BETHANY, OKLA. – The East Central University football team came out on top, in the first of two-straight road games, with a 31-26 win over Southern Nazarene in Great American Conference action at the SNU Football Complex.

The Tigers (3-2, 3-2 GAC) ended up with just seven more yards of total offense, but early a key advantage with one interception and one fumble recovery to zero in both column by SNU.

ECU saw two touchdowns and 99 yards receiving from sophomore David Moore, a TD and 64 yards receiving from junior Juwan Dotson and a rushing touchdown from senior JoJo Snell, with 125 yards on the ground.

Junior Spencer Bond went 22-of-36 passing for 250 yards and three touchdowns.

The defensive charge was led by junior Jameel Whitney with 13 tackles (8-5), one tackle-for-loss (two yards) and a blocked PAT attempt.  Sophomore Josiah Reed had a break-out game with nine (6-3) total tackles and a TFL for one yard.  Sophomore Francisco Silva added seven tackles (5-2), two sacks (13 yards) and four TFL (16 yards).

The Crimson Storm (0-5, 0-5 GAC) were the first to score with 7:49 left in the first quarter.  But it did not take long for the Tigers to respond, as they tied the game at seven 2:08 later.

Bond threw a 54-yard touchdown to Moore that capped off a seven-play, 78-yard drive with 5:36 left on the clock.

The ECU defense then stepped up and helped force a missed SNU 30-yard field goal attempt at 2:40 in the first to keep the score knotted at seven.

The Tigers then responded with a 44-yard passing TD from Bond to Moore again to take a 14-7 lead.

The second quarter scoring started with a Crimson Storm TD with 9:28 remaining in the half, but Whitney blocked the extra point kick attempt for a 14-13 score.
ECU added to its lead with 4:16 left in the half when Bond connected with Dotson for a 17-yard passing TD and a 21-13 lead.

It looked like that was how the first half was going to end, but SNU used a trick play as time ran out for a touchdown and a 21-20 score heading into the locker room.

The Tigers were the only team to put points on the scoreboard in the third quarter, with Snell breaking free for a 32-yard rushing TD with 12:18 left to play in the stanza.  The play capped off a five-play 58-yard drive that took just 1:09 to complete.

The Crimson Storm cut the lead to two (28-26) with 8:57 left in the game after a touchdown and a failed two-point conversion attempt.

ECU capped off the scoring with 3:05 left to play.  Sophomore David Massuere converted on a 25-yard field goal to push the lead to 31-26.

The Tigers will now get a bye week before hitting the road again, Saturday, Oct. 18 for a battle at Northwestern Oklahoma State.  Game time is set for 3 p.m. in Alva, Okla.