It wouldn’t be a Saturday of Missouri Western football without a little last-second drama.

True to form, the Griffons’ contest against Fort Hays State wasn’t decided until the final moments, but in a plot twist, Western held on for a tenuous 31-28 victory at Spratt Stadium.

The Griffons had lost four straight with the two most recent losses coming after Western came within 1 and 2 yards, respectively, of victory. Through three quarters Saturday, the Griffons (2-4, 1-3 miaa) finally looked poised for a comfortable victory, ahead 31-14.

They should’ve known better.

Tigers quarterback Anthony Smith ran for two fourth-quarter touchdowns, and his pass with six seconds remaining sailed through receiver Bryan Haynes’ hands at Western’s 5-yard line to preserve the victory.

“I’m not sure I can live much longer at that rate. It’s been a wild four weeks,” Western coach Jerry Partridge said. “One of those games, where it was, ‘Oh my God, how is this going to end?’ Even I thought, ‘How are we going to lose that sucker.’ It had that feel.”

Smith — Fort Hays’ top receiver entering this game — started at quarterback in place of Mike Garrison, who is out with a broken jaw. The sophomore struggled, completing just six of his 16 passes with three interceptions. Jarrett Morris returned the first 82 yards to set up Western’s third score — quarterback Drew Newhart’s 1-yard sneak that put the Griffons up 21-0 at halftime. Ian Thompson returned the second one 69 yards for a score, and the third stopped a Fort Hays drive in Western territory.

“The secondary was looking to take full advantage of that because you know he hasn’t taken that many snaps, and he isn’t very comfortable in the pocket,” Thompson said. “We were looking to attack.”

The Griffons needed every stop they could muster with their offense misfiring in the second half. Western finished with 195 yards of offense and 189 yards on interception returns.

Newhart — after finding Billy Babcock and Cedric Houston for first-half touchdowns — threw a pick-six of his own and fumbled in the second half. He threw for just 128 yards — his lowest total of the season — though both quarterbacks had to battle a swift southern wind throughout.

Western kicker Dustin Strickler made a 41-yard field goal into that wind with 7:03 left in the third quarter, while Fort Hays’ Nathan Rausa missed a 45-yard attempt in the first quarter — his first miss of the season — which turned out to be the difference.

The Griffons defense stymied Smith and the Tigers (2-4, 1-3) for three quarters. C.J. Lovett’s 54-yard punt return for a touchdown at the start of the third quarter and Jason Carr’s 14-yard interception return provided Fort Hays’ points through 45 minutes of play.

But Smith ran wild in the fourth quarter — mostly out of the spread formation — and the Griffons couldn’t stop him. He finished with 134 yards on the ground, but orchestrating a potential game-winning drive with 1:42 left and no timeouts its a tough task for a one-dimensional offense. The Tigers just ran out of time.

Facing fourth and 7 at Fort Hays’ 47, Smith’s last-ditch effort fell incomplete.

“I take the blame for all the picks and missed reads,” Smith said. “I’m always good on my feet. I’m surprised I didn’t throw it as well as I can.”

Sports reporter R.J. Cooper can be reached

at rjcooper@npgco.com