ELLENSBURG, Wash. — On this day in 1995, the Central Washington University football team was named the NAIA Division II Co-Champion with Findlay following a 21-21 tie in Tacoma, Washington.
The 1995 NAIA Division II national football championship game was the last time a NAIA Division II football championship ended in a tie, the third time in a span of 39 years. In 1981, Austin College of Texas and Concordia of Moorehead (Minn.), played to a 24-24 draw. Then, in 1987, Pacific Lutheran and Wisconsin-Stevens Point tied 16-16.
"It's tough," CWU Head Coach Jeff Zenisek said to the Spokesman-Review on Sunday, December 17, 1995. "It'll take us a few days to get over this."
Central Washington opened the NAIA postseason with a 28-21 victory over rival, and Mount Rainier League champion, Western Washington University. The Crimson and Black went on to take down Hardin-Simmons, 40-20. In the semi-finals, Central routed Mary (N.D.) 48-7 in Puyallup, Washington. The Marauders were coming off a pair of wins over Dickinson State (N.D.) and Sioux Falls (S.D.) before falling to the Wildcats in the semis.
Findlay managed a 21-7 win over Pacific Lutheran to open their playoff run, before squeezing past Malone 15-7. Like the Wildcats, the Oilers routed their semi-finals opponent. Findlay handed Lambuth a 63-13 drubbing to seal their appearance in the national championship.
The Oilers came into the game with NAIA Division II's top-ranked defense, having allowed just 11 touchdowns on the season. Three of those touchdowns came through the air, while four came on the ground. In the last seven games of the season, Findlay outscored its opponents 46.1 to 6.0 on average. Offensively, the Oilers scored 38 rushing touchdowns through the wishbone offense behind Troy Pearson and Robert Shelton. Shelton led the Oilers in yards with 1,013, while Pearson racked up 12 touchdowns to Shelton's 11. Quarterback Bo Hurley finished third in rushing with 531 yards. He added 513 yards through the air.
Central Washington overcame a 2-2 start to make their first postseason appearance since 1987. Offensively, the Wildcats looked to senior quarterback Jon Kitna. While also playing for a national title, Kitna came into the 1995 national championship within striking distance of the NAIA career record for total offense. By the evening's end, Kitna had cemented himself as the all-time leader with 12,907 total offensive yards.
The Wildcats scored 26 touchdowns through the air and recorded another 16 on the ground. They held their opponents to just eight rushing touchdowns and 13 aerial touchdowns. Defensively, Scott LeMaster and Andy Lwanga set the tone for the 'Cats. LeMaster finished with 86 tackles on the regular seaosn, while Lwanga brought down opposing quarterbacks a dozen times.
Neither team was able to find the scoreboard in the first quarter as defense held the spotlight.
Oilers' quarterback Hurley was lifted after just three plays, leaving second-string Andy Booth to handle the offense.
Central picked off a pass from the backup quarterback when his pass, intended for Bill Yeager, was bobbled and snatched up by Shawn Raykovich. The 'Cats nearly missed putting points on the board, but an outstretched arm from Terrance Auster batted away a pass from Kitna intended for Kenny Russaw.
Findlay put the game's first points on the board early in the second quarter. After a conversion on fourth and one from Shelton, Yeager rumbled through the Wildcats' defense to set up a first and goal from the Wildcats' two. A dive up the middle from Pearson pushed the Oilers ahead 7-0 after Tom Sellers added the point after.
The Oilers tallied again in the second quarter. This time, Pearson broke free of a tackler and made his way in for a 25-yard touchdown run and a 14-0 lead with 7:36 remaining in the second quarter.
A punt from Findlay's Mark Barnes late in the second was returned near the 30-yard line by Montreux Macona as time dwindled in the first half.
After an incomplete pass, Jamie Christian took a draw to the 44-yard line before Kitna hit
Josh Woodard for a first down. A pass interference call with under 60 seconds on the clock gave the Wildcat offers new life and a shorter field. A dump pass from Kitna inched the 'Cats forward before CWU called a timeout.
On the next play, Kitna rolled to his left below firing a pass across the field to Russaw in the opposite corner of the end zone. Russaw made the grab as he fell backwards, putting the Wildcats on the board, 14-7, with Marty Greenlee's point after.
After the first two quarters of play, Findlay had managed 194 rushing yards compared to CWU's 18. The Wildcats held a 94-30 advantage through the air..'
Early in the third quarter, LeMaster set the CWU single-season tackles record, recording his 117th tackle on the season.
Both offenses went quiet for a spell in the third, before Kitna and the Wildcats struck again. This time, the senior quarterback found high school teammate EJ Henderson open for his second touchdown pass of the evening. Greenlee's PAT made it 14-14. Kitna's pass also netted him the stand alone NAIA career total offense record, passing Kirk Baumgartner of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
Findlay was next to strike in the third quarter. Booth slipped into the end zone on a three-yard keeper, giving the Oilers a 21-14 lead.
The Wildcats struck on their third play of the final stanza as Todd Murray got open on a seven-yard catch from Kitna to tie the game at 21-21.
Central's defense held the Oilers off the scoreboard in the fourth quarter, while the Wildcat's had pair of chances to take the lead. The Crimson and Black missed a 45-yard field goal early in the fourth, before narrowly missing a 40-yard field goal with six seconds remaining.
Kitna finished 23-for-39 through the air, for 286 yards, and three touchdowns. Russaw finished with seven catches for 105 yards, while Christian tallied seven receptions for 60 yards.
