Mccaffrey gets 2 TDS in Bears’ win

CEDAR CITY, UTAH» Dylan Mccaffrey threw for one touchdown and ran for another and Northern Colorado defeated Southern Utah 17-9 on Saturday night.

Mccaffrey, the former Michigan quarterback now playing for his father, had modest passing numbers — 11 of 23 for 74 yards — but he rushed for 100 yards on 14 carries.

The Bears (3-5, 2-3 Big Sky Conference), who had allowed an average of 45 points in their past three games, didn’t allow a touchdown and twice forced field goals when the Thunderbirds (1-7, 0-5) reached the red zone.

“It was really awesome to see offense cheering for defense, defense rooting for offense,” UNC coach Ed Mccaffrey said. “Guys (were) really getting after it on the sideline, encouraging each other. That’s the real fulfillment you get as a coach when you see all the players in the program, supporting each other and pushing each other and helping each other to get better. We saw that today was a great feeling.”

Tru Wilson added 85 yards rushing and the Bears finished with 251 yards on the ground.

“I think we ran the ball a little harder today. It looked like we had a lot more bounce in our step. I thought we had a great combination of running backs; Tru Wilson had a great week of practice and earned those carries. I thought (freshman) Gene sledge did what we asked him to do; hit the hole hard and had a couple of nice solid runs. Obviously, Dylan in the run game really helped us,” coach Mccaffrey said.

Northern Colorado led 10-6 early in the fourth quarter before an 18-play, 90-yard drive ended with a 1-yard run by Mccaffrey to give the Bears an 11-point lead.

Southern Utah added a field goal on its next possession then forced a punt, but the Thunderbirds’ final drive ended on downs near midfield.

SUU’S Justin Miller completed 29 of 50 passes for 307 yards.