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| The Pioneers raced to victory over the final half of the fourth quarter, shocking No. 18 Ohio Northern. Photo by Jeff Pexton - Perfect Game Imaging |
Trailing by 17 early in the fourth quarter, Utica scored 21 points over the game's final 6:35 to stun No. 18 Ohio Northern.
The Polar Bears were playing their first game of the season, while Utica moved to 2-0. Christiaan Williams rushed for 175 yards on 24 carries in his debut, but Teddy VanGalen led the Pioneers' comeback with three touchdown passes, including two to Shawn Marchant in the final 1:43. After the final score with 15 seconds to play, Will Freed gave the Polar Bears one last opportunity, driving to the Utica 25, but his final pass fell incomplete.
No. 1 Mount Union and No. 3 Linfield also opened their seasons in Week 2. It took a quarter for them to knock the rust off. The Purple Raiders failed to score in the first quarter, but two freshman quarterbacks both impressed over the final three quarters in a 45-10 win at N.C. Wesleyan. The Wildcats trailed Chapman 7-0 early, but cruised to a 48-14 victory. Sam Riddle passed for 391 yards and five touchdowns.
No. 22 Thomas More and No. 25 Washington and Jefferson cruised to victories, setting up a huge PAC showdown next Saturday. Daylin Garland II caught seven passes for 203 yards and three touchdowns as the Saints rolled up 634 yards of offense. Pete Coughlin attempted 16 passes and completed 12. Seven of them went for touchdowns as the Presidents put up 630 yards of offense and 65 points. No. 24 St. John Fisher held off a late Springfield surge, winning 35-21. Mike Collichio hauled in six receptions for 170 yards and two scores.
No. 17 Wesley earned its first win of the season, a 43-7 victory over Frostburg St. in NJAC play. Dan Kesack took the bulk of the snaps at quarterback, completing 12 of 19 passes for 255 yards and four touchdowns with zero interceptions. No. 11 Johns Hopkins also won big in its opening game of conference play, defeating Susquehanna 41-7.
North Central and UW-Platteville represented D-III well, notching victories over non-D-III opponents. The No. 9 Cardinals defeated Webber International, 38-21. Indiana State transfer Broc Rutter was very efficient, completing 22 of 26 passes for 284 yards and three touchdowns. The No. 10 Pioneers defeated St. Francis (Ill.), a top 25 NAIA program, 26-7. UW-Platteville forced three turnovers from St. Francis quarterback Don Butkus, and Pioneers quarterback Tom Kelly tossed four touchdown passes.
Cortland exploded for 42 first half points and cruised to a 49-21 win over Framingham St. Steven Ferreira accounted for four touchdowns for the No. 16 Red Dragons, while the defense forced five turnovers. Cortland needed just 8:20 of possession in the first half, with the longest scoring drive lasting 2:11. Wheaton put up 28 in the first quarter en route to a 60-7 win over Kalamazoo. Johnny Peltz tossed four touchdown passes for the No. 7 Thunder.
No. 4 St. Thomas and No. 8 St. John's each cruised to victory. The teams have one more tune up before their showdown on Sept. 24. Jackson Erdmann had more touchdown passes (five) than incompletions (three), as the Johnnies defeated Buena Vista 40-17. The Tommies handled UW-Stout, 57-17.
No. 2 UW-Whitewater handled Belhaven with ease, winning 59-13. No. 5 Mary Hardin-Baylor imposed its will on Texas Lutheran, sending the Bulldogs to 0-2. The Crusaders held TLU to just 219 yards of offense and forced four turnovers en route to a 56-21 victory. T.J. Josey caught nine passes for 129 yards and two scores.
Huntingdon dominated Birmingham-Southern, avenging a loss from last season. The Hawks converted 12 of 14 third downs and rolled up 538 yards of offense in a 49-28 victory. Luke Bailey was an efficient 20-26 for 268 yards and three scores with no interceptions for No. 21 Huntingdon.
On Friday night, Eric Shorter took the opening kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown and No. 14 Delaware Valley was off to the races, leading 28-0 after the first quarter and 42-0 at the half en route to a 49-7 win vs. Misericordia.