Second-half surge pushes Western Illinois past NAU
MACOMB, Ill. -- Sean McGuire threw for 329 yards and two touchdowns, Steve McShane ran in two more, and No. 18 Western Illinois cruised to a 34-20 win over No. 19 Northern Arizona on Saturday.
Tied at 13 apiece midway through the third quarter, Western Illinois (2-0) got the go-ahead touchdown on a 62-yard run from McShane, who finished with 155 yards on 24 carries. He also had a 4-yard TD just before the half. Isaiah Lesure hauled in a 26-yard touchdown pass from McGuire on the Leathernecks' next possession and Lance Lenoir, who finished with a career-high 231 yards on 11 receptions, sealed the win with a 10-yard TD grab in the fourth quarter.
"The control of the line of scrimmage ... we didn't have it," NAU coach Jerome Souers said. "They pressured our passing game, their offensive line took control and did a great job protecting their quarterback. I thought they ran the ball pretty effectively, but the hardest part was dealing with their receivers, particularly (Lance Lenoir). I thought he had a great game today."
Nathan Knuffman had two first-half field goals for the Leathernecks. McGuire hit 21 of his 30 passes with no interceptions.
Northern Arizona (0-2) was led by Case Cookus, who finished 26 of 33 for 263 yards passing and two touchdowns.
"There were times where we stopped ourselves, whether it was a critical penalty, a missed assignment or a missed block," Souers said. "When we sustained drives, the offense looked great, but the times that we didn't, we looked like a team that was off pace."
