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    2006 Playoffs

     Mount Union cruised through the regular season with a perfect 10-0 record, winning its 15th straight Ohio Athletic Conference championship and the school's 18th overall.

     The Raiders opened with wins over Averett (64-7), Otterbein (71-14), Muskingum (64-0) and Heidelberg (58-0) marking  the first time in school history the Purple & White scored 50 or more points in four straight games.  They also set a conference record for points scored in a quarter by opening the game at Muskingum in week three with 42 first quarter points.

     Week five brought Ohio Northern to Alliance with no one needing to be reminded it was the Polar Bears that ended Mount Union's record 110 game regular season winning streak on year ago.  But there would be no upsets this year as the Purple Raiders bounced out to a 14-0 first period lead on the way to a 49-7 victory.

     After a win at Wilmington (65-9) the following week, Mount Union traveled to Berea to face Baldwin-Wallace.  As has been the case in recent years, the Yellow Jackets played the Raiders well before falling by the final of 14-0.  That score marked the least amount of points and the closet margin of victory for the Purple & White during the regular season.

     Week eight brought unbeaten Capital to Alliance in a rematch of last season's NCAA Division III Regional Final playoff match-up won by Mount Union 34-31.  This game would not be as close as the Raiders blitzed the Crusaders to the tune of 17-0 after one quarter on the way to a 38-12 victory.  The Purple & White forced Capital's high powered offense to be one dimensional, allowing just 185 total yards, including -31 yards rushing, while generating 442 total yards of offense, 345 of which came via the rushing attack.

     Mount Union finished the regular season with wins over John Carroll (31-14) and Marietta (45-17).  The Purple Raiders never trailed, and were never tied after scoring in the ten game march to the conference championship.

     Following the regular season 17 players were named the the OAC All-Conference team, including eight first team selections.  In addition senior Jason Lewis received the Mike Gregory Award as the conferences most outstanding offensive lineman for the second year in a row and junior Pierre Garcon was named the Ed Sherman Award winner as the conference's most outstanding receiver.  Also, Vince Kehres was recognized as the OAC Assistant Coach of the Year.

-First Round-

     Mount Union received an automatic bid into the playoffs as champions of the OAC and the number one seed in the region.  The Purple Raiders hosted Hope, a number eight seed, in the first round of the playoffs.  Hope received an automatic bid as well as champions of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association and entered the contest with a 7-3 record.

     Mount Union scored 21 points in each of the first two quarter in jumping out to a 42-0 halftime advantage and cruised to a 49-0 win in the first meeting on the football field ever between these two schools.

     Seven different players scored touchdowns as Nate Kmic, Mike Jorris, Greg Micheli and Terrance Morring each scored rushing touchdowns, while Pierre Garcon, Chad Reynolds and Justin Wray caught touchdown passes. 

     Mount Union racked up 584 yards of total offense while limiting the Flying Dutchmen to just 75, including four net yards rushing on 34 carries.

     Mike Jorris and Greg Micheli combined to complete 18 of 24 passes for 344 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.  Each quarterback also rushed for a score.

     Pierre Garcon led all receivers with five catches covering 126 yards and a touchdown.  Justin Wray added 72 yards on five grabs and a score.  Chad Reynolds had two receptions for 44 yards and his first career touchdown.

     Terrance Morring led all running backs with 53 yards on seven carries and one touchdown.  Nate Kmic had 43 yards on six rushes and a score, while Trevor Bruney recorded 42 yards on eight carries and Matthew Barged added 40 yards on 11 totes.

     Tony DeRiggi led the way defensively, with seven tackles, including two for loss and one sack.  Justen Stickley and Sam Vucelich also recorded sacks while Jonathan Previlon got his first career interception.

     The shutout was only the second registered by Mount Union in 57 playoff games, with the first being the 66-0 win over Bridgewater (VA) in the national semifinals in 2003.

Mount Union 49       Hope 0

Scoring

-Second Round-

     Wheaton (IL) traveled to Alliance, Ohio for a second round match-up after defeating Mount St. Joseph 42-28 the previous week.  This was the fifth ever meeting on the gridiron between the Raiders and the Thunder with the Purple & White winners of the previous four.  Wheaton brought a 10-1 record into the contest and were tri-champions of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin.

     Mount Union wasted little time in getting on the scoreboard, moving 61 yards in three plays, all rushes by Nate Kmic, in grabbing a 7-0 less than four minutes into the game.  The score came on an electrifying 52-yard run by Kmic, his first of three touchdowns on the day.

     The sophomore running back capped the first half scoring with one minute remaining in the first period on a 28-yard scamper, finishing a seven-play, 80-yard march, giving the Raiders a 14-0 lead.

     Wheaton threatened to score twice in the first two quarters but were turned away on interceptions both times, first on the goal line by Jonah Wilson and then on the 14 by Daryl Ely.

     The Thunder managed a field goal in the third period but a second interception by Wilson and picks from Tony DeRiggi and Chas Yoder kept Wheaton out of the endzone all afternoon.

      The Purple & White made it 21-3 by driving 75 yards in four plays with Greg Micheli going untouched 22-yards on a quarterback keeper midway through the third stanza and Mount Union added two fourth quarter scores, a 13-yard pass from Mike Jorris to Pierre Garcon and a one-yard plunge by Kmic to finish off the Thunder 35-3.

     Kmic finished with 293 rushing yards on 29 carries as the Raiders rushed for 397 yards as a team.  Jorris and Micheli combined to finish six of 14 passing for 95 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.  Garcon had three catches for 67 yards and one score while Kmic had two grabs totaling 24 yards.

     Defensively, Anthony Ursetti led the team with seven tackles, while DeRiggi and Justen Stickley each recorded quarterback sacks.  Wheaton left Alliance 0-5 against Mount Union in playoff action and 6-0 against everybody else.

Mount Union 35       Wheaton 3

Scoring

-Quarterfinals-

     For the second year in a row Mount Union hosted conference rival Capital in the regional finals at Mount Union Stadium.  The Crusaders advanced to the quarterfinal round with playoff wins over Wittenberg (32-14) and North Central (IL) (41-13), and entered the contest 11-1, with its lone loss coming to Mount Union in week four of the regular season.

     The Purple Raiders scored 10 fourth quarter points to break a seven all tie in defeating Capital 17-14 before 2,817 fans in Alliance.

     Mike Zimmerman's 20-yard field goal and Greg Micheli's one-yard run gave the Purple Raiders a 17-7 lead with 6:46 to go.  The Crusaders marched 60 yards in eight plays, cutting the lead to 17-14 when Rocky Pentello hit Derrick Alexander on a 42-yard touchdown pass with 5:10 remaining.

     Mount Union then ran all but 14 seconds off the clock with an 11-play, 45-yard march that used 4:45, picking up three first downs along the way, to secure the win and a trip to the final four for the 12th consecutive season.

     The Purple Raiders took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter on an eight-yard run by Micheli.  Capital tied it in the second on a 10-yard pass from Pentello to Mike Niedzwiecki and it stayed that way until the fourth.

     Mount Union finished with 330 total yards, 302 rushing and 28 passing.  Capital managed 234, -21 on the ground and 255 through the air.  The Purple & White attempted just three passes in the second half, completing all three for 12 yards.  Mike Jorris and Micheli combined to complete five of nine passes in the game for 28 yards and one interception, which came by Jorris early in the contest.

     Kmic led all rushers with 169 yards on 38 attempts, while Micheli carried it 24 times for a career high 116 yards.  Garcon had four catches covering 22 yards and Wray had the other reception for six yards.

     Defensively, Daryl Ely led the Raiders with six tackles, while Matt Kostlenik, Sam Vucelich and Jonah Wilson each had five.  Justen Stickley recorded two sacks with Tony DeRiggi and Vucelich getting one.  Kostelnik and Vucelich each had interceptions. 

Mount Union 17       Capital 14

Scoring

-Semifinals-

     The Purple Raiders hosted St. John Fisher in the semifinals at Mount Union Stadium.  The Cardinals advanced with a 31-0 win over Rowan in the regional finals after victories over Union (NY) (49-21) and Springfield (27-21) in the first two rounds.

     Mount Union running back Nate Kmic broke his own school single game rushing record by running for 371 yards as the Purple & White defeated St. John Fisher 26-14 before 3,532 fans in Alliance.  Kmic scored all three of the Raiders touchdowns on runs of 64, 24 and five yards and averaged 8.8 yards per carry in the contest. 

     Each team scored a touchdown on its first possession and a bad snap on a punt attempt in the second stanza that sailed over the punter's head and out of the back of the endzone gave Mount Union a 9-7 lead at halftime.

     After trading third quarter touchdowns, Mike Zimmerman booted a 25-yard field goal on the final play of the period giving the Raiders a 19-14 advantage.

     Following a Cardinals' field goal attempt that was blocked by Justen Stickley, Mount Union traveled 80 yards in nine plays, all carries by Kmic, to take a 26-14 lead with just under six minutes remaining.

     The Purple Raiders forced a St. John Fisher punt and ran out the clock to advance to the national championship game for the 10th time in the last 14 years.

     Mount Union finished with 429 yards and averaged 6.6 yards per play.  The Cardinals managed 222 at a 3.8 yards per clip.  Kmic is the first to credit his offensive line as a big reason he runs like he does.  Fisher echoed that after the game, saying this was the best offensive line they had ever faced.

     Mike Jorris and Greg Micheli combined to complete eight of 14 passes for 51 yards.  Justin Wray had five of the receptions covering 24 yards.

     Defensively, Sam Vucelich led the Raiders with 11 tackles and three sacks.  Stickley added two sacks and a blocked field goal attempt and Nick Parr recorded a sack.

Mount Union 26       St. John Fisher 14

Scoring

-Stagg Bowl-

     Mount Union faced Wis-Whitewater in the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl for the second consecutive year.  The Warhawks advanced with a 44-7 win over Wesley in the semifinals following a regional final win over St. John's (MN) (17-14), a second round win over Wis-La Crosse (24-21) and a first round victory over St. Norbert (59-17).

     The Purple & White scored three second half touchdowns to open up a one-point halftime lead in defeating Whitewater 35-16 before 6,051 fans, most of them Raider backers, at Salem Stadium in Salem, Virginia. 

     Greg Micheli hit Pierre Garcon on a 46-yard crossing route with 5:30 remaining in the third to increase Mount Union's lead to 21-13.  Less than three minutes later Matt Kostelnik broke through to block a Warhawks punt and Matt Rees picked up the loose ball and returned it 36 yards to increase the advantage to 28-13 in what would later be called the biggest play of the game.

    Following a Whitewater field goal early in the fourth quarter, Micheli and Garcon hooked up once again on a 10-yard touchdown with 10:59 remaining in what turned out to be the final points of the contest.

     After falling behind 3-0 through one, Mount Union took a 14-3 lead on a two-yard touchdown pass from Micheli to Anthony Antonucci and a 12-yard run by the sophomore quarterback in the second quarter.

     Whitewater answered with a one-yard quarterback sneak by Justin Jacobs and a field goal to make it 14-13 at halftime.

     Micheli was named the game's Most Outstanding Player after completing 18 of 22 passes for 202 yards and three touchdowns.  The sophomore also ran for a score and carried nine times for 42 yards.

     Pierre Garcon topped all receivers with 116 yards on eight catches and two scores, while Nate Kmic led all ball carriers with 111 yards on 25 rushes, becoming the single season rushing leader in Mount Union College football history with 2,365 rushing yards in 2006.

     With the win, the Purple Raiders won their second consecutive national championship and ninth overall, and became the first school in NCAA Division III football history to win 15 games in a single season.

Mount Union 35       Wis-Whitewater 16

Scoring