MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (November 14, 2020) - St. Thomas University (STU) Bobcats Football (3-3, 2-2 MSC) earned the first home win of the 2020 season and second overtime win in program history with a thrilling 27-20 victory over Warner University (2-4, 1-3 MSC) on Saturday afternoon from Monsignor Pace High School. 

Saturday also marked the second annual homecoming football game for St. Thomas University, which was sponsored by AutoNation. Following the first quarter, Vice President and Chief Customer Experience Officer Marc Cannon was presented with the Bobcat Community Service Award on behalf of AutoNation. AutoNation supports Breast Cancer Awareness through its "Drive Pink" campaign, and AutoNation provided "Drive Pink" STU shirts for the game, with proceeds being donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. 

St. Thomas won the opening coin toss and elected to receive. Bobcat quarterback Tyler Thomas (16/32, 301 yards, 4 TDs; 3 rushes, 16-yards) extended the Bobcats opening drive with a six-yard scramble to convert a third-and-three. Three plays later, STU punted for the first time, as Billy McConnell flipped the field and downed the ball inside the Royals' 20-yard line. WU drove down the field with their opening possession,  getting into the red zone, and threatened to score. Reigning Mid-South Defensive Player of the Week, Sidney Porter forced his first of three turnovers on the game with a fumble, as STU recovered and prevented Warner from taking an early lead. On the following St. Thomas possession, Thomas found C'quan Jnopierre (6 REC, 122-yards, 2 TDs) for a 23-yard conversion on third down. STU's offense stalled again, as McConnell pinned WU back once again. The Royals' second possession was a replica of their first, driving down the field inside the red zone once again. Porter stopped Warner once again, forcing his second fumble of the first quarter as STU recovered on the 12-yard line. 

St. Thomas punted for their third consecutive drive to begin the second quarter, as Warner started their third drive near mid-field. Four plays later, WU found the end-zone for the first time in the game for either side, connecting on a 33-yard touchdown pass to take a 7-0 lead over the Bobcats. Later on in the second quarter, Caleb Walker recorded his first career collegiate interception to give St. Thomas the ball on the Royals' 20-yard line. Following a penalty on the interception, the Bobcats were backed up to the Warner 35 on the second play of the drive, Thomas found Tyrese Blue (4 REC, 60-yards, 2 TDs) for a 35-yard touchdown, getting the Bobcats on the board. A missed point-after-attempt put the score at 7-6, in favor of Warner with two minutes remaining in the first half. The game went into the halftime break with St. Thomas trailing Warner 7-6.

During halftime, St. Thomas University Student Affairs crowned the homecoming king and queen. STU linebacker Donnell Bennett III was named homecoming king, and Bobcat softball player Sarah Descheene was crowned queen. 

Warner began the second half with possession and extended their lead with a field goal after a 17-play, 59-yard drive to take a 10-6 advantage over STU. St. Thomas possessed the ball for 1:31 in the third quarter, and Warner went into the fourth quarter with possession of the football. 

WU added to their lead with their second touchdown of the game, leading 17-6 early in the fourth quarter. Once again, Thomas found Jnopierre splitting the middle of the field for a 58-yard score as STU cut into the Royals' lead and trailed 17-13. St. Thomas forced a three-and-out on the ensuing Warner possession, allowing only one-yard and forced WU to punt. Thomas led a touchdown-drive to finally put STU in front as the quarterback found Blue for the duo's second touchdown of the game. STU's defense limited Warner to just three yards on the next drive, but the teams traded punts on four consecutive drives. McConnell continued his great day for STU by pinning Warner inside the five-yard line with less than four minutes remaining and STU leading 20-17. Warner drove the length of the field and kicked a game-tying field goal with 15-seconds remaining to send the game into overtime. 

St. Thomas started the first overtime, the second in program history and second against Warner, with possession. On the first play of the STU possession, Jnopierre found the endzone for the second time in the game, giving STU a 27-20 lead. Warner, needing to respond with a touchdown to continue the game, failed to score as Porter sealed the Bobcats win with an interception in the endzone. 

STU concludes the 2020 season on Saturday, September 21 with a Mid-South Conference tilt against Webber International; kick-off is scheduled for 12 p.m.

-STU-