By Ryan Briggs
Grove City SID
Before I get started with this week's column, I would like to apologize to the readers for the tardiness of this week's report. Mid-October is an extremely busy time for sports information directors and things at Grove City have really been hopping as 12 teams are either playing or in preseason activity.
Hopefully, you'll find this week's column worth waiting for. There's a lot to talk about as all three of last week's "Games to Watch" turned out as expected.
This week's trip around the Great Lakes Region starts in its far western reaches, in Crawfordsville, Ind. That's where Wooster held off host Wabash, 33-30, in a matchup of NCAC unbeatens.
The Fighting Scots (6-0, 3-0 NCAC) led 19-9 at the half and appeared to be on their way to blowing the game open with third-quarter touchdown runs from quarterback Justin Schafer and consensus All-America halfback Tony Sutton.
But the Little Giants stormed back with three touchdown passes in an 11-minute span over the third and fourth quarters. Brandon Clifton caught touchdown strikes of 11, 7 and 25 yards from quarterback Russ Harbaugh to bring the Little Giants to within 33-30 with 5:11 left.
Wooster, which had piled up 397 yards through the first 55 minutes of the game, produced consecutive three-and-outs, giving Wabash a chance to tie or win. But with zeroes showing on the clock, Wabash kicker Mark Server could not connect on a 49-yard field goal, preserving Wooster's win.
Harbaugh finished with a career-high 347 passing yards. Clifton caught 12 passes for 123 yards and four touchdowns but Wooster's run defense proved to be the difference. Standout back Aaron Lafitte managed just 32 yards on nine attempts. As a team, Wabash finished with 32 rushing yards on 30 attempts.
Wabash entered Saturday's fray with the NCAC's top-rated defense but Wooster tore through the Giants for 228 rushing yards. Sutton ran for 150 on 30 attempts while Schafer added 77 yards on 15 runs.
On first look, Wooster has just one major obstacle left in pursuit of its first outright NCAC title -- a home date with Wittenberg on Nov. 6. But Wooster won't look past this week's opponent, Oberlin, as the Yeomen shocked Wooster last year 14-7. Wooster also has road dates at Hiram and Ohio Wesleyan, the latter on Nov. 13 in the season finale.
Wabash now must visit Wittenberg this week. The Little Giants will probably have to win out to have playoff hopes either as a Pool C contender or as an NCAC co-champion.
Wittenberg is coming off a 74-0 win over Hiram, improving to 3-0 in the NCAC.
Cat scratch fever
How about those Thiel Tomcats? Thiel pulled off what would have to be considered at least a minor upset Saturday, knocking off defending Presidents' Athletic Conference champion Waynesburg, 26-20, in Greenville, Pa.
The Thiel defense forced four Waynesburg turnovers, including three interceptions. Free safety Kennard Davis returned one of the picks 41 yards for a touchdown, extending Thiel's lead to 23-7 with 9:13 left in the game. It is Davis' 23rd career interception and sixth touchdown return.
Davis' high school teammate at Farrell (Pa.) High, wide receiver Brandon Chambers, caught his ninth touchdown of the season, tying him for second place on Thiel's single-season record list. Chambers now has 44 catches on the season.
For Waynesburg, quarterback Jeff Dumm went 28 of 54 for 282 yards and three touchdowns, along with the three interceptions. Receiver Paul D'Imperio caught 12 passes for 129 yards and all three touchdowns.
And the beat goes on ...
Baldwin-Wallace wrapped up its 38th consecutive winning season Saturday with a 28-0 victory at Heidelberg as Brandon Hedges ran for three touchdowns against The Berg. Defensively, Ryan Lewis anchored the Yellow Jackets' defense with three sacks.
B-W improved to 6-0 overall and 5-0 in the Ohio Athletic Conference while Heidelberg remained "shotgun on the field" at 0-6 overall and 0-5 in the OAC.
So does this beat
Mount Union earned its 100th consecutive regular season victory Saturday with a 57-0 home win over Marietta. Quarterback Zac Bruney fired six touchdown passes, including five in the first half, to tie a Mount Union record. Former standouts Jim Ballard and Bill Borchert also threw six touchdown passes in one game.
"We were able to spread the ball around (Saturday) and get all of our receivers involved," Bruney, who went 20-of-26 for 252 yards, said in the post-game press conference. "Today, we had a good rhythm going, thanks in large part to the play of the offensive line. Those guys are getting better and better with each passing week."
Mount Union piled up 634 total yards of offense and averaged over eight yards per play.
He probably slept well
Adrian linebacker Taz Wallace made 25 total tackles, including 23 solo stops, at Olivet Saturday. That is an indication of two things: Wallace is a very good player and Adrian's defense spent way too much time on the field Saturday.
Olivet owned an edge of 14 and a half minutes in time of possession and ran for 442 yards in earning a 33-22 win over the Bulldogs. It is Olivet's first MIAA win since 2002.
Fullback Drew Nielsen charged through the Adrian defense for 251 yards on 35 attempts, including three touchdowns. Travis Sleight added two touchdown runs for the Comets, who led 33-6 midway through the third quarter. Twenty-one of Olivet's 24 first downs came on the ground.
Under the radar
The Great Lakes Region features four undefeated teams: Baldwin-Wallace, Mount Union, Washington and Jefferson and Wooster. But there's a fifth team that is unbeaten against Division III foes: Alma.
The Scots improved to 5-1 overall and 3-0 in the MIAA Saturday with a 35-14 victory at Tri-State. Alma is 5-0 against Division III teams as the Scots' lone loss came against Division II Tiffin on Sept. 25. Against Tri-State, Alma scored the final 35 points of the game after falling behind early, 14-0.
James Edington ran for a pair of touchdowns and finished the afternoon with 154 yards on 21 carries. He also caught four passes for Alma, which amassed 509 total yards and 31 first downs. Defensively, Brad Hovinga had three and a half sacks to lead Alma.
Despite being 5-0 against Division III teams, the Scots received a total of one (1) vote in this week's poll. Alma hosts struggling Kalamazoo this weekend.
11-year itch
Grove City junior free safety/kick returner Ross Trimmer became the first Wolverine to return a kickoff for a touchdown in 11 years Saturday against Washington and Jefferson.
Trimmer returned a third-quarter kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown, the longest kick return in Grove City history. Two weeks earlier, Trimmer returned an interception 100 yards for a score at Bethany.
In fact, three of the four longest plays in Grove City history have happened this year:
100 yards -- Ross Trimmer interception return for TD at Bethany, Oct. 2, 2004
95 yards -- Steve Lacinski pass to R.J. Bowers (more known for his running exploits) for TD at Kenyon, Sept. 6, 1997
94 yards -- Aaron Margo interception return for TD vs. Manchester, Sept. 4, 2004
93 yards -- Ross Trimmer kickoff return for TD at Wash. and Jeff., Oct. 16, 2004
Despite Trimmer's long return and a third-quarter interception, Washington and Jefferson rolled to a 56-14 win over the Wolverines on Saturday at Cameron Stadium. The Presidents became the first team in the Great Lakes Region to reach 7-0 as receiver Aaron Krepps caught four touchdown passes from fellow junior Chris Edwards.
Krepps finished the day with nine catches for 144 yards while Edwards was 21-of-28 for 277 yards. Defensively, the Presidents sacked Grove City quarterbacks six times, led by two and a half from Erick Shreve. The Presidents play winless Bethany this weekend in a game that will likely not merit "Game to Watch" status this week.
Hard-chargin' Tartans
Carnegie Mellon continued its midseason turnaround with a 17-7 win over Chicago in the UAA opener for both squads Saturday in Pittsburgh. The Tartans have won three in a row and are now 4-2 overall. Carnegie Mellon limited the Maroons to 78 rushing yards and forced five Chicago turnovers.
Elsewhere in the UAA, Case Western Reserve fell at Washington (Mo.), 28-14, demoting the Spartans to 3-4 overall.
Around the MIAA
Dustin Louwaert ran for 131 yards on 32 attempts in helping Albion down Kalamazoo, 33-6. ... Quarterback Steve Wasil threw two touchdown passes for the Britons and also ran for a 14-yard touchdown. ... Hope got 120 yards rushing from David Booko while wide receiver Jake Schrock found the end zone twice in Hope's 48-14 win at Wisconsin Lutheran. ... Hope also scored on a blocked punt and returned a fumble for a touchdown on the final play of the game.
Around the NCAC
Defending NCAC champion Allegheny broke into the win column in conference play with a 42-9 victory over Kenyon. ... Mario Tarquinio ran for 216 yards and three touchdowns in the win for the Gators. ... Cisco Clervoix, a definite pick for the All-Name team, helped lead Ohio Wesleyan's defensive effort in a 35-6 win over Denison. ... Clervoix had eight total tackles, a sack and also forced and recovered a fumble. ... For Denison, running back Phil Bouwhuis eclipsed the 2,000-yard mark for his career. ... Earlham improved to 2-2 in the NCAC with a 38-28 triumph over Oberlin. ... Quarterback Justin Rummell set an Earlham record with 427 passing yards on just 18 attempts. That's an average of 24 yards per completion! ... Wittenberg receiver Jered Glover extended his consecutive games with a catch streak to 28 games. ... The Tigers had no trouble with Hiram, winning 74-0. Tyler Harmon ran for three touchdowns as Wittenberg led 54-0 at halftime.
Around the OAC
Rocky Pentello threw for a season-high 391 yards as Capital whacked Muskingum, 47-21. ... Pentello threw to 10 different receivers in the victory. ... Matt Freisner caught eight passes for 109 yards. ... Otterbein said goodbye to Memorial Stadium Saturday with a 34-17 home loss to Ohio Northern. The Cardinals will play their final two games at Westerville South High School. ... Otterbein had to use third-string quarterback Paul Steltzer due to injury. ... ONU quarterback Corey Minnfield threw for 268 yards and three touchdowns in the win. It is the Polar Bears' 15th straight win over the Redbirds. ... Anthony Fanelli intercepted two Wilmington passes to help John Carroll down the Quakers 20-10. ... Wilmington had just 48 yards in the second half.
Around the PAC
Westminster avoided an upset on Homecoming, holding off winless Bethany 27-21. ... Bethany's Milton Joyner caught 13 passes for 168 yards against the Titans. ... Westminster's Scott Froelich ran for 249 yards on 34 carries. ... Westminster plays at Thiel Saturday. ... Thiel hasn't beaten Westminster since 1950.
Games to Watch
Capital (5-1, 4-1 OAC) at Baldwin-Wallace (6-0, 5-0 OAC), 1:30 p.m.: It is Professor Appreciation Day at Baldwin-Wallace. That's not the only reason this game makes the list, though. ... Capital's Pool C hopes hang in the balance as the Crusaders visit Berea. ... Baldwin-Wallace can stay in contention for an outright OAC crown with a victory at Finnie Stadium. ... B-W hosts Mount Union the following week, which is about as rugged a fortnight as you can get at this level in the regular season.
Mount Union (6-0, 5-0 OAC) at Ohio Northern (5-1, 4-1 OAC), 1:30 p.m.: The Polar Bears, under the guidance of Mount Union alum Dean Paul, have been unstoppable at brand-new Dial-Roberson Stadium. Mount Union has been quite impressive in stadiums new and old as the Purple Raiders have won 100 straight regular season games. Ohio Northern has one loss already. Can a two-loss team get a Pool C bid? Chances are very slim, so this game becomes that much more important for Ohio Northern.
Wabash (5-1, 3-1 NCAC) at Wittenberg (5-1, 3-0 NCAC), 1:00 p.m.: Like the first two games, there are definite playoff implications here. Wittenberg's loss in the opener against Capital has damaged the Tigers' possible Pool C hopes; the automatic qualifier is their most likely path to the playoffs. Wabash has to bounce back from last week's tough loss at home to Wooster.
Carnegie Mellon (4-2, 1-0 UAA) at Washington, Mo. (4-3, 2-0 UAA): In what is more or less the UAA title game, CMU looks to extend its win streak to four. The UAA has just four football members so a CMU win would give the Tartans the head-to-head tiebreaker over Washington. It would also keep CMU's somewhat faint Pool B hopes alive.
