|
Monmouth College’s
football team set the tone early against Grinnell on Saturday,
Sept. 29. The Scots hosted the Pioneers for the Family Weekend
game and trounced their competition 42-0.
MC scored 21 points
in the first quarter alone, using every second to get on the
scoreboard. As the time ticked off, Monmouth’s defensive back,
freshman Sean Wells, intercepted a pass from the Grinnell
quarterback and returned it for the third Monmouth touchdown.
Earlier in the
quarter, the Scots scored two offensive touchdowns. On their first
possession, Monmouth capped a 14-play, 90-yard drive when freshman
Alex Tanney found senior Jess Miller on a four-yard touchdown
pass.
Monmouth scored on a
similar play on their second touchdown drive when Tanney found
Kramer Matzen on a one-yard strike. Both plays were run on a play
action bootleg. On the first, Tanney rolled to his left and; on
the second, Tanney rolled to his right.
After being given a
21 point cushion, the Monmouth defense took it the rest of the
way. All three turnovers forced by Monmouth were interceptions by
Wells, which included his pick-six.
The real story on
defense was its front seven. The defensive line and linebacking
corps dominated the line of scrimmage. The top three tacklers on
Monmouth’s defense were all starting linebackers.
Three juniors, Marc
Artozqui, Danny Weiden and T.C. Olsen, were terrors on the
gridiron. Artozqui led the way, recording 13 tackles. Weiden was a
human missile on the field, recording 10 tackles (two behind the
line of scrimmage and one very impressive sack).
Olsen, a team
captain, was everywhere, making tackles; on special teams, in the
backfield, in the flat or in the open field, number 37 was always
around the ball. Olsen was credited with seven tackles.
Monmouth’s offense
did not put up fantastic numbers, but looked fluid. Tanney
completed 26 of his 40 pass attempts for 232 yards and three
touchdowns. Sophomore Kyle Wantland caught nine passes for 66
yards and a touchdown.
The Wantland-Tanney
connection seems to be blossoming quickly into a very productive
duo, as they are putting up impressive numbers early in the
season.
The ground attack
for Monmouth was also solid. Junior Jeff Davis led the way with 24
carries for 131 yards and a touchdown. His running mate, sophomore
Clay Bricker, nearly eclipsed the 100-yard mark with his 87
rushing yards. Bricker also added a rushing touchdown for the
Scots.
Next on the Scots’
schedule is St. Norbert on Saturday, Oct. 6 at Bobby Woll Athletic
Field. Monmouth will host the Green Knights for the first time in
the last three years. Last time St. Norbert was on the Monmouth
campus, the Knights treated MC to a nasty 55-19 beating.
The Scots fell to
the Green Knights last year, after winning the 2005 contest in
route to a Midwest Conference title and a trip to the Division III
football playoffs.
The match-up between
Monmouth and St. Norbert is often heralded as the biggest game of
the year in the Midwest Conference and even seen by some as the
“conference championship.”
St. Norbert may beg
to differ with being compared to Monmouth recently, as the Knights
have beaten MC in nine of their last 10 meetings. Saturday’s game
will be a big measuring stick for Monmouth’s young team, and could
set the tone for years to come in the Midwest Conference.
Return to Home --
Return to Sports |
