Dudley, Mass. — Coast Guard Academy won the coin toss to start overtime Friday night and chose to go on defense first, with coach Bill George hoping to get a stop and then have the opportunity to win the game.

Then Nichols scored a touchdown. But the Bison left Coast Guard an opening when they missed the extra point.

Coast Guard then extended its record to start the season to 2-0, scoring in two plays in overtime, both runs by Jon Wagner, which gave the Bears a 24-23 victory. Wagner scored on a 20-yard touchdown run and Pat Crowley kicked the decisive extra point. Crowley, a cornerback, is in his first season kicking for the Bears.

"(Wagner) scored on a speed option run perfectly," George said. "It was blocked well. We scored in two plays, which was big in the overtime.

"The biggest thing is that we hung in there as (Nichols) started playing better and they had the momentum. (Our) leadership came through in overtime. We really did play hard in overtime. I thought our guys lit up a little."

Coast Guard, which won last Saturday at the University of New England in Biddeford, Maine, faced a short week of preparation for this game and saw the time moved from 7 p.m. to 5 due to concerns with Eastern Equine Encephalitis.

The Bears, though, led 17-10 at halftime, getting a 22-yard touchdown from Ryan Jones to Damaso Jaime in the first quarter. Nichols tied the game 7-7 on a 28-yard touchdown from Mike Pina to Hunter Ferreira.

Coast Guard opened the second quarter with a 32-yard field goal by Crowley and a 53-yard catch by Jaime from Jones. Nichols scored the final points of the half with 1 minute, 10 seconds remaining on a 32-yard field goal by Alex Santiago.

Nichols (1-1) scored the only points of the second half on a 12-yard pass from Pina to Joshua Pierre-Charles with 8:36 remaining in regulation. Pina then hit Dominic Coppola for a 19-yard touchdown in overtime as the Bison took a brief 23-17 lead.

"The time got moved ... you're dealing with a lot of intangibles," George said of the win. "I thought about it earlier in the day. We got off a bus about 10 o'clock last Saturday night, then we have this short week. All of a sudden, your preparation has changed. ... It was a great win."

Jones finished 11-for-25 for 211 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions for Coast Guard, who finishes its three-game road trip next weekend at Norwich. Jaime caught four passes for 87 yards and Wagner made two catches for 76 yards. Wide receiver Justin Moffatt (shoulder) did not play.

Linebacker RJ Robiskie led the defense with 10 tackles and one and a half sacks. The Bears finished with five sacks, including one each by Phillip Orlando, Eugene Bizer and Zach Lukasik.

Pina was 29-for-43 for 249 yards and three touchdowns for Nichols.

Coast Guard starts the season 2-0 for the first time since 2005. It was the Bears' first overtime game since a 31-28 win over Worcester State in 2012.