Cal Poly suffered their second away loss this season in Greeley, Colorado, against the University of Northern Colorado Bears. The Mustangs entered the game tied four ways for first in the Big Sky Conference, with a 4-3 overall record and a 3-1 conference record. Meanwhile, the Bears entered with a 1-3 conference record and looked to turn the tables on Cal Poly with their home crowd behind them.
Cal Poly started with the ball and drove downfield for the first touchdown of the night. Later in the first quarter, Cal Poly quarterback Anthony Grigsby Jr. threw an interception, and UNC responded with a touchdown to tie it at the start of the second quarter.
Game standout Tayvion McCoy caught 128 receiving yards tonight, including a 43-yard pass from Grigsby in the second quarter. It was his second-highest receiving game of the season, just shy of his 170 yards in the first game of the year vs. the University of Idaho.
UNC picked up another touchdown in the second quarter to make it 7-14. Cal Poly squeezed in a field goal before going into halftime to make it 10-14.
The Bears came into the third quarter hungry for more and took a 10-21 lead before Cal Poly could move ahead. The Mustangs scored their second touchdown of the night and went for a two-point conversion to get closer to evening up the score. Tight end Alek Marshall caught the pass for the two points, bringing the score to 18-21.
Just as Northern Colorado neared the end zone for another touchdown, linebacker Chase Martin intercepted the ball at the 1-yard line, keeping the Bears’ lead from growing before the fourth. After a fumble by Misa Paiau, Northern Colorado recovered the ball and scored another touchdown to bring the score to 18-28.
In the final minutes, Cal Poly needed 10 points to catch up. The Mustangs attempted a field goal but missed wide left, giving Northern Colorado its first win over Cal Poly since 2017.
The Mustangs return home to Spanos Stadium on Saturday, October 24, to face Utah Tech University, a brand new addition to the Big Sky Conference.