Lindenwood WR Ronnie Thomas, Jr. breaks away from two Western Illinois tacklers during Saturday’s college football game at Western Illinois. (Photo: Thomas Grove)

NCAA Football – Sept. 16, 20231st2nd3rd4thFinal
Lindenwood (2-1)77141543
Western Illinois (0-2)17140940

Cedric Williams
Senior Editor

MACOMB, IL — In last week’s game at Southeast Missouri, the Lindenwood University football team could only watch as the host Redhawks scored points on all but one of its first half possessions. SEMO took a 38-0 lead into halftime and cruised to a 45-7 win.

This week, in a matchup against Western Illinois, the same thing happened, as the Leathernecks scored every time they had the ball and led 31-14 at halftime.

But this time, the second half was much different. The Lindenwood Lions refused to back down, and led by a four touchdown effort by wide receiver Jeff Caldwell, Jr., Lindenwood rallied late and pulled off a dramatic 43-40 comeback victory.

“Last week, we asked our guys how they were going to respond,” head coach Jed Stugart said. “(And) I couldn’t be more proud of the resiliency they showed tonight down 17 at half.”

This time, it was the Lindenwood offense that couldn’t be stopped. The Lions scored touchdowns on all four of its second half possessions — not counting the two kneel downs to run out the clock at the end of the game.

Every time Lindenwood had the ball in the second half, it found its way into the end zone.

Quarterback Cole Dugger led that charge. He finished the night with 16 completions on 22 attempts for 270 yards, five touchdowns passes, and a two-point conversion.

The big star of the night though, was Caldwell, Jr. He caught five passes for 185 yards and the four touchdowns. It seemed like every time the redshirt sophomore from Louisville, Ky., got his hands on the ball, he scored.

And they seemed to keep happening on similar plays.

The first score was on a 39-yard catch and run, where Caldwell made the catch, stiff-armed the defender closest to him, and then just took off with nobody on the defense able to catch him. That play came midway through the first quarter and cut Western Illinois’ led to 14-7.

Lindenwood got its second score midway through the second quarter, when Dugger hit running back Robert Giaimo on a quick pass up the middle, for a 7-yard touchdown that made the score WIU 24, LU 14.

The Leathernecks scored again right before halftime to grab their largest lead of the night at 31-14.

But that’s when the Lindenwood comeback began.

Giaimo scored his second touchdown of the night, on a 17-yard run to make it 31-21. The redshirt sophomore from Bartlett, Tenn., had a fabulous night as well. He finished with 149 total yards (120 rushing, 29 receiving) and the two scores.

Late in the third, Caldwell made another scintillating catch-and-run for a score. This one was for 40 yards and pulled the Lions to within 31-28.

The Lindenwood defense held Western Illinois to a field goal on its next possession, making the score 34-28. And that set up Lindenwood for its first chance at the lead, which it grabbed in just two plays, when Caldwell broke free for a 72-yard touchdown.

The 6-foot-4, 200-pound speedster made a catch on a simple in-route, then once again stiff-armed the closest defender, before blazing his way all the way down the field for a score that brought the entire Lindenwood sideline to its feet as the Lions roared to a 35-34 lead.

Western Illinois answered back with a touchdown of its own to re-take the lead with about five minutes to go. The Leathernecks also went for two, but didn’t get it, which made the score 40-35.

Dugger, Giaimo, and Caldwell clearly weren’t deterred though. They led the Lions right down the field on a 10-play, 75-yard drive, which culminated in a 16-yard Dugger to Caldwell strike to gave Lindenwood the lead again. The Lions also went for two and got it, when Dugger hit tight end Mason Brown for two points to make the score 43-40.

That set up Western Illinois for a possible last minute comeback. But Lindenwood didn’t even allow the Leathernecks to get one first down, before reclaiming the ball on downs.

After that, Dugger and the Lion offense kneeled down twice to run out the clock, before joining their teammates for a joyous celebration of a thrilling come-from-behind win.

“They believe in and love each other, and are a team that has that can overcome a lot of things,” Stugart said. “We’re a young team and they grew up a lot tonight.”

The win lifted Lindenwood’s season record to 2-1, with both wins coming in non-conference games. Next week, the Lions will play the third of three straight road games, when they’ll travel to Normal, Ill., to play current No. 25 Illinois State.

The Redbirds (2-1) lost on Saturday to rival Eastern Illinois, 14-13, and may not be ranked when it meets the Lions next week.

Kickoff next Saturday is set for noon and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.

Scoring Summary

QtrTimeScoring PlayLUWIU
1st14:18WIU – Jackson ,Jaylin 75 yd pass from Morrissey, Matt (Valek, Owen kick) 2 plays, 73 yards, TOP 00:4207
1st06:36WIU – Sanders, Tajh 37 yd pass from Morrissey, Matt (Valek, Owen kick) 8 plays, 62 yards, TOP 03:41014
1st05:45LU – Caldwell, Jeff 39 yd pass from Dugger, Cole (Seibert, Logan kick) 2 plays, 40 yards, TOP 00:42714
1st00:48WIU – Valek, Owen 38 yd field goal 9 plays, 54 yards, TOP 04:57717
2nd14:48WIU – Choquette, Ludovick 12 yd run (Valek, Owen kick), 3 plays, 32 yards, TOP 00:20724
2nd08:40LU – Giaimo, Robert 7 yd pass from Dugger, Cole (Seibert, Logan kick) 11 plays, 75 yards, TOP 06:081424
2nd01:51WIU – Morrissey, Matt 3 yd run (Valek, Owen kick), 5 plays, 23 yards, TOP 01:171431
3rd12:35LU – Giaimo, Robert 17 yd run (Seibert, Logan kick), 5 plays, 68 yards, TOP 02:252131
3rd03:40LU – Caldwell, Jeff 40 yd pass from Dugger, Cole (Seibert, Logan kick) 5 plays, 65 yards, TOP 02:522831
4th11:47WIU – Valek, Owen 22 yd field goal 13 plays, 70 yards, TOP 06:532834
4th11:02LU – Caldwell, Jeff 72 yd pass from Dugger, Cole (Seibert, Logan kick) 2 plays, 74 yards, TOP 00:453534
4th05:09WIU – Parker, Jay 20 yd pass from Morrissey, Matt ( ) 12 plays, 93 yards, TOP 05:473540
4th01:13LU – Caldwell, Jeff 16 yd pass from Dugger, Cole (Brown, Mason pass) 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:564340
2023 Lindenwood Lions Football Schedule
Sat., September 23 — at #25 Illinois State — 12 pm
Sat., September 30 — vs. Austin Peay — 1 pm
Sat., October 7 — vs. Tennessee Tech* — 6 pm
Sat., October 14 — at Charleston Southern* — 3 pm
Sat., October 28 — at Tennessee State* — 2 pm
Sat., November 4 — vs. Eastern Illinois* — 2 pm
Sat., November 11 — vs. Bryant* — 1 pm
* – denotes Big South-Ohio Valley Conference game
All Lindenwood home games will be played at Harlen C. Hunter Stadium