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| Albion athletics photo |
By Brian Lester
D3sports.com
Albion hit a bump in the road midway through its regular season. A 21-7 loss to Adrian in the MIAA opener left the Britons’ hopes of a conference championship and playoff berth hanging in the balance.
With the margin for error razor thin moving forward, the Britons either had to rise to the occasion or let an opportunity to make the 2021 season a special one slip away.
Senior wide receiver Justin Thomas, the all-time leader at Albion in receiving yards and touchdown receptions, wasn’t concerned.
In fact, he believes the Britons play at their best when the pressure is on. Never mind that the loss was their first in nearly two years and ended a 12-game win streak dating back to 2019.
“I always thought we played better when our backs were against the wall,” Thomas said. “It was our first conference game and we knew we couldn’t slip up again. There was no complaining. We wanted to win and we had to win. We stuck together and got it done.”
Indeed the Britons did. They won their next five games, clinching the title with a 34-7 win over Alma last Saturday to punch a ticket to the NCAA playoffs for the first time since 2015. They finish the regular season 9-1, the most wins since 2005, and they will face UW-La Crosse in the opening round Saturday at home.
Head coach Dustin Beurer is proud of the way his team responded after the loss. Then again, he was never too concerned.
Being in tough moments and facing challenges, after all, is nothing new for Beurer. He came to Albion as an ‘undersized center’ two decades ago just happy to have the opportunity to play college football.
He was a part of the 2001 Albion team that won an MIAA title, but injuries forced him into coaching midway through his career. It soon became a role he embraced, and other than a two-year stint at Moorhead State, Beurer has always been an Albion guy. This is his third season as the head coach.
So when the Britons stumbled against the Bulldogs, he believed his team would find a way to overcome the adversity in front of it.
He points to last spring when Albion managed to get three games amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Britons had two other games scheduled last spring but both were canceled.
“Knowing what we went through last year, dealing with a lot of disappointment, I thought it benefited us this year,” Beurer said. “We identified what needed to be fixed and got back to winning games.”
Albion had opened the year with four consecutive wins, including a surprising 23-20 win over UW-Eau Claire.
“When you win a game you were picked to lose and you go into the bye week with everyone telling you how good you are, it brings you down to Earth a bit when you lose,” Beurer said. “I’d rather learn from a win than a loss, but we learned from that game and moved on.”
The Britons have scored at least 31 in every game they have played during their current win streak, putting up 40 or more twice, and their defense has recorded one shutout and held another opponent to single digits.
Jack Bush has thrown for close to 2,000 yards and 24 touchdowns while Phillip Jones-Price and Jacob Clark have both rushed for more than 500 yards, with Clark leading the team in rushing touchdowns (4).
Thomas, the offensive MVP of the league, has snagged 61 passes for 1,048 yards and 14 touchdowns and three other receivers have come up with at least two touchdown catches, including Kolby Canfield, who has scored five to go along with 500 receiving yards.
Mitch Arendsen, meanwhile, has anchored the defense and was just named the defensive MVP of the MIAA. He has racked up 54 tackles, recovered two fumbles and has recorded 18 tackles for a loss.
For someone like Thomas, as much as he takes pride in the stats he’s put up, he’d much rather have success in the playoffs.
“It’s awesome to have school records because I’ve worked hard to get to where I am, but I’d rather have a national championship over anything else,” Thomas said.
What stands out about this team to Beurer is the resiliency his players have shown through a season that hasn’t always been easy.
“Being resilient has been one of our best qualities,” Beurer said. “We talk a lot about responding to situations and not hanging our heads or pointing fingers. We make the corrections we need to make and go out and execute.
"We’ve battled a lot and have had to have role players step up and make plays for us,” Beurer continued. “It’s been a 10-week grind, and to find a way to still come out on top, it means a lot.”
And coming off last year being what it was because of the pandemic, it means that much more.
“We learned not to take anything for granted,” Thomas said. “Getting 10 games in this season, they have been the best 10 weeks of my life. But it’s not over yet. We’re still going.”
Up next for Albion is a La Crosse team that is in the playoffs for the first time since 2006. It is 8-2 on the year. It last won a national championship in 1995. Albion won it the year before.
Beurer understands the history of the program as well as anyone and he is thankful to play a part in helping to carry it on.
“I always emphasize that you can’t be part of a tradition without taking on the responsibility of building on it and adding layers to it,” Beurer said.
He admits, though, he never imagined he’d one day be the head coach of his alma mater.
“If you told me I’d be the head coach here, knowing I had been a heck of a hellraiser while I was here, I would have said you were crazy,” Beurer said with a laugh. “But we all change for the better at some point.”
He has Albion in a pretty good place and the Britons know what it's going to take to stay in a good spot.
“It’s a 60-minute game Saturday and even though everything might not go our way during the game, we have to stay together, make plays when they come and win the turnover battle. We’re looking forward to the chance to play because this is what we’ve wanted all season.”
Beurer is thankful the game is at home and as much as he loves his own family, he’d much rather spend the holiday next week with his football family.
“I remind the guys that getting to the playoffs isn’t our only goal. The next goal is wanting to spend Thanksgiving with the team,” Beurer said. “I love my family, but I want to have dinner with the team. That will mean we are still practicing and preparing to play another game in the playoffs.”