By Ryan Tipps
D3sports.com

ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. -- The tricky thing about hype is that you're expected to live up to it. And N.C. Wesleyan and Widener met for the first time Saturday each with their own baggage of high aspirations. 

The Pride, as it turned out, were able to draw first blood and earn the lion's share of momentum early in the season. Widener has taken advantage of the conference departures of Juniata and Susquehanna to schedule the kinds of games it wants. And for coach David Wood, the more challenging, the better. 

"We're going to play anybody in the country," Wood said Saturday after winning 27-17. "We're going to line up, as long as we can afford to travel, we're going to go there."

Andre Payton was one of three Widener players who combined for 107 yards on 33 carries. Photo by Ryan Tipps, D3sports.com

Several Mid-Atlantic teams in addition to Widener have chosen this higher ground in nonconference play. Wilkes has been on a bumpy road that has left the team 0-2. CNU split its challenging first two games and has an undefeated Salisbury to battle against next weekend. Delaware Valley and N.C. Wesleyan each has buckled so far under a tough schedule.

But in Wood's eyes, even stumbling in the early games pays off later.

"You've got to get better in your nonconference schedule so that when you roll into your conference, you're ready to go." He said even if you start 0-3, "It's a little bit tough, but if you still win your conference, you're in the national playoffs. And by Week 12 or Week 13, you're playing good football teams, and you've got to play good football teams on the road."

And it was on the road Saturday that the Pride was able to grasp every Bishop flaw and exploit it. Early in the game, baking under the hot sun with the parched grass crunching beneath their feet, the Pride pounced on a fumble and a blocked punt, turning those mistakes into 14 quick points.

"We preach special teams," the coach said. "If you take a look at those blocked punts and those big turnovers, and if we do a little bit in the second half and punch in what we should, it's probably even a little more lopsided."

As the game pressed on, Widener missed opportunities to put points on the board after two drives stalled about 30 yards from the end zone. And that was when Widener's biggest weakness poked through. The Pride wore down as the minutes ticked away on the clock, and N.C. Wesleyan continued to apply pressure on both sides of the ball. "We were a little bit tired in the second half. We didn't take advantage of it," Wood noted.

Despite the Bishops' energy throughout the game, the team was ruined by sporadic play. From quarterback to receiver, NCW failed to play smart football, the kind you would expect from a team with several veteran players, most notably Cedric Townsend. Only seven points down in the fourth quarter, Townsend, who had barely cracked 100 yards passing and had been intercepted twice, was replaced by Josh Dunigan, who showed the leadership expected of a senior signal-caller. Still, though Dunigan made fewer errors, he also wasn't the playmaker Townsend has the potential to be, and N.C. Wesleyan remained scoreless for most of the second half.

Offensive leadership wasn't a concern for Widener. The team's greatest asset was a quarterback who understood the intricacies of timing. Matt Campbell was able to connect for 169 passing yards and help the team go 4-for-5 in the red zone. His composure and ability to avoid tacklers stood out. He's the definition of poise.

"Matt, our senior quarterback, has really taken off," Wood said. "He's reading coverage. He does a lot of prereads on the line of scrimmage. We now have a check system, and he's making all the checks. We've never really had that before."

In addition to being able to connect through the air, Widener is using some young players to nurture a run offense, as well. And in that department, history is on their side.

"You take a look at the very good Widener football teams ... we were able to run the football," said Wood, a former player and longtime assistant coach who is now in his fifth year at the helm. "We always had the great quarterbacks, we always had the great skill kids, but we were (also) always able to run the football.

"Our games, our losses in the last couple of years ... we were just unable to run the football in the fourth quarter."

With the MAC struggling so far this season, Widener's win right out of the gate against a strong regional team has the team energized for the season and is sending a message to opponents.

Wood would like nothing better than to be back in the national spotlight. "Widener is always a national program, and we have to get back in the national playoffs."

To rejoin the national stage, Wood knows there's one sure way to get there: "You gotta play the best if you expect to be the best."

So, where does this leave NCW?

Does two losses in as many games put the nail in the coffin for the Battling Bishops? Of course not. The automatic qualifier is still very much up for grabs in the USA South, and Christopher Newport's hefty loss last weekend shows that that team is on a performance seesaw. As a "see," the Captains can knock off a Top 10 team and lay the groundwork for some positive momentum. As a "saw," well, they get trampled on by an opponent who racks up almost 400 yards on the ground.

N.C. Wesleyan isn't, nor ever has been, on the same level of Mary Hardin-Baylor. The Texas team is a beast all its own. But NCW can still give Christopher Newport solid competition when they meet late next month. CNU -- not unlike UMHB this past weekend -- will have revenge on its mind. But if the Battling Bishops can keep their gunslinging and turnovers in check, it'll be close.

Wesley gets passed around

For two weeks now, nationally ranked Wesley has eked out wins against Mid-Atlantic opponents. In Week 1, N.C. Wesleyan failed to hold onto its lead in a 34-31 heartbreaker. This past weekend, Wesley rallied from a 21-7 deficit in the fourth quarter to earn another three-point win, this time against Delaware Valley. The question is whether the Wolverines are going to walk away with a clean sweep of the region. Next weekend, Wesley travels to Chester, Pa., to line up against MAC front-runner Widener. The Pride, high off a big win this weekend, has the opportunity to end the mid-Atlantic slide against a Wesley team that hasn't shown the same dominance it did last season. In the first seven games of 2007, no team came within 20 points of the Wolverines. That hasn't been the case this year, and with some preparation and conditioning, Widener can see to it that Wesley walks away with its first regular season loss since October 2005.

Whew, got that out of the way

Bridgewater fans can breathe a sigh of relief: The Eagles have gotten their token nonconference slip-up out of the way. "Slip-up," you ask? Remember those opening day losses to McDaniel in 2004 and 2005? And that overtime win against last year against Ferrum, a team that finished the season with a 2-7 record? I call those slip-ups. This year, Shenandoah was hanging with Bridgewater by just seven points going into the fourth quarter. This is the Shenandoah team that has gone 3-17 in its past two seasons and that lost to Catholic last week. For a team that has followed two conference titles with two stale seasons, Shenandoah showed that defense will be the team's backbone this fall -- and probably its saving grace in some games. As for the Eagles, they are likely over their nonconference hump. The slate of Old Dominion games will be here soon enough. 

Just shy of a hundred

Josh Vogelbach has already shown this year that he likes to put points on the board, and he and Guilford didn't disappoint on Saturday with 50. However, the surprise came from the Methodist Monarchs, who nearly matched Guilford by putting 47 points of their own on the scoreboard. A rough second quarter for Methodist saw the team's 20-7 lead evaporate going into halftime. Though the end result was similar (Guilford has 498 total yards; Methodist 412), each team found its own way to get there. The Quakers took to the air with 411 yards passing while Methodist pounded it out on the ground with 218 yards rushing. The resulting 97 points was sure to have been an exciting sight.

The deuce is wild

Maryville has done something it hasn't been able to do in more than two decades: start the season 2-0. Defense helped keep Centre in check as the Fighting Scots pushed to a 22-15 win against their rival. The last time Maryville opened its year this well was in 1985, and this weekend's win comes against a team that has dominated Maryville in recent years.

The potpourri file

Moravian logged the first Centennial win in its history with a 43-17 trouncing of McDaniel. The performance earned weekly honors for three Greyhound players: Andrew Morrissey on defense, Brian Reckenbeil on special teams and Morgan deRouen on offense.

Despite a sluggish opening week, Hampden-Sydney's new man under center helped light up Gettysburg in a 54-7 win. Cory Sedlar, who is filling in for returning starter Craig Warnement, went 23-for-34 passing, with 258 yards. Warnement is sure to be back this season, and the ensuing position battle will be interesting. I suspect that, despite having to make tough choices, few coaches would complain about having two capable athletes at quarterback.

Washington and Lee's defense proved it has returned this year as the Generals pinned Franklin and Marshall to just 122 total yards and no points.

In a mess of lightning delays, Wilkes dropped its second game of the season to a tough opponent. Montclair State edged out the 14-7 victory in front of 1,200 fans at Ralston Field. Neither team's running game was able to slosh its way past the 100 yard mark. Things don't get any easier for the Colonels as they host Rowan next weekend. 

High five

The Around the Mid-Atlantic top teams:
1. CNU
2. Widener
3. Bridgewater
4. Ursinus
5. Delaware Valley

I struggled this week trying to line up the best teams in the region. I'm looking at No. 1, thinking that maybe CNU just fell into one of those lopsided matchups that can happen to even good teams. Next week against Salisbury will offer more certainty. And I know I'm probably reaching by adding Delaware Valley to my Top 5, but there have been few regional teams that have yet proven themselves impressive. 

That last ranked spot truely is a tossup. Albright had a big win over Kean on Saturday but lost bad in Week 1. N.C. Wesleyan showed up to play against Wesley in its opener but stumbled painfully against Widener. Wilkes has remained empty in the win column. 

The ODAC teams are compiling good records, but they are against the likes of Denison and Southern Virginia and McDaniel. Across the region, the one team that has edged up significantly is Dickinson. The Centennial often lacks that big-win potential that can draw national attention to a conference, such as those of Bridgewater, Wilkes or Christopher Newport. But the Red Devils' overtime win against Liberty League contender Hobart has boosted their profile considerably. It can be argued that Hobart is in somewhat of a down year, but if Dickinson can dominate the early part of its conference schedule, it won't be long before the team is on a more visible rung of the regional ladder.

At the head of the class

By grade level, here are the Mid-Atlantic's players of the week:
Freshman
Rich Barry, running back, Catholic: Compiled 60 yards on nine carries with a team that's not known for a solid run game.
Sophomore
Tanner Kelly, quarterback, Albright: Threw for 447 yards in a big win over Kean. Also connected with his receivers for four touchdowns and ran one in himself.
Junior
Brian Reckenbeil, kicker, Moravian: Tied his own school record with 11 points and became the third kicker in Moravian history to reach 100 career points.
Senior
Mike Hill, running back, Methodist: Ran for 186 yards and four touchdowns in the Monarch's 50-47 loss.

Not one, not two, but three games ...

Because of several high-level teams that dot the mid-Atlantic, there are many other squads that too often fly under the radar. Next weekend, I'm going to try to home in on them -- at least to an extent. I have an ambitious travel plan for Friday and Saturday, which starts by heading to Lancaster, Pa., to see Dickinson and Franklin & Marshall play Friday night under the lights. I'm then going to do a U-turn and head to Bridgewater to see the team take on visiting Ferrum. No doubt, I'll be sampling some barbecue and other goodies cooked up by Stone Station. Afterward, I'm going to wrap up the weekend with a night game at Shenandoah, where the Hornets will take on Albright.

None of these games have implications on a national scope, and to be truthful, they won't be a big factor on the regional scope either. That's OK. They don't have to be. Somewhere in there is just the pure experience of seeing football and taking in as much as you can. Lots of teams won't get seen this year, but this will be my opportunity to catch up on a couple of teams who may not always get noticed.

Contact me

I would be happy to hear from anyone who has questions or feedback regarding the Around the Mid-Atlantic column. Please write to me at ryan.tipps@d3sports.com. Or, if there is an idea you'd like to see me write about, I'm always open to hearing about that, too.