Goal-line Stand in Final Minute Preserves DePauw's Football Win and Undefeated Season
DePauw's defense stopped Adrian twice from the 1-yard line in
the game's final minute and the Tigers remained undefeated at 6-0
with a 23-19 win over the visiting Bulldogs. The Tigers' 6-0 start
is their best since 1951, while Adrian dropped to 2-4.
DePauw took a 23-10 lead early in the fourth on Michael Engle's
2-yard scoring pass to Alex Koors with 14:15 left, but the
point-after was blocked. The Bulldogs drove to the DePauw 29, but
the Tigers stopped them on downs.
The Tigers, however, were forced to punt and Adrian needed just
three plays to score as Mike McGee completed a 43-yard scoring pass
to Jared Edwards which closed the gap to 23-17 with 9:07 left.
DePauw then drove to the Adrian 13, but Eric Malm's 31-yard field
goal try hit the left upright giving the Bulldogs the ball at the
Adrian 20.
McGee drove Adrian to the DePauw 17, but a first down pass from
McGee to Justin Hemm ended in a fumble which the Tigers' Ryan
Huffman recovered with just 2:59 left.
DePauw was unable to pick up a first down on its next series and
punter Adam Hill ran out of the end zone as the Tigers took a
safety making it 23-19. Adrian returned the free kick to its own 47
and drove to the Tigers' 9. Jared Edwards picked up five yards on
first down and Jeremy Southworth gained three on the next play.
Following an Adrian timeout with 37 seconds left, Southworth got
the call two more times but was stopped short of paydirt each time
and DePauw took over on downs.
The Tigers took an early 3-0 lead in the game on Malm's 30-yard
field goal just four minutes into the contest and Adrian gained a
7-3 advantage on D'ante Thompson's 4-yard pass from McGee with just
51 seconds left in the first.
Logan Mitseff's 45-yard field goal early in the second pushed
Adrian to a 10-3 lead, but Taylor Wagner's 77-yard punt return for
a score midway through the quarter knotted the score at 10-10.
Koors gave the Tigers a 17-10 lead late in the third on a 7-yard
scoring pass from Engle.
Adrian outgained the Tigers, 360-321, and held a 23-17 edge in
first downs. Engle completed 28 of 39 passses for 260 yards and two
scores with eight going to Koors for 96 yards.
In the fourth quarter, Koors topped the Southern Collegiate
Athletic Conference career receiving yards record held by Trinity's
Jason Hunt. He also extended his streak with at least one catch to
35 straight games. He also moved his career receptions total to 216
which is just one shy of tying the DePauw and SCAC record.
Derrick Karazsia caught seven for 52 yards and rushed for 53 yards
on 15 carries.
McGee completed 22 of 38 passes for 265 yards and a pair of
touchdowns, with eight going to Hemm for 93 yards and five to
Thompson for 34 yards.
Defensively, Ryan Preuss paced the Tigers with 14 total tackles,
while Matt Johnson added 12 and Jonathan Lambert 11. Danny Taylor
paced the Bulldogs with 12 tackles and Chris Cook added 11.
DePauw can clinch a share of the SCAC title next Saturday and the
conference's automatic qualification into the NCAA Championship
with a win at Trinity next Saturday. Adrian hosts Kalamazoo next
Saturday.
