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ST. GEORGE — Utah Tech's struggles continued Saturday night as they lost their fifth straight game to No. 22 Abilene Christian 55-30. The winless Trailblazers have faced three nationally ranked teams already this season.
Despite the defeat, it was arguably Utah Tech's best game of the 2024 campaign so far. The Trailblazers put together 508 total yards of offense — 180 rushing and 328 receiving — to the tune of their highest-scoring game of the season.
It was also the first time the Trailblazers have scored more than two touchdowns in a game since Oct. 28 of last year.
The home offense looked promising early on. The teams traded three-and-outs for the game's first two possessions, but the Trailblazers took the lead on a three-minute drive that ended with Chris Street's 7-yard touchdown run.
The high didn't last long, though, as it took ACU just four plays to tie the game. Maverick McIvor completed a pass around midfield to Blayne Taylor, who ran it into the end zone for a 76-yard score, the Wildcats' first of seven touchdowns.
ACU forced Utah Tech to punt and let their offense get right back to work. The Wildcats took the lead with a 53-yard touchdown run by Sam Hicks, who led all players with 204 rushing yards at the game's end.
Utah Tech answered, but only with a field goal. Ilya Uvaydov put the ball through the uprights from 32 yards out to make the score 14-10 in favor of the Wildcats. But ACU held par on the next drive by responding with Ritse Vaes' 52-yard field goal.
Vaes also scored the next three points, giving his team a 20-10 advantage with three minutes left in the first half. Uvaydov missed his next attempt for Utah Tech, and ACU took the ball on their own 23-yard line with just over a minute to go. After some passing plays, Hicks ran for his second touchdown of the night, this time a 32-yarder.
The Trailblazer offense took the field with a 27-10 deficit and just 27 seconds to work with. Quarterback Reggie Graff came in to replace starter Deacon Hill due to an injury and threw to Eric Olsen for a 32-yard touchdown, putting 27-16 on the board at the break after another missed Uvaydov kick.
Abilene Christian received to start the second half and picked up right where they left off. In just two plays, they extended their lead when McIvor threw to Nehemiah Martinez, who outran all Trailblazer defenders for a 73-yard score.
Utah Tech was silent in the third frame, but punter Andy Day was allowed to show off. Day averaged 45.3 yards in his seven total punts, ending the game with three kicks over 50 yards. He has seen more action than any other punter in the United Athletic Conference this season.
Meanwhile, the Wildcats continued to make noise. ACU scored three straight touchdowns before the Trailblazers could build any momentum.
Isaiah Johnson scored his seventh touchdown of the season on a 9-yard run and Hicks completed a hat trick, with the third touchdown coming from the defensive side. Chris Wright recovered a Utah Tech fumble and scored the first 6 points of his collegiate career.
Down 55-16, the Trailblazers managed to find a spark. Graff remained at the helm for the rest of the game, and he scored one rushing touchdown himself and handed off to Bretton Stone for another. It brought the score to a more respectable 55-30, but still wasn't enough for a comeback.
Graff, the redshirt freshman, threw for 231 yards while completing 13 of his 22 pass attempts, easily the strongest performance by a Trailblazer quarterback this season.
Utah Tech will look to get in the win column next week as they travel to face another UAC opponent in North Alabama. The Lions are 1-5 but will enter the game fresh off a 25-16 win over West Georgia.
