SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The ninth ranked Slippery Rock University football team dropped its first game of the season with a 34-17 loss to No. 3 Indiana (Pa.) Saturday in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division action from a packed Mihalik-Thompson Stadium.
 
The Rock (6-1, 3-1 PSAC) jumped out to a 10-0 lead after the first quarter and had a chance to extend the lead with Indiana (7-0, 4-0 PSAC) pinned at its own one-yard line. It looked as if Crimson Hawk running back Samir Bullock would be tackled for a safety deep in the end zone, but he slipped through two tackles and broke an 84-yard run. IUP settled for a field goal for its first points of the game with 9:31 to play in the second quarter, but the momentum shift was huge.
 
"That's the biggest play of the game," said head coach Shawn Lutz. "If we just wrap him up there we go up 12-0 and get the ball back right away with all the momentum. Instead, we gave them a boost of confidence and you can't let a team that good take the momentum."
 
Indiana reeled off 24 unanswered points, first scoring 17 in the second quarter to take a 17-10 lead into the break, and then scoring on the first drive of the second half to go up 24-10.
 
The Rock responded and got back into the game with a 17-play, 81-yard drive that took nearly seven minutes. Isiah Neely punched in a short run to make it 24-17 with 4:01 to play in the third.
 
SRU had a chance to even the score on its next possession, but a series of three straight penalties and then a crucial dropped pass on third down forced a punt. Indiana capitalized on the short field after another penalty on the punt and kicked a field goal to make it 27-17 with 13:37 to play. The Hawks then broke a 72-yard run on their next possession to set up the final touchdown with 10:22 to play.

The Rock offense shot itself in the foot multiple times Saturday, finishing with an uncharacteristic four dropped passes. Three of those drops came on wide-open third down plays that would have extended drives. SRU was also penalized nine times for 97 yards, thwarting offensive momentum on more than one occasion.
 
Indiana was whistled 14 times for 124 yards, but the penalties didn't mean much to the potent offensive attack as The Rock defense had no answer for the ground game. SRU has struggled at times this season with open field tackling in the running game and Indiana exploited that to the tune of 384 rushing yards on 48 carries, an average of 8.0 yards per carry.
 
"You have to give their guys credit," said Lutz. "They have some great athletes all over the field, but a lot of those long runs and those third down runs were just missed tackles. We've got to make those stops. You can't win games when you give up that kind of yardage on the ground."
 
Bullock, who was injured and didn't play after the first quarter last week, finished the game with 168 yards to pace IUP. Justice Evans rushed for 89 yards, while Duane Brown ran for 50 and Lenny Williams rushed for 44. Williams also threw for 225 yards and three scores, while being intercepted once.
 
Slippery Rock was paced by Tanner Garry, who completed 25 passes for 316 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions, both of which came in the fourth quarter when SRU was pressing to get back into the game. Marcus Johnson caught seven passes for 108 yards and one score, including a highlight reel one-handed grab on the first series that led to a TD. Milly Raye, who was named Homecoming King at halftime, caught nine passes for 72 yards. Andrew Bridgeforth caught three passes for 69 yards and Isiah Neely rushed for 37 yards and one score.
 

FB: Here's a look at that 1-handed grab and TD catch from Marcus Johnson. #SCtop10 @SportsCenter pic.twitter.com/HEkscyzy6p

— Rock Athletics (@Rock_Athletics) October 14, 2017

The Rock's final points came from Jake Chapla, who booted a 27-yard field goal.
 
Kyle Hall led the SRU defense with 11 total tackles, one tackle for loss and an interception. Marcus Martin added 10 tackles and a half-tackle for loss and Delmar Henderson also added 10 tackles.
 
Slippery Rock will look to rebound from its first loss of the season when it travels to Edinboro next Saturday for a noon kickoff.
 
"This certainly isn't the end of the season," said Lutz. "We can still take care of our business the rest of the way and have a chance to play at home in the NCAA Playoffs, so we'll shift our focus and get ready for the rest of the schedule. It just wasn't our day today."
 
 
NOTES: Shawn Lutz is now 13-5 as head coach at SRU … The Homecoming crowd was listed at 10,111 with a record turnout … the game was shown on ESPN 3 as part of the NCAA Division II Showcase … it marked just the second loss at home for SRU in the last 27 games and the first win for IUP at SRU since 2007 … the game was the third meeting ever with both teams ranked in the top 10 … it was the second time this year SRU has played a top five team and its third game against a ranked opponent … SRU is 2-1 against ranked teams this year … Marcus Martin extended his NCA Division II record for tackles for loss to 84.0 … Tanner Garry has now thrown for 2,344 yards (5th in single-season history at SRU), 23 TDs (4th in single-season at SRU) and 162 completions (7th in single-season at SRU) … Marcus Johnson now has 808 receiving yards on the year (8th in single-season at SRU) and 10 TD catches on the year (6th in single-season at SRU) … Johnson caught his 24th career TD pass and is now just four TD grabs away from the SRU career record of 28 … Milly Raye caught at least one pass for the 34th straight game … he was held out of the end zone for the first time this season … he moved up to fifth all-time at SRU with 2,193 career receiving yards.