Box Score TUCSON - The Tucson Sugar Skulls dropped a tough one on the road in the first round of the playoffs against the Northern Arizona Wranglers. The final score was 49-30 in favor of the Wranglers.
Tucson finishes the season with a 9-8 overall record after securing the 3rd seed in the West along with their first-ever winning season in franchise history. The Wranglers advance to face off against the winner of today's Rattlers vs. Gladiators matchup.
Rough Start
The Wranglers started the scoring off with an extremely rare rogue. A rogue is when the kickoff is downed in the end zone and is worth one (1) point.
Northern Arizona's defense then got a stop which then led to excellent field position and a quick score to jump out to an 8-0 lead.
Mike Jones did quickly answer with a strong rushing touchdown to give Tucson six points, but the extra point attempt by
Logan Justus was no good, and the Wranglers led 8-6. After Tucson got within two, the Wranglers went on a 14-0 run to pull ahead by the score of 22-6 and never looked back.
Key Stats
Tucson actually dominated the time of possession, holding possession of the ball for 40:03 minutes compared to Northern Arizona's 19:57. The Sugar Skulls also had the advantage in first downs and total yardage.
The Wranglers capitalized on great special teams play, including a 56-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Northern Arizona also connected on two of their three their field goal attempts and had a massive advantage in the penalty game. Tucson committed eight (8) penalties for 75 yards while Northern Arizona just committed just two (2) for 18 yards. The Sugar Skulls missed one field goal and two extra points, leaving an additional five points on the board.
Daquan Neal finished the night with 225 passing yards, completing 19 of his 31 passes to go with 2 passing touchdowns and two interceptions.
Jazeric Peterson led the team in receiving yards with 92 on five receptions to go with one touchdown.
A Season To Remember
Despite the season-ending, as it did, this has been the best season yet in Tucson Sugar Skulls franchise history.
Thank you to our fans for your support throughout the season. We look forward to seeing you in the Boneyard in 2023.
