It was a season was first for the Southern Oregon University football squad in 2012.

First outright winning season since 2007, first playoff appearance and first playoff win, both since 2002, and placing fifth in the final NAIA Football rankings, third time the school achieved such a high rating at season’s end.

Probably the cherry on top was being co-Froniter Champions with Montana Tech, the first time in recent school memory that the program has won a conference championship.

But with Doomsday 2012 happening next month; the prophets were wrong in the aspect that the Raiders were indeed this “End of the World” Doomsday device with this year’s campaign.

After the first four games; the Raiders were averaging 43.5 points a game, well above their 24.4 points a game from 2011, but were faced 2-2 and unranked in the NAIA.

But a chance was a coming entering their first meeting with the Mountaineers of rival #24 Eastern Oregon University as they went on to score 51 in the first half en route to a 68-22 victory over the squad from La Grande, Oregon.

The win, was a start towards a streak of four games with at least 60 points or more in their  next six games that saw several school records shattered in almost every game that helped the Raiders go 9-2 and win the Frontier Conference South Division.

Heading into the playoffs, Southern Oregon were ranked tenth in the nation in the final polls of the season.  They were set to face the eighth-ranked fighting Bees of St. Ambrose in Davenport, Iowa.

St. Ambrose’s announcers put it best for the first half for the Raiders; “They’re not used to this style of play of the team’s out here in the midwest and east coast”.

SOU was down 28-17 at halftime.  Very un-charateristic of a team that put up 53.5 points a game during the regular season.

In the locker room, Coach Craig Howard had rally the troops as the Raiders held the Bees scoreless in the second half defensively and the offense exploded for three touchdowns and a pick-six from Josh Leff in the final quarter to pull away with the victory 45-28.

For the quarterfinals, SOU had to yet again make the trip out to Iowa; this time to play the third-ranked Mustangs of Moringside College.

Both team’s were powerhouses on the field, both had high power offenses, and both had defenses that aren’t afraid to punch you in the mouth.

And this game was just like that.

Sioux City witnessed 56 points scored in the first half as it was a showcase of offenses.

NAIA’s Player of the Year, SOU’s own Austin Dodge tossed two touchdowns to one interception that was fortunally returned to the house to Morningside’s Joel Nixon’s two touchdowns.

On the ground, Morningside had the advantage heading into halftime with two rushing touchdowns to SOU’s one as the Raiders found themselves in yet another deficit, 35-21.

But, as any great team knows; it’s not how you start the game that is important, but it’s how you finish that will decide it.

The Raiders did just that.

As in the previous game, the defense played shut down football as they allowed one touchdown in four possesions of a Moringside squad that was second or third in nation in almost every offensive area lead by senior linebacker Kalli Robinson’s 13 total tackles and freshman Daniel Breuax’s two tackle for losses.

The shutdown defense had open the flood gates for the Southern Oregon offense.

Manny Barragan ran from one-yard out to cut it down by seven.  A Dodge to Cole McKenzie 48-yard pass tied it up.  Colin Amlser gave the first SOU lead with a 22-yard field goal with 11:53 left to play.

The Mustangs pieced together a 11-play, 80 yard drive that ended with a eight yard strike from Joel Nixon to Kyle Schuck to give Moringside the lead again with 7:44 left in the game.

With their backs against the wall, five seconds left, Amlser was called upon and connected on a 17-yard field goal to force overtime; 41-41.

Southern Oregon wounded up kicking a field goal on the first possession of overtime.

With needing a touchdown to win, the Mustangs did just that in four plays as they clipped the Raiders changes of going to the NAIA semi-finals, 47-44.

“I’m really anxious for next season,” said redshirt sophmore defensive back Kevin Grossman. “with this season ending how it did nobody will want to end next year feeling like we do now,”

With players like Austin Dodge, whom led the nation in passing with 5,076 yards and 42 touchdowns, freshman running back Zach Marshall on the offensive side and defensive backs Josh Leff and Heston Altenbach returning for their senior years and true-freshman linebacker Marquice O’Leary will be leading an expierence but young defense next year; the Raiders are looking to build off of this year’s success for next year.

“The seniors this year left their mark on the program and changed it for the better,” said Grossman, “We have a great group of guys coming back next year and everybody is going to work harder than ever, so everybody is ready to start our hunt for the national championship.”