QUINCY, Ill. – The Quincy University football team saw a seven-point halftime lead slip away Saturday (Oct. 10), falling 20-17 to William Jewell College on a field goal as time expired in the Battle of the Birds at QU Stadium. The loss dropped the Hawks to 2-4 overall and 1-2 in GLVC play.
William Jewell opened the scoring with a methodical 12-play, 49-yard drive, settling for a 30-yard Bleu Renfrow field goal to take a 3-0 advantage with 9:14 remaining in the opening quarter.
Quincy responded with a lengthy drive of its own. Collin Parsons carried much of the load on a 12-play, 62-yard possession before Joe Reif connected on a 30-yard field goal to even the score at 3-3. It marked Reif's second consecutive game with a made field goal.
The Hawk defense then forced a turnover on downs near midfield to give the offense favorable field position. Quincy capitalized just four plays later. Jackson Burnett hauled in a 39-yard completion to move the Hawks deep into William Jewell territory, and on the first play of the second quarter, Bradyn Little found Parsons for a four-yard touchdown reception to give QU a 10-3 lead.
William Jewell answered with an 11-play, 78-yard drive, tying the game at 10-10 on a five-yard touchdown pass from Charlie Loose to Xavier Winston with 9:50 remaining in the half.
The Hawks regained the lead on their next extended possession. Starting at their own 11-yard line, Parsons opened the drive with runs of four and 13 yards before Little connected with Greg Menne, Burnett and Troy TW Crozier to move QU inside the William Jewell 10. Parsons finished the seven-play, 89-yard march with a seven-yard touchdown run, giving Quincy a 17-10 advantage with 4:24 left before halftime.
Quincy threatened again in the final minute of the half, moving from its own 23 to the William Jewell 27, but the Cardinals stopped the Hawks on fourth-and-one to preserve the seven-point margin heading into the break.
The second half proved to be a completely different story offensively.
Quincy was held scoreless for an entire half for the first time since its Nov. 1, 2025 matchup against Indianapolis. The Hawks managed just 92 yards of offense and five first downs after halftime after taking the 17-10 lead into the locker room.
The Hawks' opening possession of the third quarter ended with an interception, although William Jewell was unable to capitalize when a 51-yard field goal attempt missed. Parsons later broke off a 36-yard run from deep in Quincy territory, but the Hawks were forced to punt after the drive stalled near midfield.
Quincy carried its 17-10 advantage into the fourth quarter, but another promising possession ended with an interception at the William Jewell 20.
The Hawk defense answered with a takeaway of its own. On third-and-14, Patrick Chism intercepted Loose at the Quincy 38 and returned it four yards, recording the first interception of his collegiate career. The Hawks, however, were unable to turn the takeaway into points and punted the ball back to the Cardinals.
William Jewell then put together its first scoring drive since the second quarter. The Cardinals traveled 80 yards in nine plays, with Hunter Bailey scoring on a three-yard run to tie the game at 17-17 with 2:10 remaining.
Quincy took over with an opportunity to answer but went three-and-out, giving William Jewell possession at its own 38 with 1:41 to play.
The Cardinals moved across midfield and appeared to face fourth-and-two at the Quincy 41 with 32 seconds remaining, but an illegal substitution penalty against the Hawks gave William Jewell a first down. Two plays later, Loose connected with Winston for 29 yards to the QU seven-yard line. After a three-yard run and a Quincy timeout with two seconds remaining, Renfrow drilled a 21-yard field goal as time expired, giving William Jewell the 20-17 victory.
Parsons continued his impressive stretch, rushing 22 times for 141 yards and a touchdown, averaging 6.4 yards per carry. It marked his fourth consecutive game with at least 100 rushing yards and his fifth 100-yard performance of the season. With both a rushing and receiving touchdown, Parsons also recorded multiple scores for the third straight game and fourth time this season.
Little finished 15-of-30 through the air for 190 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Burnett paced the receiving corps with three catches for 77 yards, while Derrick Miller added 39 yards on two receptions. Elijah Genenbacher led the Hawks with five catches, totaling 30 yards. Parsons added three receptions and his touchdown.
Despite the second-half offensive struggles, Quincy finished with 335 total yards, including 145 on the ground and 190 through the air. William Jewell totaled 372 yards and controlled possession for 35:46.
Defensively, Jordan Elmore led the Hawks with 11 tackles, giving him his fifth double-digit tackle performance of the season. Danny Novickas turned in a career-high nine tackles, including a tackle for loss, while Eddie Johnson and Taylin Scott also recorded nine stops apiece. Ty Robertson registered Quincy's lone sack, and Chism added his first career interception.
The Hawks will look to bounce back at QU Stadium next weekend, hosting Truman State University on Saturday at 2:00 PM.
