CLARION, Pa. – The Golden Eagle football team rallied in the second half, and were knocking at the door in the Millersville red zone, but Clarion was ultimately kept from recording the game-winning score in falling 21-17 to the Marauders. Michael Proios was stopped just short of converting on 4^th-and-10 from the Millersville 17-yard line, with Isaiah Onuschak and Rafael Lozada tackling him short of the line to gain.
 
Clarion (0-2) trailed the Marauders 21-10 late in the third quarter, but a fortuitous turnover by corner Legend Davis put them back in the action. With little more than a minute remaining in the third quarter, Davis leaped in front of receiver Hakim Melvin to pick off Jared Jenkins, returning the pass 13 yards to the Marauders' 28. Proios made them pay for the mistake one play later, firing a bullet to Quinn Zinobile between the hashes for a touchdown to cut the deficit to 21-17.
 
Millersville nearly put the game out of reach early in the fourth quarter, after D'Andre Blue-Eli returned an interception to the Clarion two-yard line. The defensive line held strong on all three rushing attempts by the Marauders and was rewarded for their effort on third-and-goal, when Jenkins coughed up the football to Drew Blon to give the Golden Eagles possession. Clarion marched the ball 85 yards from the shadow of their own goalposts, but ultimately were stuffed on 4^th-and-2 on the Millersville 13-yard line.
 
The Golden Eagles had one more opportunity to take the lead after taking possession at the Millersville 44 with 2:35 remaining. Facing a 1^st-and-10 situation from the Marauders' 17-yard line, Clarion was unable to convert a first down, eventually relinquishing the ball on downs with 51 seconds remaining.
 
Clarion struck first in the game, with Khalil Owens punching in a one-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter to put his team ahead 7-0. The Marauders responded with two touchdowns in the second quarter, and Jarrett Esposito booted a 32-yard field goal at the break to make it 14-10 at the break. The eventual game winner for Millersville came midway through the third quarter, when Jenkins rolled to his right to avoid pressure and lobbed a 26-yard touchdown to Christian Drayton III in the back of the end zone to make it 21-10.
 
Quinn Zinobile had one of the best days of his career, catching 10 passes for 140 yards and a score. The running game was particularly effective, with the duo of Khalil Owens and Mylique McGriff carrying 46 times for 170 yards. Kareem Hamdan once again led the team in tackles, making 11 stops.