Scots Set to Host Grinnell

Release Date: November 1, 2000

A week after more than doubling the most points they had scored in a game under new head coach Steve Bell, the Monmouth College Fighting Scots return to Bobby Woll Memorial Field for a 1 p.m. matchup with the Grinnell College Pioneers.

As the Scots get ready for their next-to-last game of the 2000 season, the question that begs to be asked is, "What will they do for an encore?"

Last week, freshman quarterback Rob Purlee tied a school record by throwing five TD passes, and Randy Terrell ran wild, gaining 147 yards and scoring three times as the Scots posted a 62-33 victory over Lawrence University. The big offensive numbers were complemented quite nicely by seven turnovers forced by the defense and special teams, perhaps none bigger than the play by made Rob Rogers on the opening kickoff. Rogers stripped the LU kick returner and raced 25 yards with the fumble for a quick score.

The Scots added two more fumble recoveries and four interceptions on the day and posted TDs after the first five turnovers.

"We created some turnovers that got us field good position, and then we capitalized offensively," said Bell, neatly summing up how the Scots were able to put 62 points on the board, their most since a 72-0 rout of Grinnell in 1992. Four of Monmouth’s drives covered 41 yards or less, including back-to-back one-play drives when Purlee was able to hook up with Randy Williams.

"We’d seen something that we thought we’d be able to use against Lawrence with Randy, and we actually missed it in the first half," said Bell. "We were able to connect on it after their first turnover in the second half."

That 41-yard strike from Purlee to Williams gave the Scots a 48-20 lead, and two series later, after Matt Beverly had picked off a Viking aerial, Purlee threw a short pass to Williams, who raced 36 yards for another score and a 55-26 advantage.

Williams’ emergence is part of the reason that perhaps the most questionable position on the team when the season dawned has turned into one of the deepest.

"Coming into the season, receiver was a question mark for us," said Bell. "I didn’t call it a weakness, but we just didn’t know what we had there for sure."

What he had out of his receivers Saturday was five players with between 48 and 77 yards receiving. Fullback Nick Martin was part of that group, but the rest came from the wideout group of Williams, Jon Baikie, Ryan Wood and Nathan Gaskill. Baikie caught a 51-yard pass, while Gaskill hauled in a 55-yard scoring strike.

"We like to spread the ball around as much as possible," said Bell. "We have seven receivers that we feel can be productive."

That list includes star JV performers Michael Jiggetts and Tyler Snyder, who are simply involved in a waiting game for playing time behind Wood (36 catches, 528 yards), Baikie (15 for 168) and Williams (10 for 198).

Of course, receivers need a reliable quarterback to get them the ball, and Purlee is filling that role better with each game out. His five TDs tied the team mark set by Rob Burk in 1972 and came nearly 25 years to the day after his father, Dave, threw four TDs in a 55-40 loss to St. Norbert, the only other time Monmouth and its opponent have ever combined to score as many as 95 points. Ironically, Burk’s son Dusty, who plays for Illinois State Univeristy, is also a college quarterback.

Although Purlee’s big day might lead one to believe that he has fully arrived, Bell said going straight to the source shows that isn’t so.

"The best way to say it is to just go from what Rob said," Bell commented. "He came up to me after the game and said, ‘I could have played a heck of a lot better.’ He’s getting better every week, but there were some throws that he missed. His percentage could have been a lot better."

Purlee was a respectable 11-of-24 for 243 yards, and the team added 51 more yards of passing on Terrell’s halfback option pass to Baikie. As well as the play worked, though, Terrell isn’t going to give up his day job, which is listed as "workhorse tailback," especially now that running mate Oscar Scott will miss the rest of the year.

"Randy ran very well," said Bell. "Once he got to the line of scrimmage he did a nice job of creating."

On no run was that more true than a 55-yard TD romp in the second quarter, when he burst through an inside hole and then bounced to the outside, leaving the Vikings in his trail. The touchdown was one of five that covered 32 yards or more, and it showed to a stadium of fans what Bell has believed all along – his system can work at Monmouth College.

"What this win means more than anything is that if we play together, we can make the plays when they’re there. It just shows what we can do. It all started in the first half of the Ripon game, and we were able to build on that against Lawrence. Hopefully, we’ve proved to ourselves what we’re capable of."

While Monmouth is in the early stages of gaining self-esteem, this week’s opponent,

Grinnell, might be in the process of losing some of its confidence. The Pioneers were a

dominant 10-0 team in 1998, but they slipped to a 7-3 record last season and are just 4-4 this year. Still, their offense knows it has Monmouth’s number, as the Pioneers have scored at least 20 points in every game against Monmouth since the 1992 debacle. Grinnell is currently riding a five-game winning streak against the Scots, with MC’s last win coming in overtime in 1994. The Pioneers returned the favor last fall, posting a 29-28 OT triumph, as tight end Jeff Pederson caught a touchdown pass with eight seconds remaining to force the extra session, and a blocked PAT in overtime sealed Monmouth’s fate.

Pederson, a preseason All-American after catching a TD in every game last fall, might not line up at his usual position against the Scots. That’s because he’s the team second-string quarterback, and he was forced to come on in a relief role for Shawn Sigler last week during Grinnell’s 23-6 win over Knox. Pederson was 11-of-19 for 167 yards and two TDs, not bad numbers at all for a player who is ranked fourth in the MWC with 38 catches for 403 yards.

The player that’s drawn Bell’s attention is running back Adam Wallace, and for good reason. In Monmouth’s last home game, Bell watched St. Norbert’s Matt O’Grady run for 282 yards, and Wallace already has a 245-yard day to his credit this season. In seven league games, he’s gained 703 yards on 194 carries and his 11 touchdowns tie him with O’Grady for the league lead.

"They have a very good running back and a couple real good receivers," said Bell. "They’re a pretty balanced team. We’ve got to correct the big play mistakes we’ve been making."

Lost amid the celebration of Monmouth’s 29-point win last week was the fact that they surrendered five TDs, two on passes of 20 yards or more and another on an offensive turnover. Bell was pleased that Monmouth surrendered just 68 rushing yards on 33 attempts to Lawrence, but the Scots will be hard-pressed to repeat that performance against a Wallace-led ground attack that’s propelled Grinnell to the top of the league in terms of time of possession.

The Pioneers are ranked seventh in the league in offense (314.1 yards per game) and fifth in defense (328.7), while Monmouth is last in offense (281.0) and ninth in defense (398.9). Monmouth’s defense has been led by Jason Robinson, who’s second in the league in total tackles with 76, while the Pioneers are paced by Zach Fletcher and Matt Johnston, who rank 11th and 12th, respectively, with 62 and 61 tackles. Grinnell kicker John Godish is also having a strong season, as he’s made 15-of-17 PATs and 5-of-7 field goals.