max Hewitt forced a fumble and Sarmento recovered giving him the fifth recovery of his career with just under three minutes remaining in the half, but the Bears were forced to punt and the first half ended with the score 21-14.

The Bears defense came out refocused in the second half, getting two sacks on Portland State's first drive and forcing the Vikings into their first punt of the day. VJ Holmes and Tony Kolone combined on the first one and two plays later, Martin Awachie recorded the second one.

Danny Urego made a 48-yard field goal with 6:15 remaining in the third quarter to extend the Viking lead to 24-14. Portland State drove 14 yards on six plays after an interception of Waggener.  Urego set the single season record with the field goal, which was his 15^th of the season.

The Bears' red zone defense again held tough, as they forced Portland State into turning it over on downs on a fumbled pitch.

With 5:15 left on the game clock, The Bears started the drive at midfield after Portland State was whistled for a facemask penalty on the punt return. Waggener hit senior tight end Ryan Chesla for 21 yards. He fumbled the ball, but Fauver landed on it on the 27. Woods rushed for 17 yards and then Waggener hit Fauver for the touchdown after an incomplete pass. Michael York's point-after brought the Bears within three, 24-21 where the score remained.

The Bears say good-bye to 15 seniors as they wrap up the 2008 season.