October 13, 2007. Ray Miles connected with Eric Hajnos in the end zone for the third time with 12.6 seconds remaining, to lift Cortland to a 27-26 comeback win over the Western Connecticut Colonials. The touchdown pass came on fourth down from the West Conn 6-yard line. Cortland and West Conn combined for nearly 800 yards in total offense.

West Conn got on the board first on an 11-yard touchdown pass from James Williams to Allan Bowen. The drive covered 83 yards on 11 plays, and included rushes of 15 yards and 16 yards from running back Wayne Neal. Cortland immediately answered as the game moved into the second quarter, driving 65 yards on 13 plays. However on third down from the West Conn 10-yard line, Ray Miles had a sure touchdown pass dropped in the end zone to end the drive. Matt Mintz kicked a field goal to draw Cortland to within 7-3.

The Cortland defense followed the field goal with a 3-and-out series. A West Conn punt gave Cortland possession at its own 41-yard line. Paul Caughell caught a clutch third down pass from Ray Miles for 19 yards to move the football to the West Conn 33-yard line. On fourth down from the West Conn 28-yard line, Miles returned to Caughell for another clutch 19-yard reception. However the drive stalled inside the red zone, and Mintz kicked his second field goal to draw Cortland to within 7-6 heading into half-time.

West Conn came out firing in the third quarter. With Red Dragons cornerback Ronny Rodriguez out of the game with a knee injury, the secondary started to give up big plays. Colonial quarterback James Williams hit wide receiver Derrick Way for what appeared to be a short gain. However two Dragon defenders collided, and Way made a third miss. Way ran 75-yards for a touchdown to give West Conn a 14-6 advantage.

With 11:46 to play in the third quarter, Red Dragons punter Kyle Peterson cornered a punt out at the West Conn 5-yard line in a key special teams play. The Colonials were stopped after one first down and forced to punt from their own 13-yard line. A 5-yard return by Jeff Beck after a 30-yard punt gave Cortland great field possession at the Colonials 38-yard line. Miles completed 11 and 12 yard passes to Hajnos and Mike Lane respectively. Mintz kicked 23-yard field goal, his third of the game, to draw Cortland closer at 14-9.

Disaster struck for Cortland late in the third quarter. Will Loeb fumbled a punt return at the Cortland 19-yard line to give West Conn a gift turnover. Derrick Way ran a 16-yard reverse to get the Colonials down to the Cortland 2-yard line. Wayne Neal finished the short drive with a 2-yard touchdown run. West Conn took a 21-9 lead entering the fourth quarter.

The fireworks began in the fourth quarter for both teams. But it was the Cortland offense which stole the show. Cortland drove the football 55-yards in only 2:14. The drive was kept alive by a Miles 23-yard scramble run on third down. Miles and Hajnos hooked up on a 22-yard flag pattern touchdown pass, and Cortland pulled within 20-15. The two-point conversion try failed.

With 7:22 remaining in the game Cortland took the football at its own 13-yard line, still trailing by 5 points. A sack of Miles on first down made it second down and 18 from the 5-yard line. But Paul Caughell bailed out Cortland again with a 10-yard reception. Then Miles completed a 13-yard pass to Andrew Giuliano to give Cortland a first down. On third-down and 3 yards to go from the Cortland 35-yard line, Mike Lane got open for a 14-yard reception and another Cortland first down. Next Miles found Zacc Guaragano for 22 yards to the West Conn 29-yard line. After a pass interfence call on the defense moved the football to the Colonials 14-yard line, Giuliano rushed 9 yards up the gut to the West Conn 5-yard line. On the next play Miles and Hajnos connected on another flag pattern touchdown. With 3:38 to play, Cortland took its first lead of the day, 21-20. The two-point conversion failed.

Western Connecticut was not done by a long shot. James Williams completed a 43-yard pass to Keith Rosedom, and West Conn had a first down at the Cortland 28-yard line. Two plays later Derrick Way caught a 31-yard crossing pattern pass from Williams and raced down the sideline for a shocking touchdown. With just over 1:30 to play, West Conn took a 26-21 lead and appeared to have the game won. Their two-point conversion failed.

On the ensuing kickoff, Will Loeb made his second chance to make a big impact a positive one. Brian Bert fielded the kickoff at the Cortland 28-yard line, and pitched the ball back to Loeb. The freshman running back burst forward for 23 yards into West Conn territory at the 49-yard line. Cortland had excellent field possession, new hope, and 1:26 to work with. Miles went back to the air, hitting Keith Greene for 22-yards on a sideline route. After a 9-yard catch and run by Greene, the Cortland drive stalled. Facing fourth down and 1 yard to go from the West Conn 18-yard line, and only 47 seconds remaining to play, Miles threw a 5-yard pass toward Hajnos. Hajnos leaped high in the air to bring the ball down for a key reception. However the drive stalled again, as the Colonials pressured Miles on every pass attempt. With only 16 seconds to play, Cortland was out of timeouts. Facing fourth down and 3 yards to go from the West Conn 6-yard line, the game would come down to one play. Eric Hajnos ran a slant pattern as the offensive line gave Miles protection. Miles saw his receiver come open and delivered a perfect touchdown pass. Cortland took the lead 27-26 with just 12 seconds remaining. The two-point conversion failed.

The Colonials gave the Cortland fans plenty of heart palpations on their last play from scrimmage. Williams connected with Mike DiMeglio for 9-yards, who pitched it to Derrick Way. Way turned up the sideline for 29 yards before Greg Steward pushed him out of bounds at the Cortland 36-yard line. The game was over, and Cortland had survived 27-26.

Both offenses were tremendous on Saturday. Ray Miles completed 31 of 46 passes for 290 yards and 3 touchdowns. James Williams threw for 328 yards and 3 touchdowns for West Conn. Derrick Way caught 3 passes for 158 yards to lead all receivers. Keith Greene had 9 catches for 70 yards, Caughell 7 receptions for 73 yards, and Eric Hajnos 6 catches and 3 touchdowns. Dustin Bowser and Andrew Giuliano combined for 98 yards on 21 carries as the offensive line controlled scrimmage once more. NJAC leading rusher Wayne Neal managed only 32 yards on 23 carries for the Colonials against the Cortland rush defense.

First place in the NJAC is on the line the next 3 weekends. Cortland hosts Montclair next Saturday, then travels to TCNJ, before returning home for defending champion Rowan. Cortland improved to 5-1 overall, 4-0 in the NJAC. West Conn fell to 3-3, 1-2 in the NJAC.