Ashland, Ohio – It was a banner day for the ninth-ranked University of Findlay football program on Saturday, November 8 as the Oilers marched into Jack Miller Stadium in Ashland, Ohio and took down the #15 team in the country, the Ashland University Eagles, by a score of 14-3. That victory guarantees Findlay at least a share of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) title and, by virtue of the tiebreaker, also ensures that the Oilers will be the league's automatic qualifier into the NCAA DII Playoffs.

With the win, Findlay, which won in Ashland for the first time in 19 years, improves to 10-0 overall with an 8-0 record in league play. The Eagles, which can still share the league title with an Oilers loss next week, fall to 8-2 and suffer their first G-MAC defeat, dropping to 7-1. This is Findlay's first ten-win regular season since 1997.

It is the first time in the NCAA era of the program that Findlay came out on top in a top-25 matchup and is the second consecutive time the Oilers have won a defacto conference-championship game, the last coming against Tiffin back in 2021.

The tale of the tape for Saturday's included a heavy emphasis on the team's two defenses, both of which showed up. After trading punts to start the game, the Oilers got the ball back and drove into the Eagles' redzone as the first quarter ended.

Three plays into the second, senior Jayden Farmer bulldozed his way into the endzone from a yard out, putting the Oilers in front.

Four plays into AU's next possession, on a third and three, senior Christion Stokes punched the ball away from Eagles' quarterback Cameron Blair giving Findlay the ball back on Ashland's 28.

The Oilers made Ashland pay, bleeding five minutes off the clock and scoring on a touchdown pass from junior Chase Harrison to sophomore Brennan Remy.

Leading 14-0, Findlay's next drive began at their own one yard line. After three plays and a penalty, the Oilers were forced to punt from the eight, and with just 1:49 on the clock, it was a punt the proved to be one of the biggest plays in the game. Junior Owen Clevenger, standing in his own endzone, launched a conference-record breaking punt that distanced 86 yards, flipping the field and the momentum. That 14-0 score carried into halftime.

Ashland converted on a field goal in the third quarter on the back of a 16-play, 47-yard drive, their longest offensive possession of the game. In the fourth quarter, Findlay tried to kick a field goal of their own after forcing a turnover on downs, but that field goal was blocked and returned all the way to Findlay's 26, giving the home team life with 3:15 to play.

Any hope was extinguished when sophomore safety Jayon Harvey jumped a route in the endzone, intercepting a pass and returning it to the 26-yardline. Three carries by Farmer picked up the lone first down Findlay needed and after a pair of kneel downs, the Oilers rushed the field with one of the biggest victories in the NCAA era of the program.

Findlay forced Ashland into three turnovers plus a turnover on downs and held the Eagles to just 84 yards on the ground while running for 122 themselves. The Oilers, which possessed the ball for more than 35 minutes, pounded the ball on the ground 49 times while throwing it just nine, bullying Ashland in the trenches to earn the victory.

Farmer carried the bulk of the load, running 25 times for 75 yards and a score while sophomore Christian Davis ran ten times for 30. Facing one of the best defensive lines in the country, one that led the nation in sacks, the Oilers offensive line allowed just a trio of sacks.

Harrison's arm was not called on much, but completed 7-of-9 for 77 yards and a touchdown.

The Oilers defense, which ranks among the best in the country in multiple categories, played arguably its' best game of the year on Saturday. Senior Johnny Harris led the way with eight tackles, a pass breakup, and a forced fumble while sophomore Kevin Henderson had seven tackles. Harvey had four stops and an interception while Stokes had four tackles, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.

While a share of the conference crown and berth into the playoffs is secured, the Oilers still have one final hurdle in the regular season, facing rival Tiffin University at home in the Battle of 224 game. That contest will kick off on Saturday, Nov. 15 in Findlay, Ohio.