"We had opportunities to put 14 points on the board in the third quarter, and we didn’t do it," he said, referring to a pair of first-and-goal opportunities that eventually led to failed field goal attempts. "We weren’t able to run the ball when we absolutely needed to. That makes us one-dimensional, and that’s not good."

On the possessions in question, a penalty helped stall the first drive, and the Scots had two rushes for no yards and a fumbled snap on the other.

"I put that on myself," Bell said of the latter sequence. "I should have thrown the ball in the end zone, and I didn’t do it. That was bull-headed on my part."

While Monmouth didn’t move the ball on the ground, the Red Hawks did, and that was another key factor in the game.

"Defensively, we didn’t stop the fullback," said Bell. "Schematically, we did, but technically, we didn’t execute. Running the fullback is where the option play starts. Until you stop it, they’ll just keep running it."

Ripon’s Scott Perkins gained 101 yards on 27 carries, and the Red Hawks picked up 258 yards on the ground in all.

"You’ve got to be assignment-sound," said Bell. "We’d break down in our assignments, and our kids would try to do too much, and that’s when the option can burn you in other places."

Yellow hankies also weren’t the Scots’ friends. The red zone holding call was one of several that put Monmouth in first-and-long situations. The key penalty of the game, though, came in the closing minutes after Ripon had taken over on its own 47 with the score tied at 20.

Red Hawk quarterback Tygh Walters lofted a 30-yard pass attempt that overshot his receiver and was intercepted by Aaron Payette, who ran it back 36 yards to put the Scots in great field position. But Payette was flagged for interference, and Ripon kept the ball, advancing to the Monmouth 38 on the penalty. A 27-yard run put them on the doorstep, and the Hawks cashed in four plays later with just 25 seconds remaining in the game.

"To say the least, it was controversial," said Bell when asked about the call. "Our kid was in perfect position as their kid backpedaled for the ball. Their kid falls back on his back and our kid intercepts it. One hundred times out of one hundred, I’d tell him to play it the same way."

Bell certainly didn’t pin the loss on that momentum swinger, though, citing instead his team’s failure to run the ball, stop the run and put points on the board with special teams, as three missed kicks prevented seven points from scoring. Included was a missed PAT that snapped Nate Palkovic’s streak of conversions at 32.

Monmouth’s points came on three Alex Tanney touchdown passes. The freshman was 16-of-29 for 199 yards. Matt Shepherd, Kramer Matzen and Bobby Gibbs had the TDs, and Mike Blodgett led all receivers with six grabs for 102 yards. Jeff Davis rushed for 90 yards on 20 carries and Marc Artozqui and Wes Levy led the defense, combining for 18 tackles. Willy Mason added nine stops.

The defense will certainly receive a challenge this Saturday at Lake Forest, going up against the Foresters’ pass-catch duo of Jeff Ziemnik and all-conference receiver Dan Carter. Ziemnik threw for 328 yards and two scores in last week’s 28-14 victory over Grinnell. For the year, Ziemnik has thrown for 1,616 yards and 14 TDs, with Carter leading the team in receptions (36), yardage (553) and touchdowns (7). Running back Will Christensen also has 36 catches, good for 340 yards, and Tom Cirone, another All-MWC pick in 2006, has 27 receptions for 417 yards and five scores.

"Their quarterback is a terrific athlete," said Bell. "He makes a lot of plays with his feet, and Carter is a very talented receiver."

On defense, All-MWC corner Ed Kidd has been solid for the Foresters, breaking up five passes and making 37 tackles, good for fifth on the team. Kidd is also the Foresters’ top return man. Chad Zimborski is the leading tackler with 70, and Lorenzo Ramirez and All-MWC selection Matt Lawler have combined for 89 tackles and seven interceptions.

"The game is at their place, and they’ll be juiced up," said Bell. "They’re a very good football team. We found that out last year (a 12-8 Homecoming loss), and they’re starting to play better again this year."

However, said Bell, the Scots’ focus will not necessarily be on what Lake Forest can do but, rather, what Monmouth needs to do to close its season with three straight victories.

"Our mentality is, we’ve got to get back on track," he said. "We’ve got to get back to what Monmouth does well. We haven’t made plays in the last two games. We need to strengthen our leadership and our ability to take care of assignments. We need to trust that if we do what we’re supposed to do, we’re good enough to win ballgames."

Monmouth will take a 4-3 record into the game, while the Foresters are 3-4. The teams are 4-2 and 3-3, respectively, in the MWC.