CANTON, OH – Wabash (9-2) edged Ohio Northern (8-3) 32-31 in a thriller that came down to the final seconds to capture the 2025 Forever Lawn Bowl as part of the Opendorse Bowl Series on Saturday, November 22, at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio.

The second game of the Opendorse Bowl Series will feature Mount St. Joseph and Westminster, as the two teams will compete for the Extra Points Bowl that will be contested at 6:00 p.m.

Wabash struck first with a Brody Rucker (Haskell, OK/Coweta) field goal, but Ohio Northern answered on its next drive with a 35-yard touchdown pass to take a 7–3 lead. The Little Giants responded immediately, as Jackson Gilbert (Westfield, IN/Westfield) engineered back-to-back touchdown drives, finding Kannon Chase (West Baden Springs, IN/Springs Valley) from 16 yards out and then hitting Luke Adams (Sullivan, IN/Sullivan) for a 36-yard score to put Wabash ahead 17-7. Early in the second quarter, Gilbert and Chase connected again, extending the margin to 24-7 before ONU chipped away with an 11-yard rushing touchdown and a 15-yard scoring strike to close the gap to 24-21 at halftime.

Ohio Northern tied the game 24-24 with a long third-quarter drive capped by a field goal, then grabbed a 31-24 lead early in the fourth on a 28-yard touchdown run. Wabash saved its biggest punch for the final moments. With the clock winding down, the Little Giants marched 69 yards in under two minutes, and Gilbert delivered the decisive blow, a 23-yard touchdown pass to Nick Witte (Wilkinson, IN/Lapel) with just two seconds remaining. Rowen Durbin (Thorntown, IN/ Western Boone) completed the comeback with a clutch two-point conversion, lifting Wabash to a dramatic 32-31 victory.