APU football drops fourth game of the season after 44-6 loss on Saturday

Azusa Pacific’s football squad continued to struggle on both sides of the ball on Saturday. Following their first win of the season two weeks ago against Simon Fraser, the Cougars were rewarded with a much-needed bye week. After a week of preparation, head coach Victor Santa Cruz and his young squad felt confident heading into their matchup against the Central Washington Wildcats.

In front of 6,000 Wildcats fans, the Cougars struggled from the get-go. The Cougars had some success on their first offensive drive, reaching their opponent’s 40-yard line, but quarterback Anthony Catalano, who has been solid since stepping in for starter Tyrone Williams Jr., threw an interception to Central Washington’s Tyren Sams.

The Wildcats took advantage of Catalano’s turnover, scoring a touchdown on their first possession of the game when quarterback Christian Moore found receiver Tyson Rainwater for a 22-yard touchdown. Moore and Rainwater connected for three touchdowns and 177 yards on the night.

APU struggled to find any momentum following the turnover, as their next four drives consisted of a turnover on downs and three straight punts. CWU, on the other hand, continued to dissect the Cougars’ defense with ease. By the end of the first quarter, the Wildcats were up 17-0, and Moore had already thrown for more than 100 yards and two touchdowns.

“We take a lot of pride in what we do in the secondary, but we struggled in the first half defending the pass,” said Santa Cruz. “They were just beating us over the top on nearly every play, and we had a lot of blown coverages. We’re going to have to adjust heading into next week.”

The Cougars finally got on the board with 6:10 left in the second quarter. Catalano found freshman receiver Noah Bogardus wide open, and he ran it all the way for a 32-yard touchdown. It was the first play of the Cougars drive, after their defense came up with a big interception.

Unfortunately, the Cougars score failed to shift the momentum of the game. On the Wildcats next drive, Moore shook off his pick and threw a 44-yard bullet to Tony Archie, resulting in yet another touchdown for CWU. At halftime, APU was down by 18 points with little hope in sight.

The game was essentially iced as the Wildcats scored on another deep pass from Moore to start the second half. The final 30 minutes continued to show dominance from the Wildcats, particularly on defense. 

The Cougars had a total of five drives in the second half, and four of them ended on their own side of the field, which led to punts. Their best chance came in the fourth quarter when the defense came up with another turnover. APU advanced all the way to the 28-yard line; however, they were stopped on fourth down, leading to a turnover on downs.

“Of course you have to credit their defense. They have a great squad over there. But clearly our offense didn’t produce,” Santa Cruz said. “It’s hard to win any football game, especially at this level, when you score six points throughout the 60 minutes. That just can’t happen. But I feel like we moved the ball well, just couldn’t capitalize on our drives.”

Six points is a season-low for the Cougars in terms of scoring, and it is the third time this season that the defense has given up more than 40 points to their opponent. The Cougars are now 1-4 on the season, and time is running out for this squad to escape their hole and turn this 2019 campaign into a prosperous one.

One of the biggest tribulations for this team has been their schedule. Out of their first five games, four of them have been on the road, including trips to Texas, Missouri, British Columbia and Washington. Luckily for them, that trend has come to an end as they will now begin a three-game homestand.

“It’s been such a daunting travel schedule, and you have to win away games to be successful in college football. Unfortunately, we haven’t found the success we hoped for on the road, but we’re excited to head back to our home field in front of our home fans,” said Santa Cruz.

The Cougars’ next game is on Saturday, Oct. 19, where they will play Simon Fraser for the second time this season. APU found tremendous success against this team previously, and SFU has yet to win a game all season. Kickoff will be at 6:30 pm at Citrus Stadium.