CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (October 25, 2025) – The University of North Alabama football team suffered an early deficit and slowly chipped away in the fourth quarter, but nationally-ranked Austin Peay proved to be too much to handle on the road in a 56-28 result on Saturday in Clarksville, Tenn.

The Lions (2-6, 1-3 United Athletic Conference) trailed 35-7 early in the third quarter, but a second half surge made it 42-28 with over 12 minutes to go. The Lions had a chance to make it a one-score game with 9:31 remaining, but a turnover on downs and a one-play scoring drive on the ensuing possession ended those chances.

The Govs (5-3, 3-2 UAC) finished with three more touchdowns to seal a homecoming win.

UNA and Austin Peay combined for over 1,000 yards, including 471 from the Lions. This is the first time that UNA and an opponent have combined for that much yardage since 2023 against EKU.

The Lions recorded a season-high 330 passing yards.

Quarterback Destin Wade finished 26-for-49 through the air, throwing for a career-high 330 yards and two touchdowns. His leading targets were Justin Pegues with six catches for 72 yards and Noah Gregg with eight catches for 106 yards. Those are career-high numbers for Gregg.

Wade was also UNA's leading rusher with 60 yards and a touchdown.

Though UNA struggled to score early on, the Lions continued moving the chains and created opportunities with a 11-for-20 third down conversion rate. The Lions and Govs both finished with 22 first downs in an offensive display.

The defense had moments of success during the second half comeback attempt, including a pair of fumble recoveries on two forces by Christian Burkhalter. Burkhalter recently moved from tight end to defensive end, recording three tackles in the process. The recoveries were made by Jyheam Ingram and Cameron Jamar.

Senior Demarcious Robinson continues to lead the UNA defense, recording 10 tackles with nine solo. He added a sack. This was his third game with 10 or more tackles, while the nine solo stops set a new career-high. He has led UNA in tackles for three of the last four games.
 

HOW IT HAPPENED

FIRST QUARTER

Austin Peay 7, North Alabama 0: The Lions won the toss and chose to defer, then proceeded to force a three-and-out on defense. UNA missed a 46-yard field goal on its first possession, then Austin Peay picked up chunks of yardage on four plays over 10 yards. This set up a six-yard touchdown pass from Chris Parson to Shemar Kirk for the opening score with 8:30 left in the quarter.
 

SECOND QUARTER
Austin Peay 14, North Alabama 0: Austin Peay had the ball to start the second quarter following an interception near the end of the first frame. The Govs scored four plays into the quarter with a nine-yard run by Javious Bond.

Austin Peay 21, North Alabama 0: The Govs extended the lead with 11:12 to go in the quarter following a 79 yard pass from Parson to Kirk for their second touchdown connection of the game.

Austin Peay 21, North Alabama 7: The Lions needed a response midway through the second quarter and got an answer from quarterback Destin Wade. Facing 3rd-and-10 twice in the same possession, the redshirt sophomore moved the chains with a 44-yard pass to KJ Fields, then scored on the next 3rd-and-10 with an electric 31-yard scramble.

Austin Peay 28, North Alabama 7: Austin Peay wasted no time pulling back to a three possession lead after Wade's touchdown, as Parson finished a short five-play drive with a 10-yard touchdown run with 6:53 left in the half. Javious Bond set things up with a 55 yard kick return.
 

THIRD QUARTER
Austin Peay 35, North Alabama 7: The Lions started with the ball in the second half, driving into enemy territory before a fourth down stop by the Govs. The next play was a 60 yard run by Bond to make it a four touchdown lead. This was the largest lead for Austin Peay.

Austin Peay 35, North Alabama 14: Needing a response, UNA moved quick on the next drive. An offsides call against Austin Peay provided a free play on third down, as Wade threw it to Noah Gregg for a 67 yard strike into the red zone. KJ Fields finished the drive with a two yard sweep to the pylon. Chandler Dixon's extra point made it 35-14 with 9:45 left in the third.

Austin Peay 35, North Alabama 21: Christian Burkhalter, who recently moved from tight end to defensive end, had a strip sack on third and long, allowing teammate Jyheam Ingram to recover it for the Lions close to the red zone. Starting at the 27 yard line, Wade used six plays to finish a scoring drive in the hands of tight end Amarie Rogers on a five yard pass. This was the first career touchdown for Rogers.

Austin Peay 42, North Alabama 21: Austin Peay started a new drive with 5:31 to go in the quarter and used almost every second before scoring to end the frame. With three seconds remaining, Kirk caught his third touchdown pass in the end zone on a deep 47 yard strike from Parson.
 

FOURTH QUARTER
Austin Peay 42, North Alabama 28: The Lions had the ball to start the fourth quarter and got right back in the game, as Wade led a nine-play, 88-yard drive in just over two minutes. The impressive drive was stamped by an 11-yard strike to Tanaka Scott, who caught the pass in traffic and came down with the ball on red turf. Despite three offside calls against Austin Peay, the Lions finally got an extra point off and made it 42-28 with 12:47 to go.

Austin Peay 56, North Alabama 28: Austin Peay came up with another one-play drive for a touchdown, as Parson scrambled 37 yards to re-extend the lead. This came with 9:43 left in the game. The next drive resulted in a six-yard touchdown scramble by Parson with 2:39 remaining.
 

COMING UP NEXT

The Lions will hop on a plane to Utah next week for a matchup against Utah Tech. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. CT in St. George, Utah.

For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.