2005 Game-by-Game Recap
Week #15, Dec. 17
Mount Union 35 Wisconsin Whitewater 28 (Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl XXXIII)
Mount Union won its eighth Division III National Championship in the last 13 years ('93, '96, '97, '98, '00, '01, '02, '05) behind Nate Kmic's 185 yards rushing and three touchdowns, and wide receiver Pierre Garcon's seven grab, 107 yards receiving, two touchdown performance. Kmic earned game MVP honors for his play. Quarterback Mike Jorris finished 20-of-28 for 246 yards with two touchdown passes and one INT. Defensively, safety Matt Kostelnik had a team-best 11 hits while end Greg Brauer finished with seven hits, 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks. Cornerback Cameron Rose had a pick while also posting seven hits. The game was tied 7-7 in the second quarter before the Raiders scored 21 consecutive points to take a 28-7 lead late into the third stanza. The Warhawks answered with back-to-back touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to cut it to 28-21 midway through the final period. The Purple Raider offense subsequently went on a championship-caliber 12 play/71 yard drive that took 5:39 off the clock culminating in a Kmic 15 yard touchdown scamper with 2:50 left on the game clock. Whitewater scored with 0:02 seconds remaining to make the final 35-28.
Week #14, Dec. 10
Mount Union 19 Rowan (NJ) 7
The Raider defense held the Profs to 176 yards of total offense and 2.9 yards per play in leading Mount Union to its eighth Stagg Bowl appearance in the last 10 years and ninth overall. Mount Union jumped out to a 14-0 first-half lead thanks in part to a two touchdown performance from running back Nate Kmic, who went over the 100-yard rushing mark for the fourth straight week and surpassed the 1,000 yard rushing mark on the season. Linebacker Mike Gibbons had a team-high nine hits, giving him 144 on the season, which is a new Mount Union single-season record. End Justen Stickley collected two sacks and a career-high five tackles for loss.
Week #13, Dec. 3
Mount Union 34 Capital 31
The Crusaders and Raiders exchanged leads six times as Mount Union scored the game-winning touchdown with just over three minutes to go advancing to the Division III Playoff Semifinals for the 11th consecutive season (1995-2005). Quarterback Mike Jorris finished 23-of-32 for 315 yards and three touchdowns. Wide receiver Pierre Garcon had a career-best 11 grabs for 181 yards and two scores ' including an 88-yard touchdown reception. Running back Nate Kmic had a career-high 38 carries for 177 yards and a score. Defensively, linebacker Mike Gibbons finished with 11 hits, tackle Buddy Wolf had two sacks, end Justen Stickley broke up three passes and safety Robert McDavid had his first career interception and a key fourth quarter 45 yard kick return to set up a score.
Week #12, Nov. 26
Mount Union 44 Augustana (IL) 7
Mount Union advanced to the Division III Playoff Quarterfinals for the 14th consecutive season (1992-2005) behind a school-record 361 yards rushing by Nate Kmic. The freshman also had four rushing scores among his 37 carries in the contest. Chuck Moore previously held the Raider playoff mark with 346 yards rushing versus Wittenberg in 2001 while Mike DiBlasi had the Mount Union regular season record of 269 yards on the ground versus John Carroll set in 1970. Defensively, linebacker Mike Gibbons posted a single-game career-best 18 hits while tackle Jesse Wells added 13 hits and end Sam Vucelich had a personal-best 11 hits against Augustana. Safety Nick Barren had a career-best 10 hits to go along with an interception and a fumble recovery. Mount Union led 13-7 late in the second quarter before scoring 31 unanswered points in earning the victory.
Week #11, Nov. 19
Mount Union 49 Mount St. Joseph 6
The Purple Raiders advanced to the second round of the Division III Playoffs behind a Raider season-best and an individual career-best 158 yards rushing/three touchdown rushing performance by running back Nate Kmic. Wide receiver Pierre Garcon finished with three grabs for 128 yards, including a Raider season-best 92 yard touchdown reception. Defensively, the Raiders posted a season-high six sacks while allowing just 58 total yards on the day ' including just one yard on the ground. End Greg Brauer had a Raider season-best 2 1/2 sacks while linebacker Mike Gibbons totaled nine hits, three tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. Mount Union's defensive unit also extended its streak of not giving up a touchdown to 18 quarters.
Week #10, Nov. 12
Mount Union 63 Heidelberg 0
Mount Union closed out the 2005 regular season winning a 14th consecutive Ohio Athletic Conference Championship, posting back-to-back shutouts while not allowing a touchdown in the last 14 quarters played overall. Against Heidelberg, the Raiders set an NCAA All-Division record by scoring touchdowns in five consecutive offensive plays. Running back Justin Wray had a career-best 103 yards rushing in the win and Nate Kmic had two carries for 67 yards and two touchdowns. Wide receiver Scott Casto had seven grabs for 112 yards and two touchdowns while Pierre Garcon had two grabs for 53 yards and two scores. For the sixth time in 10 games, the Raider defense allowed less than 200 yards of offense (170 total yards for Heidelberg) while the MountUnion offense amassed 661 yards against 'The Berg."
Week #9, Nov. 5
Mount Union 45 Muskingum 0
Mount Union posted its second shutout of the season holding Muskingum to 170 yards of total offense, including -1 passing, while winning an NCAA-best 55th consecutive road game. Safety Matt Kostelnik scored the team's first defensive touchdown of the season, recovering a fumble and returning it 25 yards for a score. Offensively, wide receiver Scott Casto had a game-best nine receptions for 144 yards and one touchdown while teammate Anthony Antonucci posted career-bests in receptions (7) and receiving yards (115). Quarterback Mike Jorris finished 25-of-30 for 370 yards and two touchdowns.
Week #8, Oct. 29
Mount Union 17 Baldwin-Wallace 3
The Purple Raiders held Baldwin-Wallace to 182 yards of offense and no touchdowns in front of a standing room only crowd of 5,672 fans in Mount Union Stadium. Linebacker Mike Gibbons totaled 13 hits, tackle Buddy Wolf amassed a single-game career-best 13 hits and cornerback Ross Watson picked off his seventh pass of the season in the win. Offensively, Aaron Robinson went over the 100 yard mark for the sixth straight week ' finishing with 103 yards on a career-high 23 carries. Wide receiver Scott Casto had three receptions for 73 yards, including a key fourth quarter 42 yard touchdown reception from quarterback Mike Jorris.
Week #7, Oct. 22
Ohio Northern 21 Mount Union 14
Mount Union committed four turnovers while Ohio Northern was turnover free as the Polar Bears snapped Mount Union's 110-game regular season winning streak and its 99-game Ohio Athletic Conference regular season consecutive win mark. The Raiders trailed 14-0 in the second quarter when safety Matt Kostelnik returned end Justen Stickley's blocked punt 42 yards for a touchdown. Ohio Northern's goal line stand to close out the half kept it at 14-7. Both teams tacked on second half touchdowns. Offensively, running back Aaron Robinson finished with 20 carries and 114 yards rushing while receiver Max Smith had three grabs for 61 yards and one score. Defensively, linebacker Mike Gibbons finished with a career-best 16 hits to go along with two sacks and tackle Jesse Wells had a career-high 12 hits.
Week #6, Oct. 15
Mount Union 59 Marietta 7
The Purple Raiders set a pair of school-records in the win over the Pioneers ' most first downs in a game (40) and total offense in a contest (755). Individually, Aaron Robinson led all running backs with a single-game best 147 yards on 18 touches while Nate Kmic and Terrance Morring each had personal bests with 61 yards rushing each. Wide receiver Brandon Boehm had a career night with seven receptions for 123 yards. Defensively, the Raiders held the Pioneers to just four first downs and 39 total yards of offense, including -17 yards rushing.
Week #5, Oct. 8
Mount Union 41 Wilmington 6
Raider wide receiver Pierre Garcon hauled in nine grabs for 111 yards and two touchdowns while running-mate Scott Casto tied a career-best with 10 receptions for 116 yards and one score in the win against Wilmington. The last time two Raider wideouts had 100 yards receiving in one game was on October 6, 2001, when Jason Candle and Derrick Leach both reached the century mark in a 47-0 win over Marietta. Quarterback Mike Jorris completed 25-of-44 passes for 310 yards and four touchdowns while running back Aaron Robinson tied a single-game best with 137 yards rushing on 20 rushes - his third consecutive 100+ rushing performance. The Raiders amassed 633 yards of offense to 189 for the Quakers. Defensively, linebacker Mike Gibbons had his fourth double-digit tackle day in five games with 11 hits and 2.5 tackles for loss.
Week #4, Oct. 1
Mount Union 42 Capital 24
The Raiders trailed the Crusaders 17-14 heading into the fourth quarter before setting a school-record by scoring touchdowns on three straight offensive plays, en route to putting 28 consecutive points on the board. Individually, running back Aaron Robinson went over the 100 yard mark for the second straight week with 109 yards and three touchdowns on 22 carries. Wide receiver Pierre Garcon had a personal-best nine grabs for 214 yards and two touchdowns. Defensively, cornerback Ross Watson had a career-best three interceptions ' giving him six in four games played. Safety Matt Kostelnik had a single-game best 11 hits and one interception while linebacker Mike Gibbons also finished with double-digit hits (11).
Week #3, Sept. 24
Mount Union 55 Otterbein 7
The Purple Raiders amassed 571 total yards of offense in their victory over the Cardinals. Quarterback Mike Jorris finished the contest 16-of-25 for 277 yards and a touchdown. Running back Aaron Robinson eclipsed the 100 yard mark rushing for the second time in his career with 102 yards and three scores. Wide receiver Pierre Garcon grabbed eight receptions for a career-best 182 yards and a receiving touchdown. He also returned a kickoff 80 yards for a score. The Raider defense, led by a career-high 12 hits from linebacker Matt Rees, held the Cardinals to 19 yards rushing. Defensive end Justen Stickley and safety Matt Kostelnik each intercepted a pass for the Purple and White.
Week #2, Sept. 17
Mount Union 70 John Carroll 0
Mount Union scored on its first seven possessions en route to its largest margin of victory in the modern era. Quarterback Mike Jorris, in two and a half quarters of play, was 24-of-27 for 421 yards and a school-record seven touchdown passes. His 421 yards passing ranks second all-time on the Raider single-game passing list. For the second consecutive week, 11 different receivers caught passes, led by Scott Casto posting single-game career-bests in receptions (10), receiving yards (238) and touchdown receptions (3). The Raider offense also set a new single-game mark for passing yards (521). Defensively, Mount Union's first unit did not allow a point for the second straight week. The Raiders had six interceptions, led by two each from cornerbacks Ross Watson and Cameron Rose. Linebacker Mike Gibbons had a team-best nine hits and two tackles for loss. The victory extended Mount Union's consecutive road win streak to an NCAA-record 52 games.
Week #1, Sept. 3
Mount Union 33 Washington (MO) 7
The Purple Raiders won their 18th consecutive opener with their win over the Bears. The Raider first unit defense did not allow a score, and overall, the defense gave up a total of 182 yards ' including just 31 yards rushing on 20 attempts. Linebacker Mike Gibbons had a team-best 11 hits along with a career single-game best 4.5 tackles for loss. Offensively, quarterbacks Randy Mason and Mike Jorris combined to go 31-of-40 for 293 yards with three TD passes and two interceptions. Wide receiver Scott Casto caught a career-best nine passes for 93 yards while teammate Pierre Garcon had seven grabs for 71 yards and two scores. Running back Aaron Robinson had a game-best 85 yards rushing on 16 touches.