Drake football team builds early lead in season opener before weather cancellation

The Drake football team built a 10-0 halftime lead over Quincy in its season opener Thursday before severe weather forced a lengthy delay, which ultimately resulted in the cancellation of the contest.

Drake put a drive together as the first period wound to a close. That series included a perfectly thrown deep ball from Luke Bailey to Hunter Johnson down the right sideline. The first quarter closed with zeroes across the board, but the Bulldogs’ drive set up a 24-yard Shane Dunning field goal just 15 seconds into the second quarter.

Drake's Tim Nesslage forced a fumble on a punt return, resulting in a Finn Claypool recovery. Drake struck immediately after regaining possession as Jaxon Laminack caught one over the middle and scampered 56 yards inside the Quincy 5-yard line. That set up a Nesslage touchdown catch.

At halftime, fans were evacuated from Drake Stadium and the game went into a delay due to severe weather in the Des Moines area.

After a nearly three-hour suspension, both teams mutually agreed to cancel the remainder of the game. Thursday’s bout was officially ruled a no contest. All first-half statistics will be nullified and do not count toward personal or team records.

The Bulldogs will be back in action next week with a trip to Eastern Washington and return to Drake Stadium on Sept. 28 when San Diego visits Des Moines.

The Drake sports information department contributed this report.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Drake football team builds early lead in season opener before weather cancellation