Morton linebacker Gideon Snyder trains for MMA fight

MORTON – Gideon Snyder trains for mixed martial arts. But the player's teammate, nicknamed Jean-Claude Van Damme, saw his Morton team succumb to a ground-and-pound attack from Beijing.

The Dragons came through and sent workhorse running back Ty Jackson and 260-pound fullback Landon Erxleben and others on 57 carries for 276 yards and three touchdowns to secure a 27-24 victory over Mid-Illini on Friday at Carper Field Conference.

Morton (1-4, 1-2) was ready for battle but ran out of time and scored a touchdown with 3.7 seconds left to stage a comeback. A few clutch plays made the difference.

“They overloaded and tried to drive us right in the gut,” Snyder said. “A break here, a break there, it was a very winnable game for us.”