Raiders Earn Seventh National Title

Mount Union College won its third consecutive Division III Football National Championship, and sixth in the last seven years, with a 48-7 victory over Trinity University (TX) in the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, in front of 4,389 fans at Salem Stadium in Salem, Virginia, on Saturday, December 21.

The Raiders (14-0) opened the scoring following linebacker Justin Burton's interception with a Dan Pugh 19 yard touchdown run at the 8:32 mark in the first quarter. Chad Teague added the PAT giving Mount Union a 7-0 first quarter lead.

With a 30-40 mile per hour wind at their backs, the Purple Raiders scored on all three of their second quarter possessions.

Quarterback Rob Adamson hit wide receiver Randell Knapp from nine yards out, capping a 14-play/80-yard drive at the 10:27 mark. Teague's PAT was blocked.

Adamson then connected with wide receiver Derrick Leach from 19-yards at the 3:13 mark, finishing off a 10-play/60 yard march. Pugh then scored on the ensuing two-point conversion giving Mount Union a 21-0 advantage.

Pugh went over from two yards out with 24 seconds remaining late in the quarter, capping a six play/35 yard drive. Teague's PAT made it 28-0 at half.

"It was an extremely tough day to be either a quarterback or a punter," said Raider Head Coach Larry Kehres. "In my 29 years of coaching, I've never seen the wind so bad. We tried to run the ball when we were against the wind to eat up some clock and tried to throw it more when we were with the wind."

On the day, the Raiders scored on five of their six possessions when the wind was at their backs.

The Tigers (14-1) opened the second half with an 8-play/85-yard march at the 7:59 mark, with a Dan DesPlaines 18-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver B.J. Smith. Todd Canion added the PAT.

The Raiders responded with a 12-play/75-yard drive with Pugh scoring from one-yard out at the 1:08 mark of the third. Teague's PAT gave the Raiders a 35-7 third quarter advantage.

"That drive Mount Union put together after we scored at the beginning of the third quarter really snuffed out any chance we had of getting back into the game," said Trinity Head Coach Steve Mohr.

The fourth quarter opened with Pugh's fourth rushing touchdown - a two-yard scamper completing a six-play/19 yard drive with 12:57 remaining. Teague's PAT failed.

The final score of the game came when Adamson and Leach connected for the second time on a 55-yard touchdown pass, giving Mount Union a 48-7 advantage with 10:38 left in the contest.

Pugh, who was voted the game's MVP, set a number of Stagg Bowl records, including most points scored in the Stagg Bowl (26) and Stagg Bowl rushing attempts (49). He broke the Division III Tournament scoring (92 pts) and touchdown mark (15).

His 41 touchdowns on the year sets an NCAA All-Division single-season mark, surpassing Barry Sanders' previous record of 39 touchdowns set in 1988 while at Oklahoma State. Pugh also set a Division III single-season all-purpose yards record (3,192), which includes rushing, receiving and kick return yards.

"Pugh is not your typical Division III player," added Mohr. "He made people miss in the open field, he's got power and speed. He's the whole package. You can see why he was voted the nation's best player."

Individually for Mount Union, Rob Adamson completed 12-of-23 pass attempts for 222 yards and three scores, Dan Pugh finished with a career best 49 carries for 253 yards. Randell Knapp had a team best four catches for 58 yards. Defensively, Burton finished with a team-best seven hits while end Chris Carter had six tackles and one sack.

"Rob played his best football when it counted most in the playoffs," added Kehres. "He's been throwing the ball extremely well and led us throughout the playoffs."

Individually for Trinity, running back Jeremy Boyce rushed 15 times for 93 yards. Quarterback Dan DesPlaines completed 9-of-18 for 86 yards and one score. End Derek Hivnor had a game-best 10 tackles, one sack and three tackles for loss. Linebacker Jason Terrell had eight hits in the contest.

The Raiders gained 490 total yards while holding the nation's number one ranked offense to just 203 total yards on the day.

The Purple Raiders, who never trailed in the second half of a game in '02, posted a playoff average margin of victory of 32 points.

Mount Union's '02 Stagg Bowl victory earns the Raiders their seventh National Title ('93, '96, '97, '98, '00, '01, '02) - the most among collegiate teams participating in a playoff format and it ties Oklahoma for the most football championships overall.

The win also extends the nation's longest collegiate winning streak to 42. Overall, the Purple Raiders have won 96 of their last 97 games played. Mount Union is a Division III best 37-7 in the post-season and has a 7-0 mark in Stagg Bowl appearances. Overall, the Raiders have a .955 winning percentage (162-17-1) since 1990.