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Close, but not enough

Goran Košutić

The Cowboys were three minutes away from an upset in Novi Sad, but the Dukes managed to stay undefeated, getting their seventh win in as many matches, even winning the game with a double digit margin. It was 22-8 in the end.

Those who were thinking this would be a high scoring game, didn’t get what they were expecting, as the game dragged on with the Dukes’ 7 point lead from the second to fourth quarter. The return of the Cowboys' starting quarterback, Gabor Nemeth, who missed the spring season because of a hand injury, didn't do much to help them score points, and in the end, they turned to their backup quarterback and receiver, Bálint Michaletzky. Michaletzky took the handoff, fooling the Dukes into thinking it was a reverse, instead passing it to Zsolt Vereb for a touchdown. The Cowboys tricked the home team not once, but twice -- the second time on a surprising run on the extra point attempt that gave them the lead.

Not only were they three minutes away from victory, but quarterback Rastko Jokić barely escaped a sure sack before completing a pass to Jovan Plećaš who took it 65 yards for six points. After the 2 point conversion, it was 15-8; Jokić passed to Marko Čanić.

Though there were only a total of 22 points scored at that point, the game featured just one turnover, none by the home team. Still, the Cowboys picked a bad time to start turning the ball over -- they fumbled on the ensuing possesion. Jokić once again pulled it off, going 20 yards for a game clinching touchdown on 4th down.