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    2005 Playoffs

     Mount Union won a 14th straight Ohio Athletic Conference football championship in 2005 despite losing a conference game for the first time in 11 years.  Ohio Northern ended Mount Union's 110 game regular season winning streak and 99 game consecutive conference mark with a 21-14 victory in Alliance on October 22nd.  It was 11 years and one week to the day of the Raiders last regular season loss, a 23-10 setback to Baldwin-Wallace at Mount Union Stadium in 1994.

     The Purple Raiders finished 8-1 in the conference and 9-1 overall, one game better than second place finishers Capital and Ohio Northern.

     Following an opening season win over Washington (MO) 33-7, Mount Union completely dominated John Carroll under the lights at Shula Stadium in University Heights 70-0 in the conference opener.  It was quarterback Mike Jorris' coming out party as the junior completed 24 of 27 passes for 421 yards, seven touchdowns and no interceptions.  Mount Union became only the fourth Division III football program to win 600 games with the win.

     The Purple Raiders followed that up with a 55-7 win over Otterbein and then came from behind to beat Capital 42-24 in week four.  Mount Union trailed the Crusaders 17-14 entering the fourth quarter, but scored touchdowns on each of its first three offensive plays from scrimmage to stun Capital.

     The Raiders pushed their record to 6-0 with road wins over Wilmington (41-6) and Marietta (59-7).  Against the Pioneers, Raider fans noticed Nate Kmic for the first time.  The freshman running back carried the ball nine times for 61 yards and scored his first career touchdown, a precursor of things to come.

     Following the loss to Ohio Northern, Mount Union finished the regular season by allowing just a field goal in wins over Baldwin-Wallace (17-3), Muskingum (45-0) and Heidelberg (63-0).

-First Round-

     Mount Union received an automatic bid into the playoffs as champions of the OAC and the number two seed in the region.  The Purple Raiders hosted Mount St. Joseph, a number six seed, in the first round of the playoffs.  Mount St. Joseph received an automatic bid as well as champions of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic  Conference and entered the contest with a 9-1 record.

     Mount Union scored 42 unanswered points over the final three quarters and limited Mount St. Joseph to just one-yard rushing in a 49-6 win in front of 2,576 fans at Mount Union Stadium.  The Purple Raiders rushed for 324 yards and totaled 565 yards while limiting the Lions to just 58 total yards in the contest.

     Nate Kmic rushed for 157 yards and three scores.  Mike Jorris completed 12 of 19 passes for 225 yards and two touchdowns, one each to Pierre Garcon and Scott Casto.  Garcon caught three balls for 128 yards while Casto had five receptions for 61 yards.

     Garcon's touchdown came on a 92-yard pass play into the wind midway through the first quarter, erasing a 3-0 Mount St. Joseph lead and giving Mount Union all the points it would need in the game.

     Mike Gibbons led the Purple Raiders defensively with nine tackles while Greg Brauer had 2.5 of the team's six sacks.

Mount Union 49       Mount St. Joseph 6

Scoring

-Second Round-

     Augustana (IL) traveled to Alliance, Ohio for a second round match-up after defeating Lakeland (49-22) the previous week.  This was the fifth ever meeting on the gridiron between the Purple Raiders and the Vikings with each team winning two of the previous four games.  Augustana brought a 10-1 record into the contest and were champions of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin.

     Mount Union freshman running back Nate Kmic rushed for a school record 361 yards on 37 carries and scored four times as the Purple Raiders defeated Augustana 44-7.  Kmic scored on runs of 20, 19, 31 and 34 yards and averaged 9.8 yards per carry in the contest. 

     Mount Union scored with 34 seconds left in the first half and again 40 seconds into the third quarter to push a 13-7 advantage to 27-7.  The Raiders scored the final 31 points of the game.

     The Vikings score came on a two-yard run by Greg Cozzi with 1:50 remaining in the second period and broke a string of 19 consecutive quarters the Purple & White had gone without allowing a touchdown.  Mount Union held Augie to 30 points under its season average.

     Mike Jorris finished eight of 10 passing for 112 yards and one touchdown, a 40-yard pass to Pierre Garcon.  Garcon finished with three receptions for 60 yards.  Justin Wray added the final score on a five-yard run with five minutes left, and Mike Zimmerman booted a 26-yard field goal to account for the scoring.

     Defensively, Mike Gibbons had a game high 18 tackles, the most by a Raider in any game this year.  The senior linebacker upped his total to a team high 124 tackles on the season.  Jesse Wells finished with 13 tackles, while Sam Vucelich added 11 and Nick Barren 10.  Barren also recovered a fumble to go along with his interception.  Greg Brauer also recovered a fumble, while Buddy Wolf forced both fumbles.

Mount Union 44       Augustana 7

Scoring

-Quarterfinals-

     Mount Union hosted conference rival Capital in the quarterfinal round at Mount Union Stadium.  The Crusaders entered the contest with playoff wins over North Central (IL) (21-19) and Wabash (14-11), and entered the contest 10-2, with loses to Mount Union and Otterbein during the regular season.

     The Purple Raiders scored on a two-yard pass from Mike Jorris to Anthony Antonucci with 3:41 remaining to take a 34-31 lead and then held Capital on downs to advance to the semifinal round of the  NCAA Division III playoffs for the 11th straight season.

     There were six lead changes with neither side leading by more than a touchdown in a tremendous game played between two very good football teams at Mount Union Stadium.

     Jorris finished 23 of 32 for 315 yards and three scores, while Nate Kmic led the ground attack with 177 yards on 38 carries and one touchdown.  Kmic finished with 244 all-purpose yards in the contest.  Pierre Garcon caught 11 passes for 181 yards and two touchdowns.

     Mike Zimmerman booted two field goals to account for the scoring.  Mike Gibbons paced the team with 11 tackles, while Robert McDavid had an interception and Greg Brauer recovered a fumble.

     The Purple Raiders finished with 522 yards of offense, while Capital amassed 365.  Mount Union had 315 yards passing compared to 312 for the Crusaders but had a big advantage in rushing yards, 207 to 53.  With the win, Mount Union advanced to the NCAA Division III football final four for the 11th straight season. 

Mount Union 34       Capital 31

Scoring

-Semifinals-

     The Purple Raiders hosted Rowan in the semifinals at Mount Union Stadium.  The Profs advanced with a 27-21 win at Delaware Valley in the quarterfinal round after victories over Wilkes (42-3) and Union (NY) (28-24) in the first two rounds.

     The Raiders improved to 4-1 against Rowan with a 19-7 win before 3,236 fans at Mount Union Stadium.  The previous three wins came in the championship game with the loss coming in the last meeting between the two Division III football powers by the final of 24-17 in overtime in the 1999 semifinal in Alliance.

     After a scoreless first period the Raiders scored twice in the second quarter on a 30-yard pass from Mike Jorris to Nate Kmic and a seven-yard Kmic run to lead 14-0 at halftime.

     Rowan made it 14-7 after three periods on a one-yard run by Joe Rankin, but Mount Union added five fourth quarter points on a 25-yard Mike Zimmerman field goal and a safety when Buddy Wolf sacked Rankin in the endzone with six minutes to play.

     The Raiders held the ball for more than 40 minutes in the contest and outgained the Profs in total yards 322 to 176.  The Mount Union defense held Rowan to minus one yard rushing on 27 attempts.  With the win the Purple & White advanced to the Division III championship game for the ninth time in 13 years.

Mount Union 19       Rowan 7

Scoring

-Stagg Bowl-

     Mount Union faced Wis-Whitewater in the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl.  The Warhawks advanced with a 58-6 win over Wesley in the semifinals following a quarterfinal win over Linfield (44-41), second round win over St. Johns (MN) (34-7) and first round victory over Central (IA) (34-14).

     It was Mount Union's ninth trip to the national championship game, while the Warhawks were making their first ever appearance in a NCAA title contest.  Mount Union scored 28 unanswered points during the game to erase a 7-0 deficit and come from behind to defeat Wis-Whitewater 35-28 to bring the national championship back to Alliance, Ohio for the eighth time.

     Nate Kmic was named the game's Most Outstanding Player, rushing for 185 yards and scoring three touchdowns, including a 95-yard run to equal a championship game record set by Chuck Moore in the 2001 Stagg Bowl.

     The Purple Raiders led 14-7 at halftime on the strength of two Mike Jorris to Pierre Garcon touchdown passes, from 63 and 12 yards.  Garcon finished with 107 receiving yards and two scores while Jorris completed 20 of 28 passes for 246 yards and two touchdowns.

     Kmic scored twice in the third quarter on runs of 95 and two yards to make it a 28-7 advantage entering the final period.

     Following two Warhark touchdowns to close to within 28-21, Kmic scored on a 15-yard run to seal the victory.  Whitewater added a score with two seconds remaining but it was too little too late as Mount Union won its eighth national championship in the last 13 seasons.

Mount Union 35       Wis-Whitewater 28

Scoring