After battling visiting Drake to a draw in the first half of Saturday's 2016 season finale at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium, the Stetson Hatters were unable to keep pace with the Bulldogs in the second half, allowing 28 unanswered points in a 45-17 loss.
 
The Hatters end their fourth season of play with a record of 4-7. Drake finished the year at 7-4 and on a four-game win streak.
 
"I was pleased with the first half because of the way our kids came out and fought," Hatters coach Roger Hughes said. "We had some opportunities that we took advantage of offensively and we felt good coming out of the first half.
 
"In the second half, we got inside the five yard line and went for it on fourth down. There is no excuse, we just fumbled the snap. I truly believe that the play we had called from upstairs had a 95 percent chance to score, but that is what happens. Defensively, after that, we just couldn't get them off the field."
 
Drake turned to a quicker passing game in the second half, both to keep the Hatters' pass rush off quarterback Grant Kraemer and to take advantage of their big tight end, Eric Saubert, and their veteran slot receiver Grant Menard.
 
The move paid off as that duo combined to record 11 receptions for 226 yards and five touchdowns.
 
"We didn't do a very good job in the secondary with the matchups and their quarterback did a very good job of extending plays long enough to give our coverage a chance to break down," Hughes said.
 
Drake set the tone for the second half on its opening possession of the third quarter, driving 80 yards in 13 plays. Kraemer and Saubert hooked up for an 8-yard touchdown that gave the Bulldogs all the lead they would need.
 
The Hatters had a chance to answer that drive on the ensuing possession after Nick Andreas connected with senior Kegan Moore for a 60-yard gain to the Drake 12. Andreas, however, was injured on the play by a shot to the ribs, bringing fellow sophomore Brandon Swift in to try to finish the drive.
 
After Cole Mazza picked up five of his 114 rushing yards on a pair of runs, Swift hooked up with Mike Yonker out of the backfield for what appeared to be a first down pass. However, the play was marked just short of the line to gain, bringing up a fourth and one from the three.
 
After a timeout, Swift went under center for the fourth down play, but the snap exchange was fumbled. The sophomore picked up the loose ball but, by the time he did, his hole on the left side of the line had closed and nose tackle Ximi Asani brought him down for no gain.
 
With the momentum off the goal-line stand, Drake needed just eight plays to cover the 97 yards down the field with Kraemer connecting with Menard for a gain of 35, then with Andrew Yarwood for 22 more followed by a 33-yard completion to Saubert before Menard got the final four yards for the score.
 
The Bulldogs tacked on two more touchdowns in the final quarter, with Kraemer hitting Menard for a nine yard score and then backup QB Andrew Clifford connecting with Blake Beauchamp for an 18-yard touchdown following the fifth Stetson turnover of the game.
 
Not to be out-done, Drake also turned the ball over four times in the game.
 
After a slow-moving opening quarter, both teams picked up the pace in the second half of the second quarter.
 
Stetson opened the flurry when Mazza capped a five-play scoring drive following one of three Drake turnovers. Davion Belk punched the ball loose from Drake running back Conley Wilkins and Zane Smith recovered at midfield. Mazza ran in from 11-yards out for the score, giving the Hatters a short-lived 7-3 lead.
 
Drake needed just 19 seconds to go back on top when Kraemer connected with Saubert, for a 73-yard TD pass.
 
The Hatters needed just four plays to go back in front, with Andreas completing passes for 20 yards to Moore, 48 to Darian Wright and four-yards to Donald Parham for the touchdown.
 
Once again the Bulldogs answered quickly. Wilkins, who opened the game with a 72-yard run to set up Drake's opening field goal, ripped off another run for 47 yards, setting up Kraemer's second TD toss, this one from 11-yards out to Menard.
 
The Hatters were able to tie the game before the half after Eric Martin intercepted a Kraemer pass and, with the help of a facemask penalty against the Bulldogs, set the Stetson offense up at the Drake 21. After failing to make any progress, Amick connected on a 38-yard field goal for a 17-17 tie at intermission.
 
Drake finished the game with 565 yards of total offense to 341 for the Hatters. Wilkins finished with 140 rushing yards to push past the 1,000-yard milestone for the year. Mazza's 114 rushing yards left him just 55 yards shy of 2,000 for his career.
 
Kraemer completed 21-of-33 pass attempts for 334 yards and the five TDs while Andreas completed 15-of-33 for 212 yards and one score. Moore had five receptions for 97 yards in his final game and also had 170 kickoff return yards on seven returns.
 
Defensively, Payne was not able to surpass teammate Jeb Boudreaux to earn his fourth consecutive PFL title for tackles. The senior finished his star-studded career with 14 tackles, including two for loss, a sack, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Boudreaux finished with 12 tackles, to edge his teammate 118 to 116 on the year.
 
Payne finished his career with 538 career tackles, good for third in NCAA Division I history.
 
For the Hatters, it was the final game for 23 seniors, including the last 13 from the original 2012 signing class.
 
"I credit those seniors, especially those 13 fifth-year guys, for helping us establish a foundation that, going forward, will give these younger kids something to build on," Hughes said. "Every time we have gotten up at 6:30 a.m. or gotten on the bus, I have seen those 13 faces. I am just disappointed that we couldn't send them out the way we wanted to, because they deserved that."
 
About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program has a vision of developing a culture of champions athletically, academically and within the community. This vision is accomplished through a mission of recruiting and developing student-athletes, coaches and staff, creating a culture of champions, within and outside of competition. The department operates with five core values: Championship Culture, Integrity, Excellence, Pride/Tradition and Leadership. To learn more about the Vision, Mission and Core Values for Stetson Athletics, visit GoHatters.com and click on Mission Statement under the Inside Athletics tab.