Sept. 18, 2004

DAYTON -- Brandon Staley's furious game-tying drive in the final seconds came up just short, as did the University of Dayton football team's bid to upset Yale University Saturday afternoon. The Flyers fell 24-17 in a thriller before an impressive crowd of 6,178 at Welcome Stadium, after leading the Ivy League powerhouse 14-10 at the half.

It appeared the Flyers (2-1) were out of chances as a UD drive ended on its own 26-yard line with 1:46 remaining. Following a timeout on fourth-and-two, a costly illegal formation penalty against UD negated what would have been a first-down run of four yards by Steve Verhoff. Brandon Staley's pass on fourth-and-seven went for just three yards, giving Yale (1-0) excellent field position and a chance to run out the clock with 1:46 to go.

But with the benefit of a solid defensive stand and a pair of timeouts, the Flyers forced the Bulldogs into a fourth-and-three at the 19-yard line with 44 seconds remaining. Instead of attempting a 36-yard field goal to ice the victory, Yale handed the ball to Rob Carr, who was tackled in the backfield by John Hoppe and Casey Klaus.

Now with new life and needing to go 78 yards in 40 seconds, Staley marched the Flyers downfield by air. He completed a 10-yard pass to Verhoff and then three consecutive completions to Ryan Wrobleski of 18, 11 and 24 yards to set up the game's final play. From the 15-yard line with 12 seconds on the clock, Staley took the snap in shotgun formation and was forced to scramble after the pocket collapsed. Trying to make something out of nothing, the ball squirted loose after Staley pitched it and Yale's Fred Jelks pounced on it as time expired.

Saturday's meeting between the two storied college football programs was a return visit for Yale, after UD was trounced 42-6 in New Haven, CT four years ago. Today's game marked the first visit ever to Dayton in football by an Ivy League school.

Staley put the Flyers on the board first, as he led the offense downfield and capped the game's opening drive with a six-yard touchdown run with 9:45 in the first quarter. But Yale answered right back on its first drive, going 72 yards on six plays in 2:25. Fifth-year QB Alvin Cowan, who was a finalist for last year's Walter Payton award, connected with Chandler Henley for a 31-yard TD reception to tie the game at 7-7.

The game's next score didn't come until 8:58 to go in the second quarter when Yale's Andrew Sullivan drilled a 27-yard field goal to put the Bulldogs up 10-7. But this time, the Flyers answered on the ensuing drive. Staley guided the Flyers down field and put UD back up, 14-10, on a dazzling 37-yard TD catch in the end zone by Willy Will. UD would take the lead into the half.

Henley and Cowan hooked up again with 8:30 to play in third, as the lead flipped back to the Bulldogs. Cowan hit Henley for a 21-yard TD reception to give Yale the 17-14 advantage. UD kicker Jason Resch nailed a 25-yard field goal with just over a minute remaining in the third, equalizing the score again at 17-17.

Yale running back Rob Carr's two-yard TD run with 10:45 remaining in the game would prove to be the difference. Carr carried the ball 37 times for a game-high 172 yards, averaging almost five yards per rush. On the eventual game-winning drive, Carr touched the ball on seven of 13 plays, including the two-yard carry for his lone TD of the game.

For the game, Staley was 11-of-18 passing for 158 yards and a touchdown. Kevin Hoyng completed the only pass he threw, before going down with an injury early in the third quarter.

Cowan was 14-of-26 for a 176 yards, but threw two interceptions. Henley caught seven of those passes for 112 yards and two TD's.

Four Flyers racked up double-digit tackles, led by Doug Jones' 12. Hoppe and Brandon Cramer each made 11 while Klaus was in on 10.

UD, ranked No. 1 in both NCAA Division I-AA Mid-Major polls, will hit the road for the first time this season next Saturday at Austin Peay. Kickoff against the Governors is set for 2:00 p.m. ET.