Games of Sept. 21, 2002
Offense
QB Phil Butler, Jr., Hope
Butler completed 34 of 55 passes for 441 yards and five touchdowns in a 32-20 win against UW-Platteville.
OL Jay Seagreaves, Matt Mendola, Dickie Houck, Matt Juba, Andy Miller, Lycoming
Lycoming's line dominated Susquehanna, paving the way for the Warriors' rushing game to 336 yards and five touchdowns. Lycoming's backs averaged 6.7 yards per carry against the Crusaders. Jon Neve and Jared Morris, the Warriors' starting running backs, each gained more than 100 yards for the third consecutive game. The offensive line also did not allow a sack in 13 pass attempts (nine completions), including a pair of touchdown passes.
RB Rufus Wilkins, Fr., Thomas More
Wilkins had 26 carries for 253 yards sloppy field, 191 of them after halftime as Thomas More cruised from a 7-0 lead to a 26-7 win at Shenandoah. Wilkins started the second half with runs of 10, 25, 10 and 14 yards to spearhead a Saints scoring drive for one of his two touchdowns
RB Scott Froelich, So, Westminster (Pa.)
Froelich made 38 carries for 154 yards and a pair of touchdowns in a 24-21 win against Division II Mansfield, his second 100-yard game in a row.
WR Jim Raptis, Jr., Chicago
Junior wide receiver Jim Raptis set a pair of school records as the Maroons defeated Elmhurst 46-40. Raptis caught 17 passes for 270 yards, both school records, and three touchdowns. His 10-yard touchdown catch with 1:37 left in the game provided the margin of victory.
WR Jamarcus Shephard, So., DePauw
In his first collegiate start, Shephard caught 12 passes for 103 yards and a touchdown and also returned a kickoff 99 yards for a score in a 31-21 loss to Hanover.
WR Rich Gear, Sr., Delaware Valley
Gear became the first receiver in Aggie history to record back-to-back 200-yard receiving performances, catching eight passes for 201 yards. His two touchdowns, of 58 and 45 yards, came in the first quarter to give DVC a 14-7 lead beofre King's came back for the 50-14 victory.
Defense
DL Trevor Alexander, Sr., Capital
Alexander forced three fumbles with three quarterback sacks in three of Ohio Northern's first four possessions to allow Capital to take a 14-0 lead and go on to a 47-12 rout of the Polar Bears. He went on to record five total tackles, three solo.
DL Fred Taber, Sr., Juniata
Taber recorded a career-high four sacks and had two other tackles for loss. Taber also forced a fumble. He totaled seven tackles (five solo). His six tackles for loss moved the Albright offense back a total of 32 yards.
DL Ricky Vesce, So., William Paterson
In the finest game of his young career, Vesce was in on a career-high eight tackles (three solo), forced a fumble and added a quarterback hurry in William Paterson's 30-20 triumph over Plymouth State.
DL D'Andre Wilson, Sr., Howard Payne
Wilson recorded 10 total tackles, four for loss and a sack, in helping the Jacket defense not to allow Mississippi College a first down until the end of the second quarter in a 50-0 win.
LB John Lennox, Jr., Montclair State
Lennox helped Montclair State capture their first win of the season intercepting two passes and returning them both for touchdowns. His first pick was a 21-yard score that gave MSU at 6-0 lead in the first quarter. The second was a 22-yard return that made the lead 23-7. He finished with seven tackles (four solo) and broke up two more passes.
LB Casey Carlson, Jr., Pacific Lutheran
Carlson recorded seven tackles, including 2.5 sacks (minus-18 yards) and two other tackles for loss (minus-7), and returned a fumble 45 yards for a touchdown.
LB Chris Cubero, Sr., John Carroll
Cubero tallied 11 tackles (five solo), including a quarterback sack in a 40-0 blanking of Wilmington. Cubero also had an interception and forced a fumble.
DB Justin Daly, Sr., Ithaca
Daly broke up four passes, made four tackles, and broke up a two-point conversion to lead Ithaca to a one-point win against Hartwick. Daly made a touchdown-saving tackle at the Bombers’ 19-yard line on the final drive of the game and then broke up passes on three consecutive plays, including one in the end zone and one just shy of the goal line. The win was secured when Hartwick missed a field goal. Daly also knocked down a two-point conversion attempt after the Hawks scored their second touchdown.
DB Josh Vickerman, Jr., Concordia-Moorhead
Vickerman collected two interceptions and helped lead the Cobber defense in their 35-14 win at Bethel. Vickerman also had four tackles in the game, two for a loss and caused one fumble. In the secondary, besides his two interceptions, he had three pass breakups. On the day, Concordia's defense caused eight turnovers, and limited the Royals to 45 yards of rushing.
DB Bill Stone, Sr., Franklin & Marshall
Stone finished with 14 tackles (seven solo), broke up three passes and intercepted a pass to set up the Diplomats' first touchdown in a 34-10 win against Ursinus. Trailing 10-0 after the first quarter, the Diplomats defense would set the team up deep in Bears' territory as Stone picked off a pass at the F&M 21-yard line.
DB John Ortega, Jr., Centre
Ortega had nine tackles, one pass breakup and one interception as the Colonels picked up a 28-7 win at Rhodes. With the Colonels clinging to a 21-7 lead and 5:03 remaining in the third quarter, Ortega intercepted Rhodes quarterback Daniel Swanstrom at the Centre 15, taking the winds out the Lynx's sails.
Special teams
K Ben Tuck, Sr., Sewanee
Tuck made a 27-yard field goal and was 3-for-3 on extra points as Sewanee lost 25-24 at Emory & Henry. He has made 70 of his last 71 extra points to go along with 21 career field goals.
P Rob Becker, Jr., Baldwin-Wallace
Becker averaged 44.3 yards per punt in a 28-21 loss to Mount Union. He had three punts for 50, 43 and 40 yards (133 total yards).
RET Chad Strehlo, Sr., Hamline
Strehlo returned three punts for 88 yards, including a 75-yard punt return for a touchdown in the Pipers' 41-7 loss to St. Thomas. Strehlo also returned two kickoffs for 27 yards.