CHERISHANN DIAMZON / CONTRIBUTOR

USD’s homecoming game ended with Drake kicker Harry Balke drilling a 55-yard field goal as time expired Saturday at Torero Stadium.

  The Toreros had just tied it up at 16-16 when USD sophomore and kicker Emiliano Salazar made a 41-yard field goal with 1:09 left in the fourth quarter. Drake got the ball back on their own 35-yard line after USD kicked the ball out of bounds, and they moved into field goal range in the final minute.

  The game came down to a missed intentional grounding call in the final seconds. The officials failed to flag the quarterback for throwing the ball away to avoid a sack. 

 USD Head Coach Brandon Moore went to the officials asking to review the play.

  “I asked him if I could review it,” Moore said. “I  told him that there was clearly nobody in the area. The ball didn’t reach the line of scrimmage and the quarterback was just trying to chuck it away. They said it wasn’t reviewable. I couldn’t review if there was somebody in the area.”

  Without the call, Drake stayed in position for the game-winning kick.

The highlight of the game came in the second quarter. 

  USD ran a flea flicker, or a trick play with USD redshirt junior and quarterback Tyler Voss throwing a lateral to USD junior and wide receiver Yosei Takahashi, who launched a 73-yard touchdown pass to senior  wide  receiver Cole Monach.

  “We got it once at full speed in practice against our defense, so not a schemed up look and they ended up looking terrible, but that look was also not the look we were expecting, but it ended up working out,” Monach said.

 The play gave USD a 13-7 lead going into halftime.

USD couldn’t find a rhythm after the break. The offense stalled in Drake territory multiple times in the second half.

  “They did a good job, bending, not breaking,” Monach said. So we just got to be able to finish those drives. I felt like we did good getting near the red zone, but we just gotta be able to finish.”

  Salazar kept USD in the game with four field goals, including makes from 41 and 47 yards.

  “He gave us an opportunity to win, made three or four really tough field goals,” Moore said. “He was pretty much one of our only weapons today.”

Drake took the lead with 4:38 left in the fourth on a five-yard touchdown run to make it 16-13. USD drove down  the  field and Salazar tied it with the 41-yarder, but it wasn’t enough.

  The loss drops USD to their second straight one-possession loss in Pioneer Football League play. Moore stressed the team would take it one game at a time moving forward.

  “We’re just gonna take one game at a time like we always do,” Moore said. “We focus on trying to be 1-0, focus on trying to play 60 minutes of football and taking it moment by moment.”

USD men’s football took on Drake at Torero Stadium on Oct. 11 2025. Photo courtesy of USD Athletics