By Clyde Hughes
D3sports.com

For four years, coach Rod Huber had turned around a dormant Mount St. Joseph football program into the kings of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference, winning at least nine games from 2004 to 2007 and participating in the Division III playoffs each of those years.

Last season, though, the Lions fell to 5-5, its worst season since 2002 and some began to wonder if the great run for the suburban Cincinnati school was over. Looking at Mount St. Joseph's 3-0 start this season, the reported death of the Lions program may be exaggerated.

The Lions avenged one of those 2008 losses last week by coming from two touchdowns back to defeat Rose-Hulman 45-38 during the Engineers' homecoming game. It was the first clear sign that Mount St. Joseph's determination to make it back to the top of the HCAC.

"We're still a young team but I think we gained a lot of confidence beating Rose-Hulman against a capacity crowd," Huber said. "I think they learned a little bit about themselves as a team. We only start three or four seniors on each side of the ball. Our young kids learned a great lesson that a game's not over until it's over and you just keep pushing and keep making plays and working hard and good things will happen."

It's kind of the way Huber has built the Mount St. Joseph program over the past 10 years, surviving a 0-10 campaign in 2001 to going 10-0 in 2004 and making the Division III playoffs for the first time in school history. It's been a time for maturing, especially for a young team with a small senior class. Huber said a college football game is about attrition and survival and Saturday's game was an example of that.

"That game lasted about three hours and 10 minutes," Huber said. "We've got a veteran coaching staff and nobody panicked. We made some adjustments offensively and defensively and the kids rallied around that."

One of the big reasons for the Lions success this season is quarterback Craig Mustand, who landed on Mount St. Joseph's doorstep after playing briefly at Miami (Ohio) and out of football for several years. Huber said it took the last day of summer school to get Mustard eligible and he's made the wait pay off, as he helped the Lions roll up 541 yards in total offense against Rose-Hulman.

"Craig did what he had to do in the summer," Huber said. "He's a legit Division III quarterback at 6-2, 210 pounds. The difference he makes for us is huge. We haven't stretched the field here in about three years. When that happens, teams put a lot of players in the box against you. 

"This kid can throw the ball 60 to 70 yards on target, so now those safeties can't come up and those cornerbacks have to know how to cover our receivers. He's added another dimension to our offense."

Wide receiver Derick Tabar has already become one of Mustard's top targets. In a 42-19 victory over Lakeland, Tabar caught six passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns, earning him HCAC Player of the Week honors. Mustard has been able to spread the ball around as well, throwing a 69-yard touchdown pass to tailback Jack Davis last week in key turning point in the Rose-Hulman game.

"Tabar is a legitimate threat anytime he touches the ball," Huber said of Taber, from national high school power Cincinnati Colerain. "When you have Derick and Craig, defenses have to respect your vertical game because they know Derick can make that first kid miss and he can go to the house every time he touches the ball."

The passing game has opened up the rushing game for Mount St. Joseph. Davis rushed for 155 yards against Rose-Hulman and two touchdowns. 

For Mount St. Joseph to reach the HCAC summit again, they must beat the team that has prevented them from regaining the conference title the past two seasons -- Franklin. The Lions will have to travel to southern Indiana to take on the Grizzlies Oct. 24. Huber said, though, his team is not good enough yet to start thinking about that contest early.

"I was looking at films, and our next opponent Bluffton has a good young football team," Huber said. "They've got good young players who are making plays, a good coaching staff and we can't be thinking about Franklin. We're too young to let kids think they've arrived, not even close."

But that arrival may get a little close if the Lions roll into the Oct. 24 game against Franklin undefeated.

Stretching the field

It's been a rough start for eight teams in the Northern Athletics Conference and the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference, going for a combined 0-24 four weeks into the regular season. In the NATHC, Concordia (Wis.), Lakeland, Maranatha Baptist and Rockford are all 0-3. Ditto for Anderson, Bluffton, Hanover and Manchester in the HCAC. The good news for these teams is that they will begin eating each other in conference play starting this week, which could leave only one winless team in each conference by the end of the season.