Redshirt junior tight end Brady Preston caught the Bulldogs’ lone score Saturday. Photo courtesy of Butler Athletics.
AIDEN CADDELL | STAFF REPORTER | acaddell@butler.edu
On a rainy, windy afternoon in southern California, Butler lost a mud-filled battle with Pioneer League opponent San Diego, 29-7.
The wet field conditions had a negative impact on each team’s offense to start the game, as the two squads traded a total of four punts in a scoreless opening 15 minutes. However, the Bulldogs’ passing game showed signs of life with a 19-yard completion to sophomore wideout Chet Yardley on a drive that eventually fell flat, ending in a fourth-down stand for the Toreros.
In the second quarter, redshirt junior quarterback Reagan Andrew continued to find his receivers, completing a pass with redshirt junior tight end Brady Preston for a big 24-yard gain. Later in the drive, Andrew connected with redshirt junior wide receiver and “swiss-army knife” Ethan Loss on back-to-back plays for pivotal third- and fourth-down completions.
Crucial mistakes on San Diego’s side of the field hurt the Bulldogs. An Andrew fumble lost Butler’s 14-play, near nine-minute drive right into the hands of the defense.
With four minutes to go in the half, the Toreros stormed down the field led by graduate running back Matt Columbo, bouncing off tacklers and sprinting down the sideline for 43 yards before finally being shoved out of bounds by graduate defensive back Onye Onuoha. The drive looked destined to find the endzone until senior linebacker Tyson Garrett burst through the offensive line, taking down Columbo behind the line of scrimmage for a momentum-shifting loss.
San Diego would settle for a 35-yard field goal on the drive, and both teams headed into the locker room after a defense-driven 3-0 half.
The Bulldogs started with a break to the second half, as San Diego sophomore kicker Emiliano Salazar missed a near-identical 34-yard shot on the Toreros’ first drive after the intermission. Despite this, the Bulldogs once again turned it over on downs past midfield, failing to convert on fourth and short. Butler would finish the game just 1-5 on fourth down.
San Diego capitalized on Butler mistakes yet again, setting up a mid-range field goal try with a 46-yard passing play on the first play of the drive. Salazar converted on the 32-yarder, moving the score to 6-0.
To end the third quarter, the Dawgs finally put it all together on a 64-yard scoring drive, taking their first and only lead of the game with a 10-yard dart from Andrew to Preston.
Butler took its lead and newfound momentum into the fourth quarter and keep things rolling with an interception by junior defensive back Devaon Holman, finding itself with a one-point lead and the ball with just under 13 minutes to play.
Beginning on the next drive, the game took a complete 180 in favor of the Toreros that the Dawgs could not deter. An errant snap by the special teams unit on a routine punt attempt ended in disaster for Butler and two points for San Diego with a game-changing safety.
From that moment, San Diego took complete control of the game. The next three San Diego possessions ended in touchdown scores, and Butler’s final two chances ended in an Andrew interception and yet another turnover on downs. 23 consecutive points in just 12 minutes was the killer for the Dawgs as the match ended in a 29-7 defeat.
Butler loses its third straight to fall to 5-6 on the year with a 3-4 conference record. San Diego notches its fourth straight win to improve to 7-4 and 5-2 against conference opponents. The Bulldogs come home for a senior night celebration against Valparaiso on Nov. 22 in the Sellick Bowl at 1 p.m.
