BETHANY, W.Va. -- The Presidents scored the final 34 points of the game in posting a 34-3 win at Bethany in Presidents' Athletic Conference action.
The victory keeps the Washington & Jefferson football team, ranked No. 18 by the American Football Coaches Association and No. 20 by D3football.com, undefeated at 6-0 on the season and 4-0 in the PAC. The Bison, who entered unblemished in the league, drop to 5-2 on the year, with both losses coming to national-ranked opponents (No. 3 Mount Union, Sept. 6, 58-7). Bethany also drops to 4-1 in the the conference.
W&J won the coin toss and deferred to the second half, kicking to the Bison to open the game. After forcing a punt, the third play from scrimmage for the Presidents was intercepted by Bethany's Aaron Frye at the 27 yard line and returned to the 15. Bethany moved the ball to the W&J two-yard line and were stopped on three-straight rushes, forcing a 20-yard field goal at the 10:17 mark of the first quarter, 3-0.
The Presidents quickly responded, needing just four plays and 53 seconds to cover 62 yards. The big play of the drive was a 27-yard reception by Michael Giampole, followed by a 14-yard rush by Ryan Ruffing and capped on a 17-yard pass from Pete Coughlin to Giampole. It was the eighth scoring drive under one minute of the season for W&J.
For the rest of the first quarter, the two teams traded possessions with nothing to show for it on the scoreboard. On the opening drive of the second quarter W&J forced a three-and-out that included a completion for minus-five yards to wide receiver Eric Blinn who then fumbled, which was forced by Jared Pratt, and dropped another five yards.
On the ensuing possession, W&J went 55 yards in 12 plays, six of which were rushes by Ruffing, before Coughlin found Daniel Lis from seven yards out to stretch the lead to 14-3 with 10:04 remaining in the half.
Another three-and-out led to a 14-play, 70-yard drive that finished with a Blake Davis 24-yard field goal, 17-3. Ruffing carried eight times on the drive.
The Bison put together their best offensive series of the game as the first half was drawing to a close, but Billy Kelley intercepted a Brian Vales pass at the goal line to end the drive and scoring threat. W&J took a knee to close out the half after the 21-yard return and took a 17-3 lead into the locker room.
Opening the second half, Ruffing carried the first four plays, picking up 54 yards on the ground before he eventually capped the drive by finding pay dirt from five yards out, 24-3.
The next six drives combined by both teams resulted in punts, including the first play of the fourth quarter, which was a 33-yard punt by Kevin Mechas that was downed at the Bethany two-yard line by Alec Schram. The first play of the drive resulted in a rush for no gain and the second was picked off at the four-yard line by Schram who walked into the end zone to give W&J the 31-3 lead with 14:18 to play.
The only other points in the contest were on a 27-yard field goal by Davis midway through the fourth quarter.
W&J's defense turned in a tremendous effort and for the second-straight week allowed its opponent just over 200 total yards. The Bison only managed to gain 69 total yards (29 passing) and two first downs in the second half. For the game, W&J held Bethany to just 232 yards on 142 passing and 90 rushing.
Pratt led W&J with 13 tackles (eight solo), 1.0 tackle for loss, a forced fumble and pass break-up.Bryce Merrill totaled 10 stops (six solo) with a TFL and break-up. Lucas Parrish collected nine tackles and W&J's only sack on the day. Schram had eight tackles and the pick-six, while Ryan Snedeker, Ryan Torrance and Dan Graziano each had seven stops and 1.0 TFL. Additionally, the Presidents limited Blinn, the NCAA Division III active career leader in receptions per game and receiving yards per game, to just seven catches and 37 yards.
On the day, Ruffing collected 157 yards on 37 rushes, making him just the second back to top 100 yards on Bethany's defense, which came in ranked second in the conference yielding only 119.2 rushing yards per game. It was his sixth-consecutive 100-yard rushing output. David Kincaidcarried 11 times for 75 yards.
Coughlin completed 19-of-26 passes for 200 yards and two touchdowns and just his second-career interception in nearly 300 pass attempts. Lis caught a game-high nine balls for and 63 yards and a score. Giampole snagged four receptions, totaling 59 yards with a TD.
The Presidents return home to host Case Western Reserve for Homecoming at Cameron Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 25. Kick-off is slated for 2 p.m.
No. 18/20 W&J thrashes Bethany, 34-3
/seasons/2014/boxscores/20141018_j7fs.xml
2014
Washington and Jefferson
34
Bethany
3
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 19 Washington and Jefferson (6-0) | 7 | 10 | 7 | 10 | 34 |
| Bethany (5-2) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Oct 18, 2014