Oct. 15, 2005

Box Score

(Dayton, OH) In what was billed as a potential defensive showdown between No. 1 Dayton and No. 2 USD, the Toreros came away with an impressive 48-24 victory. Down 24-20 at halftime, the Torero defense shutout the Flyers over the final two quarters while scoring 28 unanswered points. The win extends USD's undefeated PFL record to 2-0 and moves them to 6-1 overall. It was the 1-2 punch of QB Josh Johnson and RB JT Rogan that did the Flyers in. Johnson passed for 3 scores and rushed for one more, and Rogan rushed for 3 touchdowns and was on the receiving end of another.

In the air, senior wide receiver Nick Garton had 5 catches for 102 yards and 1 touchdown. On the ground, freshman running back JT Rogan got plenty of room to run on 30 attempts for 180 yards and 3 touchdowns. The defense has allowed only one touchdown in the second half all season against its first six opponents, and continued that streak shutting out the Flyers offense in the second half of play.

In a back-and-forth first quarter, Dayton scored first when Flyers quarterback Kevin Hoyng broke free for a 50-yard run with 11:16 remaining. The Toreros quickly responded as sophomore quarterback Josh Johnson found senior receiver Nick Garton from 19 yards out to cap a 6-play, 51-yard drive. The Flyers marched 80 yards back down the field in 12 plays where from the 1-yard line senior fullback Matt Mong punched in their second touchdown. With 2:34 left in the first quarter, the Toreros countered and went 75-yards in 4-plays getting freshman running back JT Rogan the ball at the 7 yard line and rushing in tying the game at the end of the first quarter 14-14.

"The offensive line did a great job," said freshman running back JT Rogan. "They were awesome."

San Diego took a quick lead in the second quarter when quarterback Josh Johnson found freshman wide receiver John Matthews from 17 yards out to end an 11-play, 84-yard drive with 11:00 left. Sophomore kicker Hutch Parker's point after attempt failed leaving the score 20-14. Dayton attempted to respond but the Torero defense held them at the 38-yard line where junior kicker Josh Heyne was forced to attempt a field goal lifting the Flyers 3 points closer, 17-20 with 8:29 on the clock. USD was forced to punt for the first time late in the second quarter and the Flyers capitalized on the opportunity by going 84 yards in 9 plays to score. Quarterback Kevin Hoyng found junior tight end Matt Campa in the end zone from 20-yards away. Dayton regained the lead 24-20 to end the first half.

The Toreros made the necessary adjustments at half time. Quarterback Josh Johnson found running back JT Rogan in the end zone to regain the lead 27-24 on a 3-yard pass after going 94 yards in 12 plays with 7:32 remaining in the 3rd quarter. After forcing Dayton to punt, JT Rogan found a hole in the Dayton defense racing 35 yards into the end zone for another touchdown. USD extended their lead 34-24 going 61 yards in 5 plays in just under two minutes.

"We knew we would have our hands full today," said Head Coach Jim Harbaugh. "We'll enjoy this victory, but now we are in a championship run and starting tomorrow will get ready for the Drake game."

At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Josh Johnson capped off a 7-play, 42-yard drive rushing in for a touchdown from 11 yards out lifting their lead 40-24. Then with 9:30 left in the game, JT Rogan rushed for his third touchdown from 4 yards out to end a 48-yard, 8-play drive. Opting to go for the 2-point conversion, Josh Johnson connected with sophomore wide receiver Wes Doyle sealing their victory 48-24.

"We've been a really good second-half team, added Harbaugh. "We've only had seven points scored on us in the second half the entire season. And JT Rogan did a tremendous job. He ran the ball well and made people miss. He was tough to bring down, and he got every yard that was out there."

USD had 551 yards in total offense and 294 rushing yards. Quarterback Josh Johnson had 21 completions on 29 attempts with no interceptions. Senior wide receiver Adam Hannula had 5 receptions for 39 yards. On defense, sophomore defensive lineman Eric Stern recovered a Flyers fumble and junior linebacker Kyson Hawkins had 1 sack and 12 tackles (7 solo) with 4 going for losses. Josh Brisco, Philip Bretsch and Eric Bakhtiari each chipped in with 7 tackles.

USD returns home October 22nd for more conference action against preseason favorite Drake, kickoff scheduled for 7:00 pm at Torero Stadium.