HAMMOND, La. — Felando Jordan had two of Southeastern Louisiana’s three blocked field goals, Mateo Rengifo made a 21-yarder with two seconds to play and the Lions beat Northwestern State 27-24 on Saturday night.
Quarterback Cole Kelly had an 8-yard touchdown reception on a reverse-pass from Terrell Carter, threw a 9-yard TD pass to Matt DeBlaiso, and scored on a 1-yard run to trim Southeastern Louisiana’s deficit to 24-21 early in the fourth quarter. CJ Turner had nine receptions for 127 yards, including back-to-back catches of 18 and 26 yards to set up Rengifo’s winner.
Scooter Adams had 19 carries for 100 yards and a touchdown for Northwestern State (0-2, 0-2 Southland Conference).
On a fourth-and-2 from the 28, Northwestern State lined up to go for it but was called for delay of game. The Demons then attempted a 50-yard field goal but a high snap allowed SLU freshman Jack Henderson time to block the kick. The Lions (2-1, 2-1) took over near midfield, leading to Rengifo’s 26-yard field goal that made it 24-all with 3:33 to play.
On Northwestern State’s ensuing possession, Kaleb Fletcher scrambled to convert a third-and-7 from the 21 and then two plays later on another third-and-7, rolled right and hit Adams for a 38-yard gain to the SLU 31. But Jordan — who also blocked a 22-yard try as time in the first half expired — knocked down a 40-yard attempt by Eddie Godina with 30 seconds to play.
The Lions, ranked No. 18 in the STATS FCS poll, have won back-to-back games after losing their opener to No. 12 Sam Houston.
More AP college football: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25
