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November 2000 News
Posted by Ric 11/30/00
Mount Union wide receiver Adam Marino is a finalist for the Gagliardi
Trophy, presented to the outstanding player in Division III football by Jostens, Inc.
and the J-Club of St. John's University in Collegeville (MN). The Purple Raider
standout is one of ten finalists in line for the award that considers athletic
achievement, classroom performance and service activities.
Marino holds numerous records at Mount Union, including career receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns receptions. The Gagliardi Trophy will be awarded December 14th in Salem (VA).
Two past Raiders have won the award... Jim Ballard in 1993 and Bill Borchert in 1997.
Posted by Ric 11/27/00
A preview of this weekend's NCAA Quarter-Final Playoff Game between Mount Union and Wittenberg has been posted by the Mount Union College Sports Information Department. You can read it here.
Posted by Ric 11/26/00
I've posted our recap of yesterday's second round Purple Raider playoff win over the Polar Bears by Dick Ross. I will be adding some game pictures to the story in a couple days. You can read the review here.
Posted by Ric 11/25/00
Mount Union moves on to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III playoffs with a resounding 59-28 victory today over Ohio Northern at Mount Union Stadium. The Purple Raiders jumped out to a 38-14 halftime lead after scoring two touchdowns in the final 15-seconds of the second quarter, then dominated the second half, out gaining the Polar Bears in total offensive yards 612 to 326 on the day.
Mount Union's next opponent will be old friend Wittenberg, next Saturday at Mount Union Stadium. The Tigers defeated Hanover today 32-21, after trailing 21-20 in the fourth quarter.
Posted by Ric 11/24/00
Four Mount Union players won Ohio Athletic Conference individual awards this week. Gary Smeck, Adam Marino, Jason Gerber and Jesse Pearson each won awards for conference excellence.
Smeck and Ohio Northern running back Jamal Robertson shared honors as the league's outstanding offensive back, Marino was selected as the league's top wide receiver, Gerber won honors as the outstanding offensive lineman and Pearson was picked as the top linebacker.
Congratulations Raiders!
Posted by Ric 11/23/00
There was a story in yesterday's USAToday on the Purple Raiders and their matchup with the Polar Bears. It also mentions the dominance of the Raiders in the '90s and says "they're back at No. 1 in 2000 and appear to be on their way to another Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl." You can read the story here. Thanks to Bill and Larry for the heads up.
I've posted the final individual, defensive and team statistics Mount Union tallied during the 2000 regular season. You can see them here.
Posted by Ric 11/22/00
Although there will not be another Division III Top 25 Coaches Football Poll released until after the Stagg Bowl, I did update ours with each ranked team's results and schedule. You can see the poll here.
Posted by Ric 11/21/00
The Mount Union College Sports Information Department has posted a preview of this Saturday's second round playoff game against Ohio Northern. You can read it here.
Posted by Ric 11/19/00
Amongst the excitement of it being playoff time again in Alliance, there is a bit of
information from last week I've been meaning to pass along. Jared
Gulling, a 5-10, 170 junior wide receiver from North Canton Hoover High School, was named
to the first team All-Northeast Inland Division I Football team. He was one of the
top receivers in Stark County with 51 receptions for 595 yards during the regular season.
Jared is the son of Mount Union Receivers Coach, Paul Gulling, who was a three-time First-Team All-OAC wide receiver for the Purple Raiders (1977-79).
Posted by Ric 11/18/00
Mount Union will host Ohio Northern next Saturday at Mount Union Stadium in
second round playoff action. The Polar Bears defeated Millikin 47-21 this afternoon
to earn the right to face the Purple Raiders.
Mount Union defeated Ohio Northern 48-24 in the fourth week of the regular season this year and have defeated the Polar Bears 17 straight times dating back to 1984. Larry Kehres' Purple Raiders have never lost to Tom Kaczkowski's Polar Bears, with the Raiders holding a 16-0 advantage during the two coaches respective tenures.
Ohio Northern has an overall 20-4 record over the past two seasons, including an 0-3 mark against Mount Union. The Purple Raiders are 22-1 over the same period. Mount eliminated Northern in quarterfinal playoff action last season, 56-31 in Alliance.
Kickoff from Mount Union Stadium next Saturday is slated for 12:00 noon.
Posted by Ric 11/17/00
A league high 17 players from Mount Union were named to this year's
All-Ohio Athletic Conference Football Team.
Nine Purple Raiders earned First-Team All-OAC honors, including quarterback Gary Smeck, wide receiver Adam Marino, running back Chuck Moore, offensive lineman Jason Gerber, offensive lineman Bill Rychel, defensive lineman Ryan Belaney, inside linebacker Matt LaVerde, outside linebacker Jesse Pearson and defensive back Brian Cassidy.
Six Purple Raiders earned Second-Team All-Conference honors, including running back Dan Pugh, offensive lineman Chip Leckonby, defensive lineman Chris Eberhardt, defensive back Brooks Greenleaf, place kicker/punter Rod Chenos and special teamer Stan Watson.
Two more Purple Raiders earned Honorable-Mention All-OAC honors, including defensive lineman Matt Campbell and outside linebacker Jason Perkins.
Congratulations Raiders !
Posted by Ric 11/16/00
Congratulations are in order to four Mount Union football players named to the Academic All-Ohio Conference Team. Running back Chuck Moore, wide receiver Adam Marino, offensive guard Bill Rychel and linebacker Matt LaVerde have been so honored. In addition, Moore has also been named to the Verizon College Division Academic All-District IV First Team, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America.
Posted by Ric 11/14/00
Mount Union was voted the number one team in the country in the final regular season Division III Top 25 Coaches Football Poll, receiving 45 of 46 first place votes. You can see the entire poll here.
Posted by Ric 11/13/00
The Mount Union College Sports Information Department has posted ticket information for the Purple Raiders second round playoff game on November 25th. You can read it here.
Seven schools are making their first Division III football playoff appearance. They include Bethel, Bridgewater (VA), Hobart, Wesley, Wis-Stout and two number one seeds, Brockport St. and Linfield.
Mount Union's current run of nine straight playoff appearances (1992-2000) is more than twice as long as anyone else in Division III football. Next in line are Trinity (TX) and Western Maryland, each with four straight appearances. Augustana's ten year run (1981-1990) is the longest in the history of the Division III football playoff tournament.
The Purple Raiders have qualified for their 12th playoff appearance. Central (IA) has qualified the most with 15 appearances. You can find out more about school's playoff participation here.
Posted by Ric 11/12/00
Mount Union received the number one seed in the North Region of today's Division III playoff draw. That means the Purple Raiders will host all playoff games it plays prior to the Stagg Bowl, which again will be held in Salem, Virginia. If Mount Union wins the North Region, it's opponent in the semi-finals will be the East Region winner, at Mount Union Stadium. The Raiders have a first round bye and will play the winner of the Millikin - Ohio Northern contest in the second round. You can see the entire playoff bracket here.
I have also posted our recap from Dick Ross of yesterday's win over Heidelberg. You can read it here.
Posted by Ric 11/11/00
The Mount Union Purple Raiders wrapped up another unbeaten regular season with a 53-point victory today over 'The Berg. Mount Union claims it's ninth straight and 12th overall Ohio Athletic Conference Championship. It is anticipated that the Purple Raiders will receive the number one seed in the North Region, which would also mean a first round playoff bye. We will have the playoff schedule here tomorrow when it is announced by the NCAA.
Posted by Ric 11/10/00
The Division III playoff pairings will be announced by the NCAA at 2pm on Sunday. The Mount Union Sports Information Department will post the information as soon as they get word and we will also let you know the schedule here. This should be an interesting draw, probably with only one OAC team making the field of 28. I'm anticipating that Mount Union will receive a first-round bye with a win over Heidelberg, but when it comes to the NCAA, better safe to wait until you are officially told.
Posted by Ric 11/9/00
There will be no official tailgate party
before this weekend's game due to the fact all the parents have decided to DO THE
BRUNCH! Thanks to the Rychels for the picture of last week's tailgate party.
Posted by Ric 11/8/00
I've added some great pictures taken from the sidelines by Bill Gough to our game recap of this past weekend's Purple Raider victory over the Yellow Jackets. You can see them here. I changed a couple of the pic's in the right menu on this page as well.
The official game preview for this Saturday's season finale between Mount Union and Heidelberg has been posted by the Mount Union College Sports Information Department. You can read it here.
Posted by Ric 11/7/00
Mount Union continues to head the Division III Top 25 Coaches Football Poll with 45 of 46 first place votes. The latest poll was released today. Ohio Northern has also re-entered the Top 25 this week. You can see the entire poll here.
Posted by Ric 11/6/00
The Mount Union JV Football Team wrapped up a perfect 7-0 season this evening with an exciting 31-28 victory over John Carroll at Mount Union Stadium. The Purple Raiders took a 31-15 second half lead following a punt return for a touchdown by freshman Aaron Bubonics, younger brother of standout Raider receiver Ed Bubonics.
But the Blue Streaks didn't quit. After scoring a touchdown to make it 31-28 with four minutes remaining, the Streaks recovered an onside kick to setup a possible game winning drive. On fourth and goal from the three-yard line with less than a minute to play, JCU opted to go for the win, but a pitch left was stopped right at the goal line, preserving the Raider victory. John Carroll finished the JV season with just two losses, both coming at the hands of Mount Union. You can see the entire Mount Union JV Football results here.
Posted by Ric 11/5/00
Our recap of yesterday's impressive Purple Raider victory in Berea over the Yellow Jackets has been posted in the Headlines section. You can also get to it here. Game photos will be added later in the week.
Posted by Ric 11/4/00
The Purple Raiders were dominant today, jumping out to a 41-0 halftime lead and cruising in the second half to a shutout victory over the Yellow Jackets. The defense held B-W to less than 100 total yards of offense, while the offense clicked on all cylinders. Look for our game recap and pictures soon!
Posted by Ric 11/3/00
I've added pictures from last weekend's Mount Union - Muskingum contest to our game story. You can check them out here.
I've also added pictures of everyone that helps make this site come alive in our Contact Us page. If you're brave, go ahead and check us out :)
Posted by Ric 11/1/00
The Mount Union tailgate party prior to this Saturday's game vs. Baldwin-Wallace will take place in the Berea High School parking lot across the street from Finnie Stadium. Things will begin at 11:00 a.m. Same rules apply. Look for the Mount Union flag.