CONWAY, Ark.- Central Arkansas (2-1, 0-1) defeated Central Oklahoma (1-1, 0-0) 59-20 on Saturday. Central Arkansas scored 21 unanswered points in the third quarter, moving from a 24-10 lead to 45-10.
Central Arkansas ran for 407 yards and four touchdowns, with
Jalen Washington finishing with 202 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries, while Central Oklahoma had 32 rushing yards. The 407 yards on the ground for the Bears is the 7th most net rushing yards in a game in UCA history. The defense added four interceptions, two fumble recoveries and seven sacks, and the offense did not throw an interception or lose a fumble. Central Arkansas scoring included touchdown drives of one, two and one plays featuring runs of 71, 71 and 56 yards.
A backed-up possession turned into the first quarter's first points, with Central Arkansas driving 88 yards in 10 plays from its 1 before
Caleb Jones made a 33-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead.
Donovyn Omolo's 53-yard fourth-down completion to
Tyrell Pollard moved the drive to the Central Oklahoma 10. Omolo then had a 9-yard touchdown run to make it 10-0. Central Oklahoma reached the Central Arkansas 11 on the final play, but Central Arkansas finished the quarter ahead 10-0.
After an early Central Oklahoma touchdown, Central Arkansas answered with a 48-second drive, as
Jalen Washington broke a 71-yard run and Omolo found
Ty Durham for a 21-yard touchdown to make it 17-7. The defense added two sack-fumble recoveries by
Jakobe Shell in the quarter, and Cam Young's 2-yard touchdown run pushed the score to 24-7 before Central Oklahoma added a late field goal for a 24-10 halftime score.
In the third quarter, Central Arkansas scored twice in the opening 1:28, with
Jalen Washington running 71 yards for a touchdown before
Bryson Adamoh returned an interception 29 yards for another score.
DaMari Smith added an interception at the Central Oklahoma 44, and Central Arkansas converted it into Omolo's 6-yard touchdown pass to
Dakarai Anderson. Adamoh later intercepted another pass at the Central Arkansas 3, helping the home side finish the quarter ahead 45-10 after a 21-0 scoring edge in the quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Central Arkansas answered an early blocked-punt touchdown by Central Oklahoma with a 75-yard drive, capped by
Tyler Dudden's 4-yard touchdown pass to Durham and
Caleb Jones' extra point for a 52-17 lead. The defense followed with sacks by
Joseph Washington and
Kaydin Thomas to force a punt, and
Enoch Assan scored on a 56-yard run one play later as Central Arkansas moved ahead 59-17. Central Oklahoma added a field goal, and Central Arkansas closed out a 59-20 win.
Jalen Washington
- 202 rushing yards on 12 carries
- 1 rushing touchdown
Donovyn Omolo
- 11-for-15 passing for 133 yards
- 2 touchdown passes
- 32 rushing yards on 5 carries
- 1 rushing touchdown
Ty Durham
- 3 receptions for 34 yards
- 2 receiving touchdowns
Bryson Adamoh
- 2 interceptions
- 56 interception return yards
- 1 interception return touchdown
- 3 tackles
Jakobe Shell
- 2 fumble recoveries
- 1 sack
- 1 forced fumble
Up next, the Central Arkansas Bears travel to Cape Girardeau, Mo., to face Southeast Missouri State University on Saturday, Sept. 19, at 6 p.m.
