Wheaton, Ill – The Wheaton College football team (10-1) hosted Mount St. Joseph University (9-2) in the First Round of the NCAA Division III Football Playoffs on Saturday at McCully Stadium, with the Thunder earning a 41-34 victory against the Lions. The Thunder move onto the Second Round of the playoffs facing UW–Whitewater next Saturday at noon. The NCAA will announce the location next Saturday's matchup tomorrow.
The game saw four lead changes today. Wheaton led 41-34 for a MSJ drive that started with 3:17 remaining in the fourth quarter. On fourth-and-seven, Mount St. Joseph lined up its own 34-yard line. The Thunder defense gained a one-yard sack by Isaac, but more importantly the Lions turned the ball over on downs and Wheaton was able to run out the clock for the victory. Senior Jaden Ferlita, noted of the Thunder defense and specifically his defensive line, "For the last play of that drive, they took me out of the game and put Gage [Autry], Isaac [Parrish], and Peter [Johanik] on the line. The blitz was called, and I knew Peter could run it. I was excited to see them finish. They did what they needed to do."
The Wheaton offense put up 564 yards of total offense today on 88 plays, as the Thunder averaged 6.4 yards per play in the game. The Thunder ran for 302 yards and passed for 262 yards. The Lions had 426 yards of total offense, with 239 rushing yards and 187 passing yards.
All-American running back Giovanni Weeks led the Thunder on offense as he amassed 38 of Wheaton's 51 carries, as he ran for 256 rushing yards with four touchdown runs. After the game Weeks noted, "As the game progressed you have to lean into our O-line. We have some really good players up front. I have a lot of trust in those guys. Honestly, a lot of times, you just have to slow down and trust that they are going to open up the games for me to run through."
Thunder quarterback Ben Thorson (Wheaton Academy) completed 20 out of his 34 passes with one touchdown on the day, as he threw for 262 yards. Seth Kortenhoeven (Wheaton North) caught six passes today, for 104 yards. Ben Bonga caught eight passes for 54 yards and one touchdown reception.
Linebackers Caleb McClung, Johnny Eller, and Lawson Haigler each made six total tackles for the Thunder defensively. Parrish led the Thunder with 1-1/2 tackles for loss (-2 yards). Ferlita had two passes broken up on the day.
Head Coach Jesse Scott said of his team, "I want to reiterate how proud I am of the men that are in this locker room as football players and who they are beyond it. I don't know if people are aware of the demands we have on our players. We challenge them. We want them to be the best they can be on the field that they possibly can be. They are at a rigorous academic institution that puts a lot of demands in front of them. What distinguishes Wheaton is the opportunity to do that in an environment that is Christ centered. That changes the nature of what occurs in our locker rooms. I am proud of how these guys carry themselves in that context."
Freshman Brady Pierce impressed for the Mount St. Joseph defense as he made a school record 21 total tackles, including three tackles for loss (-7 yards), and he forced a fumble.
The Lions had a potent rushing attack with two players gaining more than 100 yards on the ground. Mariano McKenzie ran for 109 yards on 15 carries with two touchdowns. Quarterback Josh Taylor ran for 103 yards on 14 carries, with two touchdown runs. Taylor completed 14 of his 28 passing attempts, with 187 yards through the air. Joey Newton caught seven passes for the Lions, for 111 yards.
The Lions took an early 7-0 lead as McKenzie capped off MSJ's opening drive with a 62-yard touchdown run with 13:26 remaining in the first quarter. A Wheaton fumble on the kickoff to open the ensuing drive was recovered by MSJ to give the hosts the ball at the Thunder 31-yard line to start the drive. Four plays later, Taylor threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Cornell Beachem, Jr., and the Lions led 14-0 with 12:25 remaining in the first quarter. Wheaton responded on the next drive as Weeks ran for 47 of Wheaton's 57 yards on the drive. The drive concluded with a 23-yard touchdown run for Weeks as he cut the MSJ lead to 14-7 with 7:04 remaining in the first quarter.
The Thunder defense forced the Lions to punt on the next MSJ offensive drive. The Wheaton offense then marched the ball down the field as Weeks reached the end zone on a 20-yard touchdown run that tied the game at 14-14 with 13:34 remaining in the second quarter, following the PAT. The Lions responded on their next drive as Taylor reached the end zone on a 46-yard touchdown run to give the guests a 21-14 lead with 11:27 remaining in the second quarter. Weeks scored on a 48-yard touchdown run in Wheaton's next possession as the Thunder tied the game with 9:23 remaining in the first half. The Lions were forced to punt on their next possession and Wheaton got the ball with 5:19 left in the first half. Wheaton put together an 80-yard drive over 14 plays that culminated with a six-yard touchdown pass from Thorson to Bonga. Wheaton led the Lions 28-21 at halftime thanks to the Bonga touchdown catch.
Wheaton received the opening kickoff of the second half and concluded its first offensive possession of the third quarter with a 31-yard field goal by Mateo Jesch that increased Wheaton's lead to 31-21. Mount St. Joseph turned the ball over on downs on its first possession of the second half, however, a Wheaton interception on the Wheaton drive that followed gave the ball back to the Lions at the MSJ 40-yard line. Six plays later, McKenzie reached the end zone on a nine-yard run to cut Wheaton's lead to 31-28 with 8:50 remaining in the fourth quarter. A Wheaton fumble on the ensuing drive gave the Lions the ball at the Wheaton 50-yard line. Taylor capped off the drive that followed with a two-yard touchdown run, however the guests were unable to convert the PAT kick that followed and MSJ led 34-31 with 3:36 left in the third quarter.
Wheaton effectively moved the ball on its next possession and Jesch kicked a 33-yard field goal that tied the game at 34-34 with 13:21 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Wheaton defense again forced the Lions to punt on their next possession. Wheaton moved the ball to the Lions' 23 and on fourth down, the Thunder went for it and Weeks broke free for 15-yard run that gave the hosts first-and-goal at the MSJ eight-yard line. On the very next play, Weeks reached the end zone on an eight-yard touchdown run to give the Thunder a 41-34 lead with 7:59 remaining in the game. The next MSJ drive concluded when Ferlita batted the ball in the air on a MSJ pass and it was intercepted by Gage Autry to stall the guests' drive. Wheaton punted on its next drive, and the Lions' drive that followed concluded with Parrish's sack of Taylor.