By Ryan Briggs
Grove City SID
Older readers (and by "older," I mean those 25 and above) will probably remember the old "Fantastic Finish" clips that would play during the two-minute warning of NFL games on Sunday afternoons. Last weekend, the Great Lakes Region produced a number of games that would have qualified for that regrettably defunct late afternoon feature.
Kenyon and Wittenberg each earned last-second wins in their respective North Coast Athletic Conference openers. Hope and visiting Albion swapped the lead five times Saturday before the Dutchmen held on for a 24-21 home win in each squad's MIAA lidlifter.
Meanwhile, a missed extra point with 24 seconds left in the fourth quarter helped Grove City slip past Westminster, 21-20.
Lightning forced Mount Union and Heidelberg to wait until Sunday while meningitis precautions delayed Ohio Northern and Otterbein's clash for a day. Not surprisingly, the home team won each game as Mount Union prevailed 58-0 and ONU secured a 26-0 decision.
Better late than never
Wittenberg ran for just 142 yards Saturday at Wooster. Yet, 74 of those yards came on the Tigers' final drive as Wittenberg pulled out a 24-21 win over its archrival at John Papp Stadium.
Wooster appeared to be on its way to salting away the win as the Scots drove to the Wittenberg 24 with less than seven minutes left. However, Dustin Sheppard fumbled at the 25 and Wittenberg recovered.
Despite struggling to run the ball for much of the afternoon, Wittenberg moved 74 yards on 13 carries to paydirt. Tristan Murray, who ran for 146 yards on 32 carries, gained 55 yards on the final drive. His 1-yard scoring run with 45 seconds left put the Tigers ahead to stay.
Murray's 1-yard run in the second quarter gave Wittenberg a 10-7 lead. He also hauled in a 23-yard touchdown pass in the closing moments of the second quarter as the Tigers led 17-7 at the break.
Wittenberg's defense was much-maligned early in the season. However, the Tigers limited Wooster to just 62 rushing yards. Wittenberg also sacked Justin Schafer four times and forced a pair of turnovers.
More importantly, it is Wittenberg's second straight win after a rough opening fortnight. Based on this victory, it is pretty safe to assume that the Tigers will be a factor in the NCAC race this year.
Rothschild's play
Kenyon kicker Chad Rothschild booted a 16-yard (yes, 16) field goal with six seconds left to give the Lords a wild 44-42 victory against winless Ohio Wesleyan (0-5, 0-2) at Selby Field Saturday in Delaware, Ohio.
Moments earlier, Ohio Wesleyan surged ahead on Steve Hymes' 23-yard touchdown pass to Zach Dennis with 60 seconds left. Jason Whitcomb's PAT gave OWU a 42-41 lead. However, Kenyon's Carlin Shoemaker returned the kickoff to the Bishops' 23, allowing the Lords to eventually set up for the game-winning kick.
Kenyon running back Alby Coombs ran for 207 yards and four touchdowns while quarterback Rafael Sanchez completed 12 of 15 attempts for 142 yards and a pair of scores. Sanchez also ran for 112 yards on 17 carries.
Hymes ran for 174 yards and threw for an additional 124 yards. It is the third time this year that Ohio Wesleyan has lost after holding the lead in the final 10 seconds of the game.
Overcoming obstacles
Hope committed four turnovers but still managed to claim a 24-21 home win over Albion in each squad's MIAA opener. Twice, Albion drove deep into Hope territory in the final five minutes but could not score. A 28-yard field goal attempted drifted to the right with 2:08 left.
Following a Hope punt, the Britons drove to the Hope 25 but time expired. The game featured five lead changes.
Hope's Doug VanEerden pulled in a pair of touchdown passes from Jake Manning, including a 25-yarder with 7:45 left in the game that gave Hope the lead. VanEerden caught a game-high seven passes.
Striking Gold
Baldwin-Wallace won the Cuyahoga Gold Bowl for the 10th time in 18 meetings with John Carroll Saturday as B-W earned a 24-8 home win. Brandon Hedges ran for three touchdowns to help lift B-W to the win.
While B-W excelled on the ground offensively, the Yellow Jacket defense fared even better. B-W held John Carroll to minus-21 yards on 20 attempts. Baldwin-Wallace also recorded five sacks.
Sunday drivers
Both Mount Union and Ohio Northern had to wait until Sunday to earn home shutout victories in OAC play. Lightning postponed the Heidelberg-Mount Union game from Saturday night until Sunday afternoon. Ultimately, the Purple Raiders prevailed, 58-0.
Three hours west in Ada, Ohio Northern rolled to a 26-0 home win against Otterbein. On Friday, an Otterbein player was diagnosed with meningitis, so for precautionary reasons, the Saturday game was pushed back to Sunday.
Despite having to wait approximately 18 hours to play, Mount Union showed no ill effects from the Saturday night postponement. The Purple Raiders rolled up 557 total yards, including 126 rushing yards from Nate Kmic.
"We really met our goals offensively (Sunday)," Purple Raider head coach Larry Kehres said. "To this point in the season, we're very pleased with what we've seen."
Like Mount Union, which has not allowed a point in 10 quarters, Ohio Northern's defense also tossed a shutout Sunday afternoon. The Polar Bears limited Otterbein to two first downs, minus-5 yards rushing and 60 total yards.
Standout defensive end Jason Trusnik helped lead the ONU defensive charge with three quarterback sacks. Offensively, R.J. Meadows ran for 107 yards and two touchdowns.
Mount Union will host Ohio Northern Saturday. More on that titanic clash in a bit.
Twenty-Seven year itch
Grove City toppled Westminster for the first time since 1979 Saturday as the Wolverines escaped with a 21-20 home win over Westminster.
The Titans scored with just 24 seconds left as Kevin Franz tossed a 5-yard touchdown pass to Brian Becker. However, kicker Fred Romeo pushed the PAT to the right. Romeo had been perfect on kicks this season, including a game-winning field goal against Adrian the week before.
Grove City freshman quarterback Andrew DiDonato threw a pair of touchdown passes and ran for a third score. His 2-yard touchdown run with 2:42 left in the game gave Grove City the lead.
Westminster had won 10 straight against Grove City, including a 14-13 win in 2005. Last year, a missed extra point eventually doomed the Wolverines in that game.
Not standing Pat
Olivet's renowned running game resurfaced Saturday as the Comets grinded out a 19-6 victory at Wisconsin Lutheran.
Fullback Pat Clasgens charged for 248 yards on 40 attempts, including a third-quarter touchdown that helped seal the Olivet victory.
As a team, Olivet (2-2, 1-0 MIAA) piled up 315 rushing yards and 504 total yards. Quarterback Robert White completed 11 of 14 attempts for 159 yards and a pair of touchdowns for Olivet.
Quaker 'Otte'
Wilmington safety Chad Otte had a sack and an interception to help lead the Quakers to a 20-0 home win against Muskingum on Sunday. It is Wilmington's first shutout since 2001.
Senior quarterback Dustin Strayer came off the bench to throw for 261 yards and a touchdown. Brandon Hiatt caught seven passes for 101 yards for Wilmington, which picked up its first win of the season.
Turn back the clock
Allegheny is 3-1 for the first time in nine years after a 23-6 win over Denison in each program's NCAC opener.
Quarterback Jimmy Savage completed passes to 10 different receivers. He threw for 293 yards in the win. Current Gator coach Mark Matlak fell from seventh to eighth on the school's all-time rushing list, however, as senior Mario Tarquinio passed him. Matlak is a 1978 Allegheny alum.
Allegheny last opened a season 3-1 in 1997, in Ken O'Keefe's final year as head coach. O'Keefe moved on to become head coach at Fordham for one year. He is now offensive coordinator at Iowa.
Drive for five
Carnegie Mellon became the first Great Lakes Region team to reach 5-0 with a 50-26 victory over Colorado College Saturday night.
The Tartans ran for 383 yards as two backs went over the century mark. Hard-charging fullback Travis Sivek ran for 184 yards on 29 carries while halfback Robert Gimson added 119 yards and three touchdowns.
Despite its 5-0 record, Carnegie Mellon is still relatively under the radar. Comparing scores is usually dangerous, but Colorado College provides at least a little frame of reference. CC lost at Occidental, 48-34, Sept. 18. Oxy is ranked 11th in this week's D3football.com poll. CMU is one of five teams receiving six voter points.
Around the MIAA
Alma stormed out to a 41-0 lead in the second quarter and cruised to a 58-36 win at Tri-State. Josh Brehm fired five touchdown passes, three of which went to Joe Cline. Brehm went 29 of 38 for 424 yards while Cline had nine catches for 162 yards. Tri-State chewed up 317 yards on the ground, led by Nick Garvie's 126-yard effort. ... Adrian fell behind 14-0 at home in the second quarter but charged back for a 35-14 win over Kalamazoo in the first MIAA game at Performance Stadium. Troy Niblock sealed the win with a 91-yard touchdown run with 4:50 left in the game.
Around the NCAC
Wabash is 2-0 in the NCAC after rolling to a 48-15 win over the NCAC's other Hoosier State entry, Earlham. It is the Little Giants' 10th consecutive conference win. ... R.V. Carroll's 213-yard effort helped Oberlin ease past Hiram, 28-14. Zach Warner's interception return for touchdown in the third quarter helped break a 14-14 tie.
Around the OAC
Capital quarterback Rocky Pentello went over the 10,000-yard mark for his career Saturday, throwing for 333 yards in the Crusaders' 52-10 win over Marietta. Pentello now has 10,140 passing yards. He is the third OAC quarterback to reach five figures in passing. Capital led 24-10 entering the fourth period.
Around the PAC
Thiel grabbed an early 13-0 lead en route to a 49-7 win at Bethany. Cornerback Steve Boyle returned an interception 32 yards for a touchdown less than 40 seconds into the game. Dan Hess led Thiel with 121 rushing yards while Boyle finished with two picks. ... Waynesburg played near-flawless football in a 23-16 win over Thomas More at John F. Wiley Stadium. Waynesburg did not commit a penalty or a turnover. The Yellow Jackets also forced three turnovers and limited the Saints to 30 rushing yards.
Games of the Week
Ohio Northern at Mount Union, 1:30 p.m.: Each team is operating on a bit of a short week after playing on Sunday. That shouldn't be a problem for either of these two well-coached programs.
Ohio Northern, as you probably know, earned a 21-14 win at Mount Union last year. Still the Purple Raiders recovered to win the national title. This may be Mount Union's biggest obstacle to another undefeated regular season, although Capital could have something to say about that.
Washington & Jefferson at Thiel, 1:30 p.m.: Thiel hosts Washington & Jefferson in a rematch of an overtime classic from last year. In 2005, Thiel rallied for a 38-35 overtime win at historic Cameron Stadium.
Thiel was a slight preseason favorite over the Presidents in the PAC's preseason poll. The Tomcats are coming off a 49-7 win at Thiel last Saturday while W&J has won three straight. These are the last two PAC champions. The winner will obviously have an inside track to the league title.
Allegheny at Wabash, 1 p.m.: Wabash hosts Allegheny in a clash of 3-1 teams. Given the unpredictable nature of the NCAC, the loser is certainly not eliminated. Wabash is already 2-0 and a win would give the Giants a one and a half-game lead on Allegheny.
Adrian at Olivet, 6 p.m.: After re-discovering its ground game last week, Olivet looks to maintain a share of first place in the MIAA. The winner of this game could potentially end up as the only team above .500 in the league at the midpoint of the season. Each team is currently 2-2 overall.
