LISLE, Ill. (Sept. 6, 2025) - The Buena Vista University football team kicked off its 2025 season at Benedictine University on Saturday afternoon, but it was the Eagles scoring 14 points in each of the second and third quarters to go on and hand the Beavers a tough 35-0 loss.
BVU was unable to slow down the Eagles running attack in the game as Benedictine finished with 292 yards on the ground and four rushing touchdowns, including a 50-yard burst on the first play from scrimmage early in the fourth quarter for the game's final score. The Eagles tallied 382 yards of total offense while BVU was held to only 192.
The Beavers did most of its damage through the air with 144 yards passing. Junior transfer quarterback
Zy Gravitt completed 14-of-22 attempts for 96 yards and one interception in his BVU debut. Sophomore
Brett Garcia came in late in the fourth quarter and completed 7-of-13 attempts as he guided the team down to the Eagles 17-yard line before turning the ball over on downs after an incomplete pass to the endzone on 4th-and-6.
Freshman tailback
Adriel Fussell chalked up 50 yards on 17 carries to lead the BVU ground game.
Aedan Hayes had a team-high six receptions for 42 yards while
Hunter Emgarten hauled in four. Defensively, Drew Volkman totaled eight tackles with Ethan Wiersma and
Anthony Domingue each adding six.
Sebastian Clear turned in the team's only tackle for a loss while junior
Brody Boeckman forced the key fumble by Benedictine on the first drive.
The two defenses were strong in the opening quarter, including a big fumble forced by the Beavers as the Eagles were driving deep into BVU territory on their first drive of the game. BVU then drove back down field just into Benedictine territory but came up short on a fourth-and-one attempt, and the Eagles took over and went 55 yards in only three plays, resulting in a touchdown on the first play of the second quarter to take a 7-0 lead.
BVU looked to be in position to cut into the lead but senior
Tyler Pennington missed on a 24-yard field goal attempt that went wide and kept it a 7-0 lead. The Eagles then took over and marched 80 yards back down the field in five plays, resulting in an 11-yard touchdown run with 1:52 left in the second quarter en route to a 14-0 halftime lead. The Beavers got back out near midfield with one minute left in the opening half before Gravitt was intercepted at the Benedictine 46-yard line.
Both teams traded punts to open the second half and the Eagles would take over just into BVU territory to begin its second drive of the half and capped a 10-play touchdown drive with a five-yard touchdown run to make it 21-0. The Beavers were forced to punt on its first three drives of the half before turning the ball over on downs in the game's final minutes. Benedictine broke the game open late in the third quarter with a 39-yard touchdown pass.
Dino Stephens led the Eagles with 156 rushing yards and two touchdowns while Negil Bruce added 107 yards and one score.
Buena Vista looks to bounce back next week when it plays its home opener against Wisconsin Lutheran College. Kickoff inside of J. Leslie Rollins Stadium is at 1 p.m.
