MINNEAPOLIS -- Quarterback Ayrton Scott (FY, Minneapolis, Minn./Southwest HS) rushed for 143 yards and passed for 259 yards and four touchdowns, as the Augsburg College football team scored a 48-17 victory over St. John's University in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game on Saturday afternoon at Edor Nelson Field.
After last season's 32-31 victory over the Johnnies in Collegeville, Minn., Augsburg (4-1 overall, 3-1 MIAC) claimed back-to-back victories over St. John's in the series for the first time since winning three games in a row from 1927 to 1929. Augsburg improved to 4-1 on the season for the second year in a row and the third time in the last five seasons.
Augsburg outgained St. John's (2-4 overall, 0-4 MIAC) by a 587-238 margin in the game -- the most yards of total offense for Augsburg in a single game since recording 615 yards in a 44-38 win over Gustavus on Oct. 27, 2007. The 31-point margin of victory was the most for Augsburg in the all-time series against St. John's, a series the Johnnies lead 63-9-2.
Scott completed 18-of-27 passes for 259 yards and four touchdowns against two interceptions, while rushing 25 times for 144 yards. Scott has now thrown 17 touchdown passes this season, and has thrown three or more touchdown passes in each of his five collegiate games. Entering the game as the MIAC's rushing leader, he now has 1,831 yards of total offense this season (751 rushing yards, 1,080 passing yards), an average of 366.2 yards per-game.
Trailing 10-7 early in the second quarter, Augsburg scored 41 unanswered points, eventually taking a 48-10 lead late in the fourth quarter. Jerise Washington (SO, Roseville, Minn./Mounds View HS) and Adam Carl (JR, Eagan, Minn.) each scored two touchdowns during the Auggie scoring run.
Washington rushed for a career-high 140 yards on 19 carries, while catching five passes for 74 yards. Carl had six catches for 75 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing for a 25-yard touchdown on a reverse in the third quarter. Tyler Swanson (JR, Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North HS), Wesley Waytashek (SR, Little Falls, Minn.) and Waylon Hartwick (SR, Minneapolis, Minn./South HS) also caught touchdown passes for the Auggies.
The Johnnies opened the scoring after James Obler (SR, Marshall, Minn.) blocked an Augsburg punt and recovered it at the Augsburg 9-yard line. Four plays later, quarterback Nick Martin (FY, Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata HS) rushed for a six-yard touchdown with 4:14 left in the first quarter.
Augsburg tied the game on its next drive, as a six-play, 75-yard drive was capped by a 30-yard touchdown pass from Scott to Waytashek. The Johnnies took the lead again early in the second quarter, as Jimmie Mattson (SR, Eau Claire, Wis./Memorial HS) kicked a 45-yard field goal. But Augsburg took the lead to stay on its next drive, a 12-play, 58-yard march that was completed on Scott's two-yard touchdown pass to Waytashek with 7:23 left in the second quarter.
Augsburg marched 80 yards in just 56 seconds on its final drive of the first half, capped on a 20-yard touchdown pass from Scott to Carl, Carl's seventh touchdown reception of the season, with 20 seconds left in the quarter to give the Auggies a 21-10 lead.
Augsburg expanded on the lead in the second half, as a nine-play, 65-yard drive was capped with a 25-yard scoring run by Carl with 6:59 left in the third quarter. Carl took a reverse from Scott and appeared to be in position to throw a pass, but instead ran around several Johnnie defenders to score.
The Auggies scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Washington capped a nine-play, 60-yard drive with a five-yard rushing touchdown with 13:48 left, and after a snap on a Johnnie punt attempt hit one of the up-men at the Johnnie 23-yard line, the Auggies scored on the next play. Scott completed a 23-yard pass to Swanson with 12:21 left in the game. The Auggies' final score came after a seven-play, 46-yard drive, capped on Washington's four-yard scoring run.
St. John's completed the scoring with a nine-yard touchdown pass from Martin to Wade Powers (SR, Hawick, Minn./New London-Spicer HS) with 4:08 left in the game.
Swanson caught three passes for 44 yards in the game, while Hakeem Bourne-McFarlane (JR, Bloomington, Minn./Kennedy HS) -- playing on both sides of the football as a defensive back and wide receiver -- caught two passes for 34 yards. He also had five tackles, including one for loss, and an interception on defense.
For St. John's, Stephen Johnson gained 49 yards on 14 carries, becoming the ninth Johnnie to rush for 2,000 career yards in program history. He now has 2,023 career rushing yards on 467 carries. Johnson also caught four passes for 48 yards, while Powers had three receptions for 37 yards. Mitch Hendricks (FY, Bemidji, Minn.) rushed six times for 32 yards.
Defensively, Bryce Vee (SR, Coon Rapids, Minn./Blaine HS) had seven tackles (two solo) and a fumble recovery for the Auggies, while Enrico Barrozo (JR, Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong HS) had six tackles (three solo) and a half sack with Chris DeVet (SO, Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View HS). Denzel Anderson (FY, Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong HS) also had a sack in the game.
For St. John's, Kevin Wenner (SR, St. Cloud, Minn./Cathedral HS) had nine tackles (seven solo) and an interception, while Taylor Dammermann (SR, Spicer, Minn./New London-Spicer HS) had nine tackles (five solo) and a forced fumble. Darryl Williams (JR, Hawthorne, Calif./Verbum Dei HS) and Maze Thompson (SO, Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View HS) had eight tackles apiece.
Both teams return to MIAC play next Saturday (10/13) at 1 p.m., as Augsburg plays at St. Olaf and St. John's hosts Carleton.