As if that start weren't bad enough, on LU's next possession it took only two plays before field-position disaster struck again. Sophomore QB Brent Hodgkiss set up to pass, only to feel the ball slip from his grasp as he began to throw, with Jewell noseguard Shane Spencer pouncing on the loose ball at the Lindenwood 21-yd. line.

This time it took the Cardinals four plays to score, on the first of junior tailback Keith Shankle's three TD's on the night. Just like that, the road underdogs were ahead 14-0, and Mother Momentum was squarely on the sideline away from the press box.

"The strange thing is, we had a great week of practice on offense from an execution standpoint, probably the best since we've been here," said Lion head coach Patrick Ross. "Coming off our performance last week, we really expected that offensive unit to be clicking from the start. Turnovers have just killed us in the games we've lost."

Things went from bad to worse shortly after that, as LU's next possession ended in a three-and-out in the shadow of their own goal posts. Sophomore Zac Atterberry's punt was returned by Jewell's Ty Hawkins to the LU 31, setting up the visitors with golden field position for the third straight series. It took only four plays for Shankle to pound in again on the first play of the second quarter, and the uphill battle of LU's final 45 minutes was set at 21-0.

From that point on, the Lions looked much like the team that routed league-leading Graceland the previous week on the road. Hodgkiss threw the first of his three TD passes on the night to senior George Mumphard on the Lions' next drive, with the East St. Louis native making a spectacular grab on a 30-yard score.

On the night, the Lions would outgain Jewell by 226-117 on the ground, and register 18 first downs - numbers which would usually account for a win. The most sacred statistic in football, though, other than the score, is turnover margin. The 2005 Lions (currently at -9 for the year) are the poster child for how important that number is during the course of a season.

The Cardinals answered Mumphard's score with a 28-yd. field goal by freshman Stephen Bader later in the second period, but were unable to hold off Lindenwood on the Lions' final drive of the first half. That penetration ended in a leaping, 33-yard TD reception by junior Steven Kennedy with less than a minute remaining before intermission. That left it 24-14 at halftime, and the Lions were more than halfway up that long hill.

"We came into the locker room at halftime and felt like we were back on track," said Ross. "We made a couple of adjustments to the front they were showing us on defense, and Dorsey was able to get some nice runs in the second half."

The Lions got on the board again midway through the third quarter, with a daring bit of play-calling by Ross and the offensive staff. Facing a 4th-and-two at the Jewell 8-yd. line, Ross passed on the field goal attempt - and the play-action pass that was called, and executed to perfection, resulted in Kennedy's second TD grab of the night, making it 24-21.