By Ryan Briggs
Grove City SID
Last week, I noted that all of the "Games to Watch" for Week Two turned out to be highly competitive games. Well, lightning did not strike twice as blowouts were the theme of Week Three throughout the Great Lakes Region.
Among the carnage: Mount Union's 55-3 whipping of John Carroll; Olivet's 78-21 triumph over Ohio Wesleyan (more later); Waynesburg drilling Manchester 73-14; and Thiel sending Bluffton back home with a 45-14 beating.
Generally speaking, there were just a select few games that would be classified as "good games" last weekend.
Capital survived an upset bid by Otterbein, pulling out a 24-17 win in both teams' Ohio Athletic Conference opener. Wittenberg nailed down a 35-31 home win over Thomas More by scoring two touchdowns in the final eight minutes. Beyond that, close games were an exception not the rule.
Despite the overall lack of drama last weekend, that does not mean that there is a lack of material for this week's trip around the Great Lakes Region.
A running offense such as Olivet's should enjoy playing in this stadium. |
Off to the glue factory
Prior to the 2004 season I anointed Ohio Wesleyan as a "dark horse" in the race for the North Coast Athletic Conference championship. Currently, the Battling Bishops are 0-2 and if they don't shore up their run defense, it could be a long season for Mike Hollway's charges.
Saturday, host Olivet opened the Cutler Athletic Complex by tearing through the Ohio Wesleyan defense for a Division III-record 670 rushing yards in the Comets' 78-21 victory Saturday afternoon.
Olivet (2-0) ran the ball 84 times while throwing just three passes in the game. The Comets led 28-0 after one quarter and 42-14 at the half. Olivet finished with 33 first downs. In spite of these outrageous numbers, only one Olivet back, Mick Faasen, had over 100 yards. Faasen had 181 yards. Travis Sleight had 84 yards and three touchdowns while nine other backs had at least 20 yards rushing.
This weekend could be another feast for Olivet's Wing-T offense as Manchester comes to town. Earlier this year, Grove City's Wing-T amassed 54 points and 271 rushing yards against the Spartans.
Fab Five
Olivet was not the only Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association school to put up some big offensive numbers Saturday in non-league action. Alma ripped the Aurora defense for 558 total yards as the Scots picked up a 45-0 road win.
Josh Brehm, the triggerman for Alma's "Scotgun" offense, completed 22 of 38 attempts for 377 yards and five touchdowns. Wide receiver Aaron Bradley caught five passes for 119 yards and two scores as Brehm's top target.
Not-so-fab Four
For the four other MIAA teams in action Saturday, it was not a day to remember as they were all doomed by either: a) the inability to run the ball; b) the inability to stop the run; or c) both.
Host UW-Oshkosh held Albion to 26 yards rushing on 26 attempts as the Britons were handed a 40-0 road loss. Albion turned the ball over six times and was outgained 410-139.
Hope allowed DePauw to run for 388 yards in a 35-14 loss in Greencastle, Ind. The Flying Dutchmen did manage 378 yards of offense -- an impressive feat considering that DePauw had the ball for over 39 minutes.
Kalamazoo dropped a 21-19 verdict at home to Mount St. Joseph as the hosts managed just 15 rushing yards on 21 attempts before an intimate gathering of 375 spectators. That game featured three non-offensive touchdowns as each team returned a blocked punt for a touchdown in the first half. Mount St. Joseph also returned an interception for the game's first touchdown.
Wisconsin Lutheran dropped to 0-3 with a 34-21 home loss to Concordia (Wis.) as the visitors held a 291-61 edge in rushing yardage.
Purple power
Mount Union completed the first step of its Ohio Athletic Conference title defense Saturday night with a 55-3 win over John Carroll. The victory is Mount Union's 86th straight in the conference and 96th consecutive regular-season win.
The Purple Raiders raced to a 34-0 lead by halftime and continued to dominate in the second half. Jesse Clum and Anthony Frate each returned interceptions for touchdowns and as a whole, the Mount Union defense held John Carroll (0-2, 0-1) to 142 total yards.
"I can't say that I expected that good of a performance defensively," Mount Union head coach Larry Kehres said. "You never expect to shut down a team like John Carroll. Our defensive coaches really had the players ready to play."
A Mount Union Stadium record crowd of 8,972 witnessed the victory.
Capital's block party
Capital pulled out a 24-17 win over Otterbein in both teams' conference opener Saturday as two blocked punts helped the Crusaders to victory. Capital's Todd Mittlestead blocked a punt in the first quarter, giving his team a goal-to-go situation at the 2. Jason Bainum scored on the next play, giving Capital a 7-0 lead.
Still, Otterbein rebounded to take a 17-10 lead into the fourth quarter. However, Capital's Marcus McDonough blocked another punt and Mittlestead fell on the ball in the end zone. Capital quarterback Rocky Pentello put the Crusaders up for good with 1:44 left as he tossed a 43-yard touchdown pass to Matt Friesner.
Otterbein outgained Capital's explosive offense, 273-203, but the blocked punts kept the Cardinals from the upset.
Two out of three ain't bad
Three games last weekend featured matchups between teams from the Presidents' Athletic Conference and the North Coast Athletic Conference. PAC representatives Washington and Jefferson and Westminster both earned wins against NCAC foes Allegheny and Hiram. Wooster held off PAC member Grove City 28-13 in the other PAC-NCAC clash.
Washington and Jefferson outgained the defending NCAC champs 429-161 and forced eight Allegheny punts. The President offense ran for 210 yards and threw for 219. Hard-charging halfback R.J. Zitzelsberger ran for 102 yards and three touchdowns while Aaron Krepps caught eight passes for 107 yards.
An hour south in New Wilmington, Pa., Westminster halfback Scott Froelich established a single-game rushing record with 254 yards in the Titans' 41-22 win over steadily improving Hiram. Froelich ran for four touchdowns, including two in the fourth quarter as Westminster broke the game open.
Froelich's younger brother, Tom, returned a Hiram fumble 89 yards for a touchdown in the closing moments of the first half, giving Westminster a 27-8 halftime lead.
The Terriers didn't fold, however, and pulled to within 27-22 in the third quarter on two Max Kravitz touchdown passes. Kravitz fired a 64-yard strike to Niarchos Kincaid, then pitched a 23-yarder to Tim Anderson.
Fifteen miles east on State Route 208, Wooster survived a Grove City rally to claim a 28-13 win over the Wolverines at Robert E. Thorn Field. Wooster (2-0) led 21-0 midway through the first half before Grove City slashed the lead to eight.
Consensus All-American Tony Sutton ran for a pair of touchdowns in the victory while defensive end Jamin Suber returned a Grove City fumble 30 yards for a score in the second quarter. The Wolverines trimmed the lead to 21-13 on touchdowns runs by quarterback Bradford Clark and fullback Brandon McGlothlin.
Early in the fourth quarter, Wooster thwarted a Grove City drive by stopping McGlothlin on fourth-and-short deep in Scot territory. Sutton gained 162 yards but needed 38 carries to reach that figure. Grove City did outgain Wooster, 261-248, but could not overcome three turnovers.
Beat goes on for B-W
In last week's column, the Ohio Northern at Baldwin-Wallace game earned top billing in the "Games to Watch" section. Instead of a dandy, the game turned out to be somewhat of a dud as B-W picked up a 31-3 victory over the Polar Bears. Brandon Hedges ran for 158 yards while quarterback Mike DiAngelo threw for 149 yards.
Meanwhile, ONU garnered just 191 yards of offense. "Give Baldwin-Wallace credit; they played well tonight," first-year ONU head coach Dean Paul said. "We are a better team than we showed tonight, but we did not play well."
Huff and puff
Wabash backup quarterback Dustin Huff sparked the Little Giants' come-from-behind 21-10 victory over Washington U. on Saturday in Crawfordsville, Ind., by throwing for two touchdowns and running for a third score.
Huff relieved Russ Harbaugh and fired two touchdown passes to Brandon Clifton, giving Wabash a 14-10 lead. Huff then slammed the door on the visitors with a 51-yard touchdown run, the Little Giants' longest play of the season. The sophomore reserve finished 10-of-12 for 147 yards.
Defensively, Wabash recorded 10 quarterback sacks, including four from junior linebacker Tim Parker. Over the final three quarters, Wabash held Washington to minus-44 yards rushing and 68 total for the game.
Top of the pop
Waynesburg kicker Ben Popson went 10-for-10 kicking extra points in the Yellow Jackets' 73-14 win at Manchester on Saturday, tying his own school record. Five of those PATs came in the first 7:52 as Waynesburg scored 35 quick points.
Andy Tenney returned a fumble 26 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter while Nick Emley intercepted a pass and returned it 35 yards to the end zone three minutes later. In between, sophomore Ryan Abels raced 56 yards to the end zone. Abels ran for 144 yards and two scores on just eight carries. Calvin Lee added 127 rushing yards and three touchdowns while Dennis Gearhart ran for two touchdowns.
Waynesburg scored its third defensive touchdown of the game in the third quarter as Travis Chropka returned an interception 80 yards for a touchdown. As a team, Waynesburg has outscored the opposition 63-0 in the first quarter this year.
Around the MIAA
Adrian and Tri-State were both idle last week ... Hope hosts Wheaton in a playoff rematch from last season ... Tri-State looks for its first-ever Division III victory against Hoosier State rival Franklin ... Kalamazoo plays a rare Friday night game at Kenyon.
Around the NCAC
Earlham quarterback Justin Rummell accounted for 302 yards of total offense Saturday in the Quakers' 38-21 loss to Anderson. ... Wittenberg avoided its first 0-2 start since the Eisenhower administration (1953) with a 35-31 home win over Thomas More. Running back Tristan Murphy had 193 yards from scrimmage while Eric Kubilus caught the eventual game-winning touchdown, his second of the game. ... Quarterback Nick Stalick threw for 236 yards but Kenyon fell to Case Western Reserve, 46-24. ... Denison and Oberlin were both off last week ... Allegheny, Hiram and Ohio Wesleyan are idle this week. ... Earlham and Wabash open NCAC play in Richmond, Ind., on Saturday.
Around the OAC
Wilmington head coach Phil Dorn earned his first win as a collegiate head coach Saturday as the Quakers downed host Muskingum 17-5. ... Wilmington held Muskingum to minus-8 yards rushing and just 87 total yards of offense. ... Marietta, whose stadium and brand-new turf was underwater, had to move its scheduled game with Heidelberg to Tiffin, Ohio, but the Pioneers still handled the 'Berg, 31-8. ... Steven Wagner ran for 258 yards for Marietta.
Around the PAC
Marietta moved its game to Heidelberg but Bethany, further up the Ohio River, had to postpone its game with Defiance until Nov. 20 due to flooding in the Ohio Valley. If either team makes the playoffs, the game won't be played. ... I have a hunch the game will be played ... Steve Minton ran for 109 yards for Thiel as the Tomcats improved to 2-1 with a 45-14 win over Bluffton. ... Thiel and Bethany open the PAC schedule this Saturday at Bethany Field. ... Thiel hasn't won at Bethany since 1990.
Around the UAA
Case picked up its second win of the season, downing Kenyon, 46-24 ... Carnegie Mellon fell to 1-2 with a 24-14 loss at Johns Hopkins. A blocked punt, an interception and a fumble helped Hopkins take a quick 21-0 lead over the Tartans, who had six turnovers the previous week.
Games to watch
Marietta at John Carroll, 1:30 p.m.: The Blue Streaks are 0-2 but return home to Don Shula Stadium against undefeated Marietta. Can the Pioneers win on the road for the second week in a row?
Thiel at Bethany, 1:30 p.m.: The Presidents' Athletic Conference schedule gets underway as Thiel looks to improve to 3-1. ... Bethany did not play last week and is still trying to give first-year head coach Steven Lee his frist win. ... Bethany defensive coordinator Charlie Giangrosso was head coach at Thiel in the mid-1990s.
Wabash at Earlham, 1 p.m. EST: North Coast Athletic Conference play gets underway with an all-Indiana battle in Richmond. ... Wabash looks to continue its hot start while Earlham could make a big splash by pulling an upset. ... Could Earlham be this year's Oberlin?
