After displaying arguably their best defense thus far this season, struggles on the offensive side hurt in the end as the Bears lost in heart-breaking fashion to visiting No. 7 Northwest Thursday, 23-20. The Rangers got a go-ahead touchdown with under 1:00 to go, dashing the hopes of the hosts who were unable to respond. 

"We out-played them tonight," said Southwest head coach Cliff Collins, who had high praise for his kids. "I told my kids not to hang their head. The record doesn't speak for itself. We will get this right."

The Bears (0-6) found themselves down 6-0 early after the first two Northwest drives ended via field goals while the Southwest offense could not find the consistency that it needed.

The third Ranger drive ended with a positive for the Bears as a fumble was pounced on by Jaylon Price giving Southwest ideal field position at the Northwest 31.

Despite moving the ball inside the Northwest 5-yard line, the Bears unfortunately came up short on a 4^th and 1 giving the ball back to the visitors.

The disappointment of not converting turned into frustration as the Rangers orchestrated a lengthy drive that resulted in a 29-yard passing touchdown putting Southwest down 13-0.

Even though the ensuing Bear drive ended via an interception, special teams stepped up and gave the offense great field position. Jeffrey Anderson Jr. blocked a Ranger punt which was downed at the Northwest 28. On the third play of the ensuing drive,
Quez Goss found Marcellus Jackson from 27 yards out and with the Lyndell Boatman PAT, the Bears got on the board and cut the Ranger lead down to six at 13-7.

Early in the third quarter, the defense shined once again, this time with another takeaway as Kam Carter snagged an interception at the Northwest 45-yard line before returning it down to the 14. Three plays later, the Bears found the end zone once again,
this time on the ground as Chris Hunter plunged in from two yards out giving Southwest its first lead of the night at 14-13 with just under 8:00 to go in the quarter.

Southwest got another takeaway later in the quarter as Danarius Hilliard stepped in front of a Ranger pass giving the ball back to the hosts. However, it did not result in any scoring as the Bear offense could not capitalize.

In the beginning stages of the fourth quarter, Northwest regained the lead following a 25-yard field goal making it a 16-14 game.

That score stayed true as time ticked away for the Bears. With just under 2:00 to go, Southwest got its home run play on an 80-yard pass from Goss to Jackson bringing the many Bear fans in attendance on their feet with excitement.

The ensuing two-point try was no good and despite having the lead, the Bears found themselves in trouble as a penalty resulted in the kickoff taking place from deep in Southwest territory.

The location of the kick followed by the ensuing 13-yard return gave the Rangers prime field position as they looked for the go-ahead score. And unfortunately for Southwest, Northwest got it on the fifth play of the following drive on a 17-yard touchdown pass putting the Bears down 23-20.

With one final opportunity, the Bears looked for more magic and the go-ahead score but it did not come as the Rangers escaped with the three-point win.

Goss led the Bears completing 22-of-34 passes for 273 yards and two touchdowns. Jackson led the receiving corps with four catches for 138 yards and a pair of scores. Defensively, Hilliard and Jeffery Polk Jr. led the Bears with nine tackles apiece. Hilliard added one tackle for loss and one interception.

The Bears return to action on Saturday October 19 at 5 p.m. when they host Hinds for Homecoming.