Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
Ada, OH - Alma Football opened their season on the road on Saturday September 3rd, at Ohio Northern. The Scots were victorious in OT by a score of 16-13.
Alma got the scoring started late in the first quarter. An 11 play, 50 yard drive resulted in a Josh Hernandez field goal from 40 yards out to give the Scots the lead. That 3-0 lead would be enough to see the Scots leading at halftime thanks to some stingy play from the defense.
Ohio Northern would even things on a Dom DiFalco 38 yard field goal with 7:47 remaining in the third quarter. That would cap the scoring until late in the 4th quarter. It was the quick strike that gave Alma the lead back with just under 7 minutes in regulation. Carter St. John connected with Nate Webb for a 45 yard touchdown to mark the end of a 3 play, 58 yard scoring drive. However, the 10-3 advantage would be short lived as the Polar Bears would march 80 yards in 10 plays to tie the game at 10 on a 13 touchdown reception by Austin Eick. The score would remain deadlocked at 10 for the rest of regulation, and the teams headed to overtime.
In overtime, Alma won the coin toss and deferred, giving ONU the ball first. The Scots defense would force the Polar Bears to kick a field goal, giving them a 13-10 lead. However, within 5 plays, Alma was knocking on the door at the ONU 1 yard line. Davin Reif would plow his way in, and the Scots would claim a 16-13 victory on the walk off touchdown.
The Scots defensive unit came ready to play in week 1. The NCAA's leading defense in turnovers from 2021 started off 2022 by snagging 3 more turnovers in the form of a pair of interceptions, and a fumble recovery. They also held the Polar Bears to just 2.7 yards per play over the course of the game. Jack Kretzschmar came up with the fumble recovery, and Bryce Fredenburg picked off a pair of passes for the Alma defense. Odin Soffredine led the team in total tackles with 12.
Offensively, it was Carter St. John who led the Scots through the air. The freshman finished with 147 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception on 5-10 passing. Eddie Williams led the ground game for Alma rushing 19 times for 78 yards. Ty Lotterman tallied 3 receptions for a team high 57 receiving yards, and Nate Webb grabbed the only receiving TD of the day.
Head Coach Jason Couch was pleased with his team's performance, "I'm extremely proud of our team today. We faced adversity and responded. Winning on the road in overtime is a testament to our tenacity. I'm very proud of everyone. Our seniors have worked hard, and I'm happy they got this win. We're fired up to be at home next week. Let's pack Bahlke"
The Scots are off to a 1-0 start on the year, and look to grab their second win at home against Manchester University next Saturday.