SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. --- A fast start for the Golden Eagles dissipated as the game wore on, as Clarion fell by a 42-23 score to 22^nd-ranked Slippery Rock at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Eagles led until late in the first half, but the Rock took the advantage with 51 seconds left in the second quarter and held it for the remainder.
 
The game started as a track meet between two potent offenses, with both sides scoring touchdowns on each of their first two possessions. Freshman quarterback Jase Ferguson orchestrated a pair of methodical drives that each spanned nine plays and more than 70 yards, while the Rock scored on an explosive 67-yard run by JayJay Jordan and a fake field goal rush from Cory Butts.
 
On the first possession, the pass game from the Golden Eagles carved up the Rock defense, with Ferguson finding Ray Jackson and Ja'Tawn Williams on back-to-back passes to enter the red zone. Ferguson hit Jackson on a slant on 3^rd-and-5 from the 13-yard line to open the scoring. On Clarion's second offensive possession Ferguson hit Davon Jones on a 30-yard pass play to get in close and then found Dominik Thomas in the end zone to make it 14-7.
 
As the game went on, though, the Slippery Rock defense began to seal up the cracks against the Clarion offense, holding the Golden Eagles in check and logging two key turnovers. The first came with the Golden Eagles on the precipice of the red zone late in the third quarter, after having traveled from deep in their own end. Tyler Cain picked off Ferguson at six-yard line to help preserve Slippery Rock's lead, though the Rock were also left without points after a missed field goal on the other end of the field.
 
The Golden Eagles pulled back to within a score after a 15-play, 80-yard touchdown drive midway through the fourth quarter. Running back Khalon Simmons did the damage on the ground on that drive, pushing the pile for a 12-yard run down to the two-yard line and then punching it in up the middle to make it 28-23. Clarion's onside kick attempt failed, giving the Rock good field position that eventually led to a touchdown pass from DaOne Owens to Latrell Sutton. The Rock added another score with a minute to play when Blake Nicholas picked off Ferguson at the Slippery Rock 47-yard line and took it back for a touchdown, sealing the win.
 
Ferguson finished 20-of-43 passing for 233 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, and was also Clarion's leading rusher with 67 yards. Jackson was his most consistent target, catching eight passes for 92 yards and a score. Read Full Article