Sam Keil's kick bounced off the upright and in for a 32-yard field goal as time expired gave Fairmont State a 19-16 victory over Charleston at UC Stadium in Mountain East Conference football action Thursday night.
The game-winning kick gave the Falcons their only lead of the game, as FSU scored 16 points in the final quarter to rally from a 16-3 deficit and move to 3-1 on the season and a perfect 3-0 in MEC play.
"We talk a lot about staying disciplined and working hard so that when we get to those situations it's like second nature," Fairmont State coach Jason Woodman said. "We struggled all night and they weren't giving us much, but we kept playing and made plays here and there to come and get this one.
"It doesn't get much crazier than that game."
The Falcons got a touchdown early in the final quarter when JuJuan Young-Battle found Laurence King in the back corner of the end zone for an 8-yard scoring pass to make it a one-possession game. Fairmont State's defense then came up big when Stephen Turner picked off a Jermaine Kelly pass and returned it 36 yards for a touchdown to tie the game with 5:34 to play.
Both defenses went back and forth for a few drives, a stretch that included another Turner interception to hold Charleston without points and got Fairmont State started on what would be the game-winning drive.
"Our defense has done that all year," Woodman said. "At times I am out there thinking [our offense] can't keep doing this to these guys because the defense just kills itself for this team. Those kids are winners, they refuse to lose."
Charleston controlled the game for much of the contest, jumping out to an early lead and dominating Fairmont State defensively.
The Golden Eagles (1-3) allowed just 80 yards of offense to the Falcons in the first half before FSU began to make progress in the second half.
UC coach Pat Kirkland, who returned after missing last week for medical reasons, was disappointed with the way his offense struggled to keep its lead once it jumped ahead.
"Football is a game of situations, and you have to make sure you do a good job of adjusting and adapting," Kirkland said. "We didn't do a very good job of that once we were up and our defense was playing good."
After a scoreless first quarter, UC got on the board early in the second on a 20-yard field goal by Dylan Miles and a 44-yard run by Kane Roush.
That lead grew to 16-3 in the third quarter when Jalen Nelson recovered a fumble and went 41 yards for a touchdown.
But after that, Fairmont State began to take over.
In addition to the two interceptions by Turner down the stretch, Fairmont State also blocked a punt and took advantage of two missed field goals by UC to help jump-start the comeback.
"We've got to stop beating ourselves," Kirkland said. "Our special teams was atrocious and that's something we've been working on but continues to hurt us.
"When the defense is playing well like they are and we're throwing pick-sixes on screens, it's a bad thought process. It was a hard-fought game, but we've got to do a better job with our decision making."
Contact Michael Carvelli at 304-348-4810 or michael.carvelli@wvgazettemail.com. Follow him on Twitter @carvelli3.