HAMMOND, La. (AP) — Eli Sawyer hit Darius Lewis with a 3-yard touchdown with two seconds left and Southeast Louisiana pulled out a 24-23 win over Stephen F. Austin Saturday night to maintain the top spot in the Southland Conference.
SE Louisiana (4-4) has won three straight games to start the conference season.
Antonio Martin Jr. ran 10 yards for a first-quarter touchdown and Sawyer nosed in from the 1 to give the Lions a 14-7 lead at intermission. Riley Callaghan kicked a 32-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter to take a 14-10 lead, but Gavin Rutherford’s 2-yard touchdown put the Lumberjacks in front 20-17 and Chris Campos extended it to 23-17 with a 40-yard field goal with 1:56 left.
Southeast Louisiana started its game-winning, 75-yard drive by stalling at its own 27-yard line before Sawyer hit Errol Rogers for 17 yards on fourth-and-8 to get new life. Sawyer and Lewis connected on five passes in the final drive, including a 19-yard completion to set up a first down at the SFA 9 with 15 seconds left. Sawyer found Cade Collier for 6 yards before hitting Lewis for the TD.
Sam Vidlak was 29-of-38 passing for 244 yards and a touchdown to lead Stephen F. Austin (4-3, 2-2).
Sawyer finished 24 of 35 for 234 yards and a touchdown for SE Louisiana. Martin finished with 21 carries for 87 yards and Lewis caught 11 passes for 96 yards, including 46 yards in the final drive.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Copyright © 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
