Tulsa Oilers Football, proud member of the IFL, end up on top in their final home game of the season with a 56-35 victory.
The Oilers entered the night with one game left in the 2023 regular season, with a chance to win their first home game of the campaign.
The opening kickoff of the game soured the crowd as it was returned for a touchdown by the Steamwheelers' Jerron McGaw to make it 7-0 with 14:52 left in the first. Tulsa would mirror image match the Steamwheelers' opening act with a touchdown of their own on the following kickoff return thanks to Joshua Crockett to tie the game 7-7 with 14:15 remaining in the opening frame. The Oilers would follow up with another score via a 26-yard catch by Jonathan Nance into the end zone to give Tulsa a 13-7 lead with 7:52 left in the first quarter. Quad City ended the first frame scoring with a 19-yard field goal through the uprights by Chase Allbough to make it 13-10 in favor of the Oilers entering the second quarter.
Crockett began the offensive fireworks in the second by picking up his first receiving score of the night on a 14-yard catch to pad the Tulsa lead at 19-10 with 14:55 remaining in the second. The Steamwheelers put up back-to-back scoring drives to gain a 23-19 lead, both thanks to Shane Simpson on an eight-yard rushing touchdown and a 28-yard receiving score, leaving 6:06 on the clock in the half. Crockett took the spotlight again as a result and snagged a seven-yard catch in the end zone to build Tulsa back to a 26-23 advantage with 4:48 remaining. Quad City’s defense would come up large in the fashion of a pick-six at the 2:14 mark left in the half by Darreon Jackson to make it 29-26 Steamwheelers. Tulsa gained the lead with 0:02 left in the second on a quick QB sneak by Andre Sale as he stretched the ball across the goal line to make it 33-29 Oilers at the end of the first half.
Tulsa running back Dalton James made his impression on the night by scoring a six-yard touchdown run on the opening drive of the third quarter to give the Oilers another two-possession lead at 40-29 with 11:39 still left to play in the third. Quad City saw quarterback E.J. Hilliard rush for four yards and a score with 7:56 left in the frame to cut the Tulsa lead down to 40-35. Sale for the Oilers responded with a rushing touchdown of his own, a quick two-yard scramble helped make it 47-35 with just 4:04 left in the third frame.
The fourth quarter was all Oilers as Nance leaped into the golden end zone on a 13-yard catch and score with 2:24 left in the game to make it 54-35 Tulsa. Jordan Jones would get credit for a safety with 0:47 left in the final frame to give the Oilers a 56-35 lead and the most points in one game in franchise history. Tulsa finished their home schedule and season schedule with their first home victory of the season by a final of 56-35.