SLIPPERY ROCK — A 24-point lead late in the first half trimmed to three with more than half a quarter to play.

The Slippery Rock University offense needed a repeat performance from a year ago at Indiana to secure another football victory over the nationally-ranked Crimson Hawks.

A 14-play, 84-yard drive that ate 7:09 off the clock late in the fourth quarter handed SRU a 30-27 upset win at IUP in 2018.

Saturday at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium, a 14-play, 75-yard drive ate 7:13 off the clock and spoiled IUP's upset bid. The drive enabled The Rock to hold on for a 45-42 victory.

“If we get them off the field, I believe we score again and win the game,” Indiana coach Paul Tortorella said. “We did wind up scoring again.

“But we didn't get them off the field.”

Rock quarterback Roland Rivers III saw to that.

“It was time for us to go, no doubt,” Rivers said of SRU's game-clinching drive. “We had to move the ball and score.”

Rivers converted a 3rd-and-3 with a 4-yard run to his own 36. He found Cinque Sweeting for a 5-yard competion on the next third down, the play falling a yard short of the first-down marker at SRU's 45.

As the offense marched up to the line of scrimmage on 4th-and-1, Rock coach Shawn Lutz nearly called timeout.

“Before we snapped the ball, my hands were this close (two inches apart) from calling time,” Lutz said as he demonstrated with his hands. “I was so torn there. I didn't want to give the ball back to their offense.”

IUP's offense scored four touchdowns in the second half.

“I got to thinking ... one yard. We have a big quarterback. He can get us one yard,” Lutz said.

Originally lining up in the shotgun, Rivers darted up behind center, ran a quarterback sneak and got the one yard.

He then rushed for 11 yards and a first down. On 2nd-and-7 from the IUP 40, Rivers scrambled to the right, then left, shot-putting the ball forward as he was taken to the turf.

The play was ruled an incomplete pass.

“I thought his knee was down before he threw that pass,” Tortorella said. “Then I wasn't sure who he was throwing it to.

“If we get that sack, it's 3rd-and-20 instead of 3rd-and-7. That might have made a big difference.”

Instead, on 3rd-and-7, Rivers scrambled out of trouble in the backfield, rolled left, cut back to his right and found a diving Sweeting along the right sideline for a 13-yard gain to the IUP 27.

“We missed four tackles on that third down,” Tortorella said. “That can't happen.”

A 5-yard run by Charles Snorweah and a 10-yard run by Rivers set up The Rock at the IUP 12. Snorweah ran up the middle for a 12-yard touchdown run to seal the win with 1:30 left.

“We practice the scramble drill all the time,” Rivers said. “One of the elements of my game is being able to extend the play.

“When I'm running around like that, the receivers know where to go and I know where to find them.”

Rivers knows when to run with the ball, too.

“Their ends were crashing in on our backs and I had room to run up the middle,” the quarterback said. “I was just trying to gain yards and help our team win.”

“Two years in a row, he beat us with his feet,” Tortorella said.