#1 Football Seeing Red Again Host Albright (PA) in NCAA Quarterfinal Game Saturday
2009 Mount Union Football - NCAA PLAYOFFS
#1
MOUNT UNION PURPLE RAIDERS (12-0) vs ALBRIGHT (PA) LIONS (11-1)
Sat.,
Dec. 5, 2009 - 12 pm - Mount Union Stadium (Alliance, OH)
RADIO: WDPN 1310 AM/WRMU 91.1 FM (Alliance)
TV: Jeff Shreve (play-by-play), Harry Paidas (color)
SportsTime Ohio (Tape Delay - Sat. Dec. 5 - 10pm)
WIVM Ch. 52/Ch. 367-Time Warner (Tape Delay-Sat. Dec 5 - 11pm;
Sun. Dec 6 - 1pm)
LIVE STATS: http://www.muc.edu/football
THE GAME
No. 1 ranked Mount Union hosts Albright (PA) in a national quarterfinal game of the 2009 NCAA Division III Football Championship Saturday at noon at Mount Union Stadium in Alliance, Ohio.
The Purple Raiders, 12-0 overall, have the nation’s longest win streak at 27 games. Mount Union won its 18th straight and 20th Ohio Athletic Conference title to claim the conference’s automatic bid and make its 21st NCAA playoff appearance with a record of 63-10 (.861) in the playoffs with 10 national championships (1993, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2008). Mount Union has played in the Stagg Bowl, national championship game, 11 of the last 13 seasons.
Albright is 11-1 overall and the Lions claimed one of six at-large bid to the NCAA Playoffs after finishing second in the Middle Atlantic Conference. The Lions are making their fourth playoff appearance, first since 1996, have a 4-3 record in the tournament and playing in their first-ever national quarterfinal game.
MOUNT UNION FOOTBALL ON RADIO, TV AND ONLINE; ALL PLAYOFF GAMES ON TV
All Mount Union football playoff games will be broadcast on TV on WIVM and SportsTime Ohio, on the radio on WDPN 1310 AM and WRMU 91.1 FM and simulcast online at www.muc.edu/athletics, while the website will feature a live statistics game tracker.
Image Video produces the TV broadcasts with Joe Tait, who enters his 38th season as the voice of the Cleveland Cavaliers, doing the play-by-play and Harry Paidas on the color commentary. Tait will be with the Cavs this week, so Mount Union alum and Cleveland Browns Stadium/University of Akron announcer Jeff Shreve will be on the call.
SportsTime Ohio is a regional cable sports network that reaches more than 4-million homes nationwide on cable and satellite. For complete channel listings for your area go on the Internet to http://www.sportstimeohio.com
THE SERIES
The two schools have never met on the football field. Mount Union is 2-0 against current members of the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) as the Raiders beat Lycoming (PA) 61-12 in the 1997 Stagg Bowl and a 70-30 win over Widener (PA) in the national semifinals in 2000. Albright has only played one game against a member of the OAC as they scored a 61-7 win over Otterbein in 1948.
THE COACHES
Larry Kehres (Mount Union ‘71) is 287-21-3 (.927) in his 24th season at his Alma mater. Kehres is one of the most successful coaches in college football history as his teams have won 20 OAC Championships, including the last 18 in a row, along with 10 of the last 16 NCAA Division III National Championships. Kehres is respected by his peers in the coaching profession as he is the current first vice president of the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA). He will become the AFCA President for the 2010-2011.
John Marzka (Allegheny PA ‘91) is 26-8 (.765) in his 3rd season as head coach at Albright. He guided the Lions to their first conference title in 11 years in 2008. He has a win against Mount Union as a player as he was the starting center on a 1990 Allegheny squad that knocked off the Raiders on their way to winning the national championship.
UP NEXT ...
The winner of this game plays in next week’s national semifinal against the winner of a matchup between Wesley (DE) and Johns Hopkins (MD) next Saturday at noon at a location to be determined.
BY THE NUMBERS
63-10 Mount Union’s record in the NCAA Playoffs
137-4 Mount Union’s win-loss record since 2000
27 Mount Union has the nation’s current longest winning streak at 27 games.
55, 54 The Raiders hold the NCAA’s two longest consecutive college football win streaks -- 55 from 2000-2003 and 54 from 1996-99
34 Mount Union has won 34 straight home games dating back to a 21-14 win by Ohio Northern at Mount Union Stadium on 10/22/05.
17 Mount Union has won 17 straight home playoff games since a 38-35 loss to Mary Hardin-Baylor (TX) in the NCAA Semifinals on Dec. 11, 2004.
98-0 Since 1996, the Raiders record when winning the turnover battle.
143-1 The Raiders record since 1990 when winning the turnover battle. That lone loss was a 20-17 loss to Wisconsin-LaCrosse. In that game, the Raiders had a +1 turnover margin.
SCOUTING THE LIONS
Four weeks ago, Albright suffered a 45-16 loss at Delaware Valley (PA) which cost them the conference title and an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Lions then scored a 44-43 double overtime win over Lebanon Valley (PA) in what was basically an elimination game in the regular season finale. After getting a first round road win at Alfred (NY), the Lions got some redemption as they won 27-3 at Delaware Valley.
Senior quarterback Tanner Kelly is the MAC Offensive Player of the Year as he has completed 69-percent of his passes for 2823 yards with 21 TD’s and only 3 interceptions. Kelly is also the team’s second leading rusher with 359 yards and 6 TD’s on the ground. Sophomore running back Josan Holmes has 521 rushing yards and 10 TD’s. Senior Nate Romig is the top receiver with 86 catches for 1276 yards and 12 TD’s.
On defense, senior free safety Brendan Bresnahan has team-high 77 tackles along with three interceptions. Senior linebacker Dave Harig is second on the team with 71 tackles, sophomore defensive lineman Alvin Thomas has 10 sacks and a pair of forced fumbles and senior defensive back Brett Gaul has 50 tackles and a team-best four interceptions.
20 PURPLE RAIDERS NAMED TO ALL-OAC TEAMS
Nine starters on each side of the football along with a punter and special teams player were selected to the All-OAC teams by the conference’s 10 head coaches. Four players were MVP’s at their respective positions in defensive lineman Joe Millings (Copley/Copley), linebacker Sam Kershaw (West Jefferson/West Jefferson), defensive back Drew McClain (Newark/Licking Valley) and wide receiver Cecil Shorts (Cleveland/Collinwood).
On defense, seven players were first team selections in Millings, James Herbert (Sagamore Hills/Nordonia) and Matt Williamson (Columbus/DeSales), linebackers Kershaw and Judd Lutz (Tiffin/Tiffin Columbian) with defensive backs McClain and Roger Stewart III (Pleasantville/Fairfield Union). Defensive backs Chaz Jordan (Medina/Buckeye) and Alex Ferrara (Independence/Walsh Jesuit) were second team and honorable mention selections, respectively.
On offense, wide receiver Cecil Shorts III (Cleveland/Collinwood), tight end Kyle Miller (Elida/Elida) and offensive lineman Caleb Crowl (Lisbon/David Anderson) were on the first team, quarterback Kurt Rocco (Cincinnati/Roger Bacon), wide receiver Vince Petruziello (Mentor/Lake Catholic), offensive linemen Samy Guerrero (Dublin/Dublin Scioto) and Mike Nitz (Copley/Copley) and running back Scott Panchik (Natrona Hts, PA/Higlands) were on the second team while running back Terrance Morring (Sanford, FL/Winter Springs) was an honorable mention selection, respectively.
Punter Jay Carpenter (Fairmont, WV/Fairmont) and special teams player James Coppeler (Columbus/Worthington Kilbourne) were second team selections.
GARCON HAS CAREER DAY FOR THE COLTS
Former Raider receiver Pierre Garcon in his 2nd year with the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts and had his fourth TD of the season as part of a 5 catch 63 yard performance as the Colts came back to beat Houston and stay undefeated on the season. He has 37 catches for 574 yards and his other three touchdowns were all on national TV, a 29-yarder against New England, a 53-yarder against Arizona and a 48-yard game-winner in Miami. Garcon, a 2008 sixth round draft pick of the Colts, plans to return to Mount Union this Spring and work on completing his bachelor’s degree in communications.
DID YOU KNOW?
Larry Kehres is in his 24th season as head coach and 35th season at Mount Union. He spent 10 seasons (1975-84) as an assistant coach to Ken Wable then in 1985 worked only as director of athletics before adding head football coaching duties in 1986. You might not know, he was also the first swimming coach at Mount Union.
Mount Union claimed its 21st OAC Football this season. The Raiders won their first title in 1985, Ken Wable’s last year as head coach, their second in 1986 in Larry Kehres’ first year as head coach. Mount Union next won the 1990 title then started a run of 18-straight starting in 1992.
Albright is in Reading, PA, which is a city of 81,000 that is 65 miles northwest of Philadelphia. Mount Union and Albright are both affiliated with the United Methodist Church.
PLAYOFFS ... TALK ABOUT PLAYOFFS
For the fifth year the NCAA Division III Football Championship consists of a 32-team field with four eight-team regions. For perspective, in Mount Union’s first appearance in the playoffs in 1985, the field was 16 teams. This year’s field breaks down like this: Automatic bids were given to 23 conference champions, three spots are reserved for teams that are independents or in conference not granted automatic bids and the final six spots are national at-large bids.
SHORTS GOES WILD LAST WEEK AGAINST MONTCLAIR ST
All-American senior wide receiver Cecil Shorts III (Cleveland/Collinwood) had three rushing touchdowns out of the “wildcat” formation last week against Montclair State. He finished the game with four rushes for 39 yards and caught five passes for 53 yards. He has 80 catches on the season and 30 of them have been over 20 yards with 12 of them for scores from 79, 59, 56, 55, 45, 44, 43, 37, 34, 33, 30 and 25 yards. Last season, he had 28 receptions over 20 yards including 13 of his 23 touchdown catches. Shorts has over 100 yards receiving in 10 games and over 200 yards receiving in two games. Shorts also won the Ed Sherman Award for a second straight year given to the OAC’s top receiver and named for the former Muskingum football coach and college football hall of famer. He is the 12th player in school history and sixth in the last seven years to win the award.
Mount Union Career Receiving Leaders
1. Adam Marino 197 rec 3,436 yds 40 TD 1997-2000
2. Pierre Garcon 202 rec 3,363 yds 47 TD 2005-2007
3. Cecil Shorts III 169 rec 3,247 yds 42 TD 2007-present
(Prior to 2002, playoff games do not count in NCAA Statistics if those stats counted Adam Marino would have 272 rec. for 4,704 yds with 52 TD’s)
IRONMAN
Fifth year senior defensive end Joe Millings (Copley/Copley) has played more college football than anyone in history as he plays in his 60th game this week. He played in two games in 2005 before being injured then has played in every game in 2006-present. Millings has another career record with 48.0 tackles for loss which edges out former Raider and current Toledo assistant coach Matt Campbell who had 47.0 from 1999-2002. Millings leads the Raiders with 10.5 sacks and 18.0 tackles for loss this season and was awarded the Paul Hoernemann Award given to the OAC’s top defensive lineman and named for the former Heidelberg coach.
LIKE A ROCK
Over his last eight games, senior quarterback Kurt Rocco (Cincinnati/Roger Bacon) has completed 71.5-percent of his passes for 2,462 yards and 29 TD’s with three 300 yard passing games, one 400 yard passing game. Rocco is the nation’s highest rated quarterback (207.79) and has completed 70-percent of his passes for 3,208 yards and 36 touchdowns.
MORE OF MORRING
Senior running back Terrance Morring (Sanford, FL/Winter Springs) had a career-best 31 carries for 146 yards against Montclair State. It was Morring’s sixth 100 yard rushing game of the season and he has 942 yards and 12 rushing TD’s on the season.
MCCLAIN GETS A PAIR OF PICKS
Just days after being named the top defensive back in the OAC, senior safety Drew McClain (Newark/Licking Valley) had two interceptions against Montclair State. McClain led a defense that had a team-record seven interceptions on the day, which was two short of a NCAA Playoff record nine interceptions that Ithaca (NY) had in 1979.
LUTZ FINALIST FOR GAGLIARDI TROPHY; VOTE NOW
Senior linebacker Judd Lutz (Tiffin/Tiffin Columbian) was named one of 10 finalists for the Gagliardi Trophy given to the top all-around player in Division III football. Lutz leads the Raiders with 80 tackles on the season after moving back to defense this season after spending last year as the starting fullback on offense. There will be a fan vote that will equal one vote on the selection committee. Log onto www.d3football.com/fanvote and vote for Lutz.