Calculated risk pays off
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On Saturday, Carleton head coach Kurt Ramler stepped somewhere in between the two and recorded the biggest win at Carleton in 20 years.
"I knew I was either going to be the dumbest coach in America or very fortunate," said Ramler about a play he called for his offensive lineman Matt Topeff with the game on the line.
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Not bad for a team picked to finish ninth in the conference by MIAC coaches with a first-year head coach and a recruiting class of only five players. Not bad for a team that hasn't beat an MIAC team not named Augsburg, Hamline or Macalester since 1997.
Former head coach Chris Brann brought the Knights from a 33-game losing streak early in the decade to a 4-6 record in 2005 before leaving for Beloit in the offseason.
Ramler was an offensive coordinator at Heidelberg but jumped at the opportunity to return to the MIAC as he played his college football at St. John's.
"I got a very positive vibe," said Ramler about his feeling on Carleton. "I did a lot of homework -- this place is amazing."
Ramler took over and made some changes right away. He implemented the no hitting practice philosophy that he was a pupil of at St. John's. He named Caspers the starting quarterback instead of the two head monster philosophy that Brann went with.
"The guys really cared about Brann but I think they're enjoying some of the differences between us." said Ramler.
One player especially enjoying those differences is Caspers.
"I have a lot more confidence," said Caspers. "I can focus on the game instead of the weekly battle in practice."
There may be a three way battle in practice now with the way Topeff throws the ball. The two-sport athlete is not your typical portly offensive lineman.
"What do we do with a really athletic tackle?" Ramler asked himself in training camp. He decided to create a play for his unique lineman.
Carleton actually used the play twice in the game as Topeff ran the first one 8 yards to the Royals 2-yard line to set up the Knights first touchdown.
Fresh off the upset, the Knights have little time to savor the moment as they head to Collegeville next week. It's homecoming for St. John's and a homecoming of sorts for Ramler -- the Johnnies former star quarterback.
"It's going to be a little freaky," Ramler said about returning to Collegeville. "But I'm all Carleton now without question."
Should the Johnnies be concerned about Carleton's touchdown throwing offensive lineman?
"We're going to run that every play and hope they can't stop it," Ramler said breaking into laughter. The young coach is certainly loose and enjoying his quick start at Carleton.
His philosophy is to have his team worry about the things they can control -- attitude and effort. His players have bought into the philosophy and are turning it into momentum as they start their MIAC season.
"We have confidence," Caspers said. "We used to always come up on the losing end in close games but now we feel like we can do anything."
Johnnie on the spot
St. John's used two touchdowns in a span of 2:12 in the fourth quarter to thwart a huge upset attempt by the suddenly softened Cobber squad. Trailing 10-0 after three quarters, the Johnnies scored on an 87-yard pass from running back Mike Lofboom to Kyle Gearman -- the player whose 73-yard catch with 13 seconds remaining decided last year's contest. The Johnnie defense forced a Cory Johnson fumble and running back Mike Patnode scored on a 32-yard run just two plays later. The Johnnies gave up an intentional safety to end the game and escape with their second straight come-from-behind victory in Moorhead.
Dull looks sharp
Chapman played its first home game on its new field under first-year head coach Bob Owens and used a gaudy performance from wide receiver Harrison Dull to secure a 42-25 victory against Pacific Lutheran. It took the junior receiver just 40 seconds and one play from the line of scrimmage to get Chapman on the board when he hauled in a 71-yard pass from quarterback Eric Marty.
"Harrison is nice guy to throw to," said Marty, after just his second career start at quarterback. "He's got that nice vertical speed. You always feel good about just putting the ball over the top and saying, ‘Go get it, Harrison.' "
At this point his day was long from over. He snagged another 49-yard pass later in the first quarter to push the Chapman lead to 14-0. He finished the game with 13 catches for a school record 327 yards. The previous record of 192 yards was set by Eric Del Conte in 1999.
"I wanted to score the first touchdown ever on the new field," said Dull. "It feels great because this is a new era for Chapman football."
A Sound start
What do Oregon Tech and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps have in common? Give up? They are the only two football teams that the University of Puget Sound has posted shutouts against in the last 180 games. The Loggers 21-0 victory over CMS on Saturday propelled them to only their second 3-0 start in the last 25 years. The Loggers defeated Oregon Tech 25-0 in 1986. Puget Sound plays a 0-3 Pacific Lutheran team next week in an attempt to push their streak to four straight wins.
I'll take two of those
UW-Platteville wide receiver Joe Danielson used two 49-yard touchdown catches in the first quarter to propel Platteville to a 24-7 victory over Augustana. The senior receiver caught seven passes for 197 yards -- all in the first half. It was the fifth-highest single-game receiving total in Pioneer history.
Whitworth every penny
For Whitworth fans that made the trip from Spokane, Washington to Menomonie, Wis., it was worth the price. The Pirates scored with three seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime.
Both teams missed field goals on the first possession of overtime, Whitworth's Cam Collings from 40 yards and Stout's Brandon Raciborski from 37 yards.
After a scoreless first extra frame, Whitworth gave up a touchdown to UW-Stout but Raciborski missed the PAT. Whitworth then scored on their possession in the second overtime and the PAT by Collings sailed through the uprights for a 14-13 victory.
One-liners:
• Wartburg picked up their 14th win in the last 15 games of the series against Luther, stopping the Norse 28-17.
• The Loras football field was renamed for Duhawk coaching legend Bob Bierie, as Loras topped Dubuque 23-20 for the 21st time in 22 years.
• UW-Stevens Point finish with 542 total yards against Waldorf after entering the game with 570 yards in the first two games of the year combined.
• St. Olaf's 4-0 start is its second in a row. The only other seasons when St. Olaf had consecutive 4-0 starts were in 1969 and 1970.
• Simpson broke its longest losing streak since 1987 with a 34-7 victory over Cornell.
• UW-Stout lost its first non conference game since 2003 to Whitworth 14-13.
• The past three games between Concordia-Moorhead and St. John's have been decided by seven points.
Games to Watch
Wartburg at No. 13 Central, 1 p.m., Pella, Iowa: Both teams are undefeated and Wartburg is eager to return to the top of the IIAC. The Knights are coming off a convincing win over Luther while Central had a bye week to rest some of their banged up players. The Knights will need to contain Central quarterback Tim Connell and slow IIAC MVP Vance Schuring. Central will need to focus on Dan Hammes on the ground and Kyle Duchman through the air. Wartburg lost 37-20 in 2005.
Carleton at No. 4 St. John's, 1 p.m., Collegeville, Minn.: Both teams enter this game undefeated and coming off huge wins. This year, the Knights have Johnnie legend Kurt Ramler and the momentum of three conseciutive wins. St. John's has the history of owning Carleton over the last decade. This homecoming game should be just a tune-up for the Johnnie offense but Ramler could surprise his former team and make it close.
Remember: I am always interested in your ideas for stories. I'm bound to miss something covering five conferences and a handful of independents. Have a story idea? E-mail me at adam.johnson@d3football.com.