Despite loss, Fighting Scots’ season was one to remember

Release Date: November 22, 2005

MONMOUTH, Ill. — To prevent backyard football games from turning into backyard brawls, pass rushers are asked to do the polite thing and count “Mississippi one, Mississippi two, Mississippi three” before trying to sack the quarterback.

Unfortunately, the defensive line of Saint John’s University didn’t grasp the Mississippi concept. Instead, they started rushing Monmouth College quarterback Mitch Tanney right about the time the Fighting Scots’ charter bus crossed the Mississippi, and there was nothing polite about the way they treated him in Monmouth’s first-ever NCAA playoff game.

The Johnnies posted 13 sacks, including an NCAA-record 7.5 by Kevin McNamara, and that constant pressure, along with some big plays on offense, led to a one-sided 62-3 triumph by the 2003 national champs.

The Johnnies’ onslaught even continued after the game, as the team was awarded an extra sack from the dozen they were initially credited. It was recorded by – who else? – McNamara.

“We just couldn’t protect Mitch,” said Monmouth coach Steve Bell, who saw his 16th-ranked team bow out of the postseason with a 10-1 record. “It was just a mismatch because all the pressure was coming from the interior. You can do some things when it’s coming from the outside, but there’s not much you can do when it’s coming from the inside.”

Early on there was a glimmer of hope for the Scots, who posted the first points of the game following a Doug Stichter interception. Monmouth drove to the SJU 5-yard line, and Nathan Palkovic’s 29-yard field goal gave the Scots a 3-0 lead.

Saint John’s responded with a drive that included one of seven plays on the day that went for 43 yards or more. That allowed the Johnnies to move the ball 68 yards in just three plays, and they took a lead they would never relinquish.

“They’re a very, very good football team,” said Bell, who was most concerned with SJU’s team speed entering the game. “They didn’t do anything different than what we thought they would. We just couldn’t stop it.”

Despite the ongoing harassment from SJU’s defensive line, Tanney did complete 20-of-30 passes, and that accuracy allowed him to break the Division III record for season completion percentage (73.6). The old mark of 72.9 was set by Mount Union’s Jim Ballard in 1993.

“Mitch had a tremendous career,” said Bell. “It worked out for him, and I hope he’s happy with his decision to transfer here. It was a pleasure coaching him. I’ve been very lucky that my last two quarterbacks have been a joy to coach.”

With only two years at the helm, Tanney was not able to break many of the career passing records set by his predecessor, MC assistant Rob Purlee, but he did eclipse most of the single-season marks. His final 2005 numbers included 215 completions in 292 attempts for 2,587 yards and 33 touchdowns. He was picked off only three times this year and just six times in his career. Tanney also had 379 positive rushing yards and five scores, though sacks dropped his net rushing yards to 163.

“Like I told the guys, and this is true for Mitch, too – one game does not take away from all that we accomplished this year,” said Bell. “Of course, you’re going to feel bad about how it ended, but our seniors should be very proud of what they accomplished in their four years here.”

Perhaps no senior made as much of a transformation as linebacker Justin Zigler. While Tanney earned the Midwest Conference’s Offensive Player of the Year, Zigler captured the Defensive POY honor after a season which saw him post a school-record 115 tackles, including 23 for loss. He finished his career as the Scots’ all-time leading tackler with 361.

“The progress that he made in his four years here was just tremendous,” said Bell, who recalled a 190-pound Zigler getting roughed up a bit in his first game as a freshman in 2002. “He ended up at 235 pounds, so he really transformed his body type, and that’s a tribute to his work ethic. You just hope you can fill up a roster with players willing to work as hard as he did in his career.”

The next time the Scots take the field will be their 2006 season opener at Wartburg College, and they’ll be riding a 17-game regular season winning streak, which included all 10 scheduled contests this year.

“You hope that a team gels and comes together,” said Bell. “We knew we’d be good. We never knew we’d be 10-0 good. Some breaks had to happen, a la some kids making some plays for us in the St. Norbert game.”

Monmouth rallied to win that contest 28-20, and it was the game that essentially ended the Green Knights’ run of six straight MWC titles.

“This was a very fun group to coach,” said Bell. “They always came ready to play. Even the Saint John’s game, we were ready to play. I don’t think we walked in there intimidated.”
He concluded, “This game kind of showed us the top level of Division III. We have a taste now of what it will take to compete at that level. Our expectation is that we’ll be back in the postseason many times in the future.”

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