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Bucs stopped here, but Pioneers will be test for
Fighting Scots Release Date:
September 19, 2007
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| Jeff Davis bounces to the outside
and heads for daylight on this 15-yard touchdown run to
open the scoring vs. Beloit last Saturday. Davis rushed
for 175 yards and two scores as Monmouth defeated Beloit
45-0. Up next this Saturday is a tough road date at
Carroll College. |
MONMOUTH, Ill.
— When four
trips to the "red zone" produce a total of three points, a football
coach has a right to be upset. Fortunately for Monmouth College head
man Steve Bell, that was the only dark cloud on an otherwise
brilliant day of –
and for –
football last Saturday.
On a gorgeous late summer afternoon, Monmouth dominated
throughout in a 45-0 victory over Beloit. The Fighting Scots’
rushing game clicked for 259 yards, quarterback Alex Tanney passed
for 316 more and the defense held the visiting Buccaneers to a mere
141 yards. The Bucs gained just 59 yards on 40 carries and were
7-of-21 passing for 82 yards.
"Our defense was very, very good," said Bell. "As I told the
guys, I like the tempo we’re playing defensively. We’re getting a
lot of guys to the ball, and I like the energy they’re playing with.
We had some defensive linemen that really played a much better game
than we’ve seen previously this season."
Seven Scots recorded tackles for loss, including a trio of
linemen –
Wes Levy, Nick Leffler and Peyton Lumzy. Levy and Lumzy had two of
Monmouth’s five sacks.
While the defensive line was getting into the backfield, the
Scots’ offensive line was creating holes downfield. Jeff Davis, in
particular, took advantage, rushing for a collegiate-high 175 yards
on 25 attempts and scoring two TDs. Backfield mate Clay Bricker also
reached the end zone twice, gaining 58 yards on nine carries.
"We ran the ball much better than we had previously, and that
starts up front," said Bell. "Our backs ran more physically and made
quick decisions."
Kicker Nate Palkovic made sure the special teams also got their
due, booting five PATs and a field goal to become Monmouth’s
all-time leading scorer. Palkovic now has 209 career points, one
ahead of Hall of Fame quarterback Mark Reed.
The fact that Palkovic was called on to try three field goals
– he
missed two –
rather than extra points was a sore spot for Bell, who saw his team
come away with no points after reaching Beloit’s 2, 16 and 20 on
three separate drives. The other series ended when Tanney threw his
first interception of the year on a tipped pass in the end zone.
"Again, we left a lot of points on the field," said Bell.
"Hopefully, that’s not going to be a recurring theme. Some of that
is just our youth on offense. We’ve got to learn how to finish. It’s
going to come back and bite us if we don’t shore it up."
The Scots did, however, record touchdowns on five other trips to
the red zone, and they quickly zipped through Beloit’s end of the
field on their other score, a beautiful 82-yard strike from Tanney
to Nick Wright, who led Monmouth’s receivers with 112 yards. Kyle
Wantland caught eight passes for 95 yards and Bobby Gibbs added five
receptions for 55 yards. Jess Miller and Matt Shepherd had two
catches apiece, and Shepherd also contributed on special teams,
returning a punt 39 yards to set up a Monmouth touchdown right
before halftime.
"We always want to make gradual progress, and I think we’re doing
that," said Bell. "We’ve got to continue to elevate our game."
That is certainly true this week, as Monmouth visits another of
the Midwest Conference’s 2-0 teams, Carroll. The Pioneers, who are
2-1 overall, own a 42-0 victory over Grinnell and a 35-6 defeat of
Beloit. They are tied with the Scots atop the league along with St.
Norbert, Illinois College and Ripon. The Blueboys and Red Hawks also
meet Saturday.
"I like their athletes, and I always have," said Bell, who’s team
topped Carroll 38-7 last year at Monmouth. "Schematically, they’re
extremely sound and solid. (Chris) Rogers is a very, very good
quarterback. We’ve definitely got a challenge on our hands."
For the season, Rogers has thrown for 473 yards and three scores.
Four receivers have yardage totals between 96 and 111 yards,
including Bryce Crocker, who leads the Pioneers with 377 rushing
yards and seven TDs.
Rogers, Crocker, tight end Josh Gould and linemen Corey Drake and
Dan Barmantje are all former All-MWC picks on the offensive side of
the ball. Brocke Linde and Jake Zeh have won the league’s last two
Defensive Performer of the Week honors, and others to watch are
all-conference selections Tim Keane, Jeremy Winter and Isaac
Hamilton. Kicker Brian Jachimek is also one of the league’s best.
Against a team with so much talent, Bell was asked what might be
a key to the contest.
"Starting off fast," he replied. "We can’t have a lull early. We
have a trend of starting very quickly up there, and we hope it
continues. We match up really well with them. It should come down to
who’s going to bring a more physical game, who’s not going to turn
the ball over and who’s going to make some big explosive plays."
When all’s said and done, Bell hopes his team puts more points on
the Schneider Stadium scoreboard than it leaves on the field. And if
those points are more than the Pioneers’ total, the Scots will
return to Monmouth still atop the Midwest Conference.
Football
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