On a glorious fall afternoon, perfect for weekend sports, 450 people flooded the stands at Klas Field to watch the Hamline Pipers take on Concordia College in the 2025 homecoming football showdown. Yet, as the game unfolded, it was the Cobbers who stole the spotlight, ultimately ending in a 58–12 loss for the Pipers.
Concordia was quick to take control of the game as they dominated early on. The Pipers were not able to get any offense going, continually going three and out. Concordia was able to convert two of their drives into an early field goal and a touchdown, which put them up 10–0.
A critical turning point in the game happened when Hamline fumbled the following kickoff, with Concordia recovering at the Hamline 27 yard line. The Cobbers were quick to convert, scoring a touchdown on the next play when the Cobbers quarterback, Jersey Selzer, hit wide receiver Davion Henderson for the score. Two touchdowns in nine seconds gave the Cobbers a 17–0 lead after the first quarter.
The domination continued in the second quarter from the Cobbers as they marched right down the field, scoring another touchdown, making it 23–0. Hamline finally got its first 1st down, converting on third and eight when freshman quarterback Zayden Stevens completed a pass to wide receiver D’Nari Adams.
Two plays later, Stevens completed a pass to quarterback Jacob Aki for another 1st down, and it seemed like the Pipers might be on the move. The momentum was short lived though, as Hamline went three and out and was forced to punt yet again.
With the offense not sustaining many drives, the Piper defense was called upon yet again to stand up to the Cobbers. Hamline met that challenge and forced Concordia to turn the ball over on downs at the Hamline 27 yard line, with just over five minutes left to play in the half.
Faced with five minutes and 73 yards to go, Hamline hoped to get some points on the board by the end of the first half. However, that hope was dashed when they fumbled on their own 44 and it was recovered by the Cobbers.
Once again, the Piper defense rose to the challenge, continually having to defend short fields due to the offense turnovers. They forced the Cobbers to punt again and limited the damage to 23–0 at halftime.
Any hopes for a Pipers’ big second half comeback were quickly lost when on first and ten from their own 36, Selzer busted off a 64 yard touchdown run to make it 30–0 Concordia.
After a penalty on the ensuing kickoff, Hamline had the ball first and ten at their own 40. Three plays later and faced with a fourth and one at midfield, the Pipers went for it and turned the ball over on downs. The Hamline defense once again remained strong, forcing their own turnover on downs by the Cobbers. Unfortunately, though, the Pipers’ offense was not able to get things going and were forced to punt again.
Once again pressed into service, the tired and overworked Hamline defense was unable to contain the Cobbers as they went 80 yards in just under five minutes, making it 37–0 after three quarters.
The fourth quarter did not bring much change as Concordia expanded its lead to 51–0. Hamline was able to bring some excitement to the homecoming day crowd when Aki completed a pass to wide receiver Drevonnte Dunkins for a 44 yard touchdown.
Hamline scored once again, going 75 yards, capped off with a Aki one yard touchdown by Aki. Aki also threw for 74 yards on the drive, completing two passes to wide receiver Eric Pfenning-Wendt, one for 30 yards and the other for 16 yards. He also completed a 28 yard pass to running back Elijah Simmons-Danny.
While a 58–12 homecoming day loss was not what the Pipers expected, it does not get any easier for the Pipers, who will travel to Carleton College for a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) game on Saturday, Oct 18. The Pipers will look for a good week of practice and hope to gain more sustained offense, especially early in the game. The defense, while stout against Concordia, will need its best effort against the challenging Carleton offense. It will be a great test for the Pipers.
