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Grand Forks Herald
UND turns the ball over five times in 24-17 loss at Northern Iowa
- Story byGrand Forks Herald
- UND turns the ball over five times in 24-17 loss at Northern Iowa
Oct. 10—CEDAR FALLS, Iowa. — UND quarterback Jerry Kaminski spent most fourth quarters this season with a headset on as the Fighting Hawks played reserves in a comfortable win.
The visual was much different Saturday night in the fourth quarter at the UNI-Dome.
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Kaminski was in a protective boot and crutches as the Fighting Hawks' offense spent most of the day sputtering — before and after the injury. No. 4 UND turned the ball over five times for the first time since 2021, had a punt block returned for a touchdown for the first time since 2022 and couldn't overcome a poor start in a 24-17 loss to the Panthers.
The Fighting Hawks dropped to 5-2 overall and 2-1 in the MVFC with No. 1 South Dakota State coming to Grand Forks next weekend. UNI, meanwhile, has beaten a Top 10 team at home two weeks in a row after knocking off Illinois State two weeks ago.
UND's upcoming tough schedule takes on a whole new look if the Hawks don't have the services of Kaminski, who injured his ankle early in the fourth quarter as he fought off a tackle and reached toward the end zone on a run.
Kaminski, who entered the game with an FCS-best 19 touchdown passes this season and the leader of the No. 2 total offense in the FCS, needed UND's medical staff to attend to him on the field. Eventually, Kaminski was helped off the field with a major hobble.
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"They tried to X-ray it here, but it wasn't a clear picture," UND head coach Eric Schmidt said. "I don't know. We'll know more (Sunday)."
UND, which trailed Murray State 21-0 last Saturday before cruising to a win, fell behind again against the Panthers. UNI led 24-7 early in the second quarter after a Michael Bormann 3-yard touchdown run.
"Disappointing," Schmidt said. "I just thought we had a really good week of practice and felt like our guys were ready to go. We just couldn't get out of our own way. I feel like it was really hard for us to go down and score."
Even after UND dodged a number of punches in the first half, the Hawks received the ball to start the second half trailing 24-10. Korey Tai, who also fumbled on offense late in the first half, fumbled the opening kickoff in the second half.
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"I think everyone is disappointed and frustrated, knowing there was so much left on the bone," UND edge Braden Mohr said. "There's so much more that we can produce, and so much more that we can do. Our team knows what we're capable of, and we have to play complementary football."
Despite a number of issues elsewhere, UND's defense was dominant in the second half, led by two sacks for Mohr, who now has a MVFC-best 7.5.
UND finished outgaining Northern Iowa 367 to 144 in total yards. UND had 21 first downs to UNI's 11. The Panthers had no yards in the third quarter.
But the Hawks were 18-for-44 throwing the ball. Well before Kaminski's injury, UND struggled in the pass game. Kaminski was 16-for-35 for 152 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.
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Javance Tupou'ata-Johnson, who came into the game for Kaminski, was 2-for-9 passing for 29 yards. Kaminski was hurt on the second play of the fourth quarter. One play later, Tupou'ata-Johnson scored on a 1-yard run to cut the Panther lead to 24-17 with 14 minutes, 16 seconds remaining.
"We've got to be more consistent ... everybody, every position group," UND tackle Trace Thaden said. "Everybody has to look at themselves and pick out stuff to clean up."
After cutting the lead to seven, UND had three more possessions to try tie the game with Tupou'ata-Johnson behind center.
The Hawks' final attempt came with 2 minutes, 28 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Tupou'ata-Johnson had a pair of runs and a 5-yard pass to Sam Strandell to get UND out to its own 40 with 1:45 to play.
Tupou'ata-Johnson threw incomplete on second down, was tackled for a short loss on third down and threw wildly while facing pressure incomplete on fourth down.
