NAPERVILLE, Ill. – For the fourth time in the last 12 years the Bethel University football team finds themselves in the NCAA West Region championship game as the Royals pulled out a thrilling 27-24 victory over the No. 9-ranked North Central College Cardinals. Bethel used a ball control offense mixed in with several huge pass plays to take control of the game in the second half while the defense applied relentless pressure on the Cardinals and their explosive quarterback - Gagliardi Award semifinalist Broc Rutter. Bethel was down 10-7 at the half but the third quarter was where the Royals took control of the game. Bethel put together back-to-back 14 play drives of 77 and 94 yards, scoring touchdowns on each and then added another big score in the fourth quarter in holding off the Cardinals comeback attempt.
 
Early on it was a grind for both teams but North Central was having slightly more success moving the ball than Bethel. The Royals had just 39 yards rushing at the half, with several big plays called back due to penalties. Bethel totaled 120 receiving yards in the first half, 72 of those had come on one big pass play from Jaran Roste to Jon Pytlak. Down 7-0 with 10 minutes remaining in the second quarter, Roste, on a fake QB sweep, dropped back and lofted a beautiful throw to Pytlak, where there was actually a pair of Bethel receivers unguarded behind the defense. That play tied the score at 7-7 and gave Bethel a big boost. North Central would kick a field goal at the end of the half to take a 10-7 lead into halftime.
 
The third quarter was all Bethel. The Royals took the opening kick and marched down the field, 77-yards on 14 plays. The drive was capped by a great catch in the corner of the endzone on a 10-yard connection to John Carlson. With single coverage on the outside on a third and six, Roste lofted up a jump ball to Carlson who snagged it and got one foot down for the touchdown and Bethel's first lead. The defense forced a quick three-and-out to give the ball back to Bethel but at their own six-yard line. The poor field position was no issue for the Royals offense as they rattled off another 14-play drive for 94 yards, mainly on the ground. The offensive line, a unit that features four First or Second Team All-Conference performers, took firm control against the North Central front that had been stacking the box to stop the run. On the third play of the drive, Roste found Larsen for a 12-yard connection on a first down play. All 13 of the rest of the Royals plays on the drive where runs by either Sam Gibas or Roste. Gibas had runs of 20 and 15 yards and Roste had two runs of eight yards and one of seven as the Royals marched down inside the one yard line. Roste was eventually able to plow in the endzone for the 20-10 lead at 12:40 in the fourth quarter. The extra point attempt was blocked by North Central and the Cardinals where able to scoop the loose ball up, looking to return it for a two-point conversion, but senior tight end Mathias Durie was able to jump on the back of the NCC ball-carrier, saving the two points and keeping Bethel up by two scores which would prove to be huge. The North Central offense was on the field for just three plays in the third quarter as Bethel possessed the ball for 13:37 of the 15 minutes.

The fireworks would really start in the fourth quarter though. After taking the 10-point lead, the Royals defense was able to force a 44-yard field goal attempt by the Cardinals which went wide left, giving Bethel the ball back with 10:59 to play. North Central was finally able to stop Bethel, forcing a three-and-out. The Cardinals, winners of the last three CCIW championships, showed their mettle and marched 71 yards on just six plays, three of those inside the Royals three-yard line, to pull within 20-17.
 
Bethel began their next drive at the 6:56 mark in the fourth quarter at their own 25-yard line after a touchback on the kickoff. Sam Gibas popped a 15-yard run on second down and a 15-yard late hit penalty moved the ball to the NCC 43-yard line. Roste then carried out a great fake on a read option and looked to be rushing the ball before again, dropping back to pass and finding a wide open Drew Larsen for a 43-yard touchdown pass. The score put Bethel back up by 10 once again at 27-17. A sideline interference penalty on a celebrating Bethel contingent helped give North Central good field position for their next drive, forcing Bethel to kickoff from the 20-yard line.
 
North Central's ensuing drive looked to be off to a shaky start with an incompletion and a sack, but on third and fifteen Rutter found Cameron Moore down the sideline for a 36-yard completion. Another incompletion was followed with a strip sack by Kyle Kilgore and the Royals appeared to be diving on top of the loose football to effectively end the game but the ball just squirted away and was covered by NCC. On the very next play, Rutter again found Moore for a 26-yard touchdown pass to pull back within three points at 27-24 with 4:13 remaining.
 
The Cardinals, with two timeouts and over four minutes remaining, chose to go for an onside kick. The Royals were able to cover it however, as Mathias Durie, just as he did to end the St. Thomas game two weeks prior, went up high and snagged the kick in traffic. The Royals were unable to get a much needed first down but did use 1:48 on the clock and forced North Central to use their remaining timeouts. The Royals then punted with Roste in a deep shotgun formation and pinned the Cardinals at their own 10-yard line with 2:23 remaining. The Bethel defense was up to the task of keeping NCC from mounting a game winning drive. An incomplete pass on first down was followed up by the Royals sixth sack of the game, this one by blitzing linebacker Mike Delich at the one-yard line. North Central was able to get eight yards back on third down but a fourth and eight pass fell incomplete and the Royals could taste the sweet victory. Bethel took three knees to run out the clock and are now into the round of eight in the regional final.
 
Pressure was the name of the game for the Bethel defense in slowing down the extremely high powered Cardinals attack. Quarterback Broc Rutter entered the game with a nation leading 71.8% completion percentage on the season but against Bethel was just 12-27 for 264 yards and one touchdown while being sacked six times and fumbling twice. After totaling 93 yards on the ground in the first half, the Cardinals ran for just 11 in the second half. Conversely, Bethel allowed zero sacks on the day and Roste completed 15 of his 20 passes for 219 yards and three touchdowns. In the second half Bethel ran the ball for 145 yards. Roste finished with 64 yards on the ground and the other Bethel touchdown. In addition, Roste punted three times for an average of 40.3 yards, pinning North Central at their own 1-yard line (thanks to an incredible save by Drew Larsen) and at the 10-yard line, both in the fourth quarter. Sam Gibas was the game's leading rusher as he picked up 122 tough yards on 22 carries. Drew Larsen led Bethel with eight catches for 95 yards and a touchdown. Jon Pytlak had three catches for 88 yards and a touchdown. Both of those catch totals where season highs for Larsen and Pytlak.
 
On defense senior defensive end Kyle Kilgore had a monster day. The 1st Team MIAC All-Conference selection totaled 10 solo tackles, three sacks for total losses of 18 yards and a forced fumble. Safety Dawson Brown had nine tackles and a pass breakup. Cameron Monson, Mike Delich and Drew Ragsdale also had sacks for the Royals, while Monson recovered a fumble and Ragsdale forced a fumble.
 
The Royals advance to take on the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater next Saturday in Whitewater. The 12-0 Warhawks are currently ranked No. 5 and have won six National Championships since 2007 but are just one season removed from missing the playoffs altogether in posting a 7-3 record in 2017. That 2017 season saw UW-Whitewater lose three of their first four games, including to MIAC member Concordia-Moorhead, but the Warhawks are currently riding an 18-game winning streak. For Bethel the Royals are advancing to the Region final for the fourth time since 2007 and are looking for their third region championship. The Royals are joined in the quarterfinals by fellow MIAC member Saint John's who defeated Whitworth 45-24. The Johnnies are in the quarters for the first time since 2006 and will play at Mary Hardin-Baylor, the national runners-up in 2017 and National Champions in 2016.
 
Royals fans can stay tuned to BethelRoyals.com and @BethelRoyals social media channels for information regarding fan busses to Whitewater, Wisconsin next Saturday for the Noon kickoff.