Main Page             Email

    2007 Playoffs

     Mount Union dominated its competition in the the regular season, finishing with a perfect 10-0 record, winning its 16th straight Ohio Athletic Conference championship and the school's 19th overall.  The Raiders began the regular season number one in both Division III national polls and held that ranking through all ten weeks.

     The defending Division III champions opened with a 75-7 victory over Averett in which they scored 52 points in the first quarter, breaking the previous NCAA record of 50 points scored in one period, held by Division I-AA Alabama State from a 1991 contest.

     Mount Union followed that up with a 58-14 win over Otterbein before blanking Muskingum 62-0, marking the first of what would be seven shutouts in the regular season.

     Week four brought a 62-3 victory at Heidelberg in the first road contest of the year.  The three points allowed ended up being the only points that would be surrendered by the first-team defense the entire regular season and the only points scored on Mount Union in the first half of play all year.

     The Raiders then proceeded to shutout its next six opponents, beginning with a 44-0 throttling of #8 Ohio Northern in Ada.  The Purple & White returned home for weeks six and seven and posted wins over Wilmington (59-0) and Baldwin-Wallace (35-0).

     Week eight brought a trip to Columbus to face #12 Capital in a rematch of last season's NCAA Division III Regional Final playoff match-up won by Mount Union 17-14.  The Raiders exploded for 23 second quarter points after a scoreless first period and went on to defeat the Crusaders 37-0.  This game marked the only time all season the Purple & White failed to score a touchdown on its first offensive possession of the game.

     Mount Union then finished the regular season with a 53-0 victory at John Carroll and a 57-0 triumph over Marietta in Alliance.  The Purple Raiders never trailed, and were never tied after scoring in the ten game march to the conference championship.

     Mount Union finished first nationally in total offense (552.8 ypg), total defense (115.8 ypg), rushing defense (12.2 ypg), pass efficiency defense (65.90), scoring defense (2.4 ppg) and team passing efficiency (190.44).  They finished second in the nation in scoring offense (54.2 ppg), tackles for loss (10.8) and sacks (4.3).

     In addition, Greg Micheli finished first in passing efficiency (199.20), while Nate Kmic finished second in scoring (15.0 ppg).

     The seven team shutouts broke the Division III record of six that was held by Mount Union in 2003.  In addition, Mike Zimmerman did not miss an extra point attempt and broke the record of 102 consecutive point after tries made which had been held by Coe's Rims Roof (1983-85).

     Following the regular season 18 players were named the the OAC All-Conference team, including 13 first team selections.  In addition senior defensive tackle Pat McCullough was named the OAC’s Paul Hoernemann Award winner as the conference’s top defensive lineman, senior Derek Blanchard won the Mike Gregory Award winner as the conference’s best offensive lineman, senior wide receiver Pierre Garcon earned the Ed Sherman Award for the second consecutive season as the most outstanding receiver in the conference, and junior quarterback Greg Micheli was named the OAC’s Mike Gregory Award winner as the conference’s top offensive back.

-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 Ithaca, a number eight seed, in the first round of the playoffs.  Ithaca received an at-large bid after finishing third in the Empire 8 and entered the contest with a 8-2 record.  This was the first ever meeting between the two schools that combined has had 17 Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl appearances (Mount Union 10, Ithaca 7) and 10 national championships (Mount Union 9, Ithaca 3).

     Nate Kmic ran for a season high 217 yards and scored four times in leading Mount Union to a 42-18 victory.  He scored on runs of 48, 64, two and one yards and became the OAC's all-time career rushing leader, passing Marietta's Kenneth Sasu (1997-00).  The junior finished the game with 4,790 career rushing yards.  He also passed Chuck Moore's conference mark for career touchdowns of 72.

     Jamie Donovan scored on a one-yard run for Ithaca late in the first quarter, giving the Bombers a 6-0 lead, marking the first time all year the Raiders trailed.  The extra point was blocked. 

     Mount Union responded with the next three scores, all big plays.  Kmic raced 48 yards for a touchdown, Greg Micheli hooked up with Pierre Garcon on a 40-yard score, and then Kmic scampered 64 yards to make it 21-6.

     Ithaca quarterback Dan Juvan hooked up twice with tight end Brian Weverbergh for short touchdown passes.  The two-point extra point pass attempts failed after each.  The first of these made it 21-12 at halftime.

     The Raiders scored three second half touchdowns while Ithaca managed only the second Juvan - Weverbergh connection.  Kmic scored on a two-yard run and Micheli found Bryson Davis from seven yards out to make it 35-12 after three.

     Following Ithaca's final score, Kmic put the topping on the contest with a one-yard run.

     Micheli was very good, completing 19 of 24 passes for 270 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.  Garcon had six catches covering 107 yards, while Davis added 51 yards on four grabs and each had scores.

     Patrick McCullough led the way defensively with 10 tackles, including one of the Raiders' five sacks.

     Mount Union was extremely balanced offensively, gaining 273 rushing and 270 passing yards for a total of 543.  Ithaca moved the ball through the air (324 yards) but not on the ground (13 yards) and finished with 337.

Mount Union 42       Ithaca 18

Scoring

-Second Round-

     The College of New Jersey traveled to Alliance for a second round match-up after defeating Rensselaer 17-14 in round one.  For the second week in a row, Mount Union was facing an opponent for the first time in the school's history.  The Lions were the sixth seed in the region and brought a 9-2 record into the contest as champions of the New Jersey Athletic Conference.

     Mount Union limited to The College of New Jersey to just 46 yards of total offense, while gaining 508 itself, in posting a 59-7 playoff win.

     Greg Micheli found open receivers all day.  Bryson Davis had the biggest game, finishing with personal bests with six catches covering 188 yards and three scores.  He alone accounted for more than four times the offense generated by the Lions.  His touchdowns were from 22, 71 and 45 yards. 

     Micheli finished 18 of 25 for 354 yards, four touchdowns and one interception.  Seven different Raiders caught passes, including Pierre Garcon, who scored twice, once on a 22-yard reception and once on a 13-yard reverse.

     But Daryl Ely had the biggest play of all.  The Raiders were forced to punt following it first possession.  Ely raced downfield to tackle Zach Rinaldi on the punt return, stripped the ball free, grabbed it out of the air, and raced untouched 28 yards to paydirt, making it 7-0 three minutes into the game.

     Kmic made it 14-0 just over two minutes later on a one-yard run.  The junior's second touchdown made it 21-7 with 8:53 remaining in the second quarter from 16 yards out.  He finished with 68 yards on just 14 carries, an average of 4.9 yards per rush.  Nine different Raiders accounted for 181 rushing yards on 40 carries and three scores in the game.

     The Lions only score was setup when Justin Wray fumbled a punt on his own 12.  It took New Jersey five plays to get into the endzone on a one-yard run by Dan Dornacker, making it 14-7 early in the second quarter.

     The Purple & White led 42-7 at halftime 59-7 through three periods.  The Raiders second team unit played most of the second half and there was really very little drop off from what the first team accomplished.

     Defensively, Troy Chaffin led the squad with six tackles, while Jonathan Andrews and Lambert Budzinski each had five.  Patrick McCullough, Joseph Millings and Chas Yoder all recorded quarterback sacks.

Mount Union 59       New Jersey 7

Scoring

-Quarterfinals-

     The Purple Raiders hosted St. John Fisher in the Regional Final at Mount Union Stadium.  The Cardinals advanced with a 38-7 win over Curry in the second round after defeating Hobart 24-7 in the first round.  Fisher was seeded second in the region and traveled to Alliance toting a 11-1 record and Empire 8 Athletic Conference championship.

     Mount Union scored touchdowns on each of its first three possessions in drubbing the Cardinals 52-10 in a rematch of last year's semifinal that wasn't nearly as close as that 26-14 final was.

     Nate Kmic ran for 199 yards on 20 carries and scored twice.  His one-yard run in the first quarter was sandwiched by two Greg Micheli to Pierre Garcon touchdowns, from six and nine yards, giving the Raiders a larger lead than they ever had in the semifinal last season.

     After a scoreless second quarter, the Purple & White made it 38-0 in the third on Kmic's 34-yard touchdown, Mike Zimmerman's 28-yard field goal and Garcon's 31-yard scoring reception.

     Fisher finally got on the board via a Chris Pierri 21-yard field goal in the final minute of the period, but a Justin Wray 16-yard run and Cecil Shorts' eight-yard scamper increased the margin to 52-3 in the fourth before Rob Kramer found Corey Jackson from 34-yards out for the Cardinals only touchdown in the game.

     Mount Union finished with 599 yards to St. John Fisher's 358.  Neither team turned the ball over but one of the biggest stats was Fisher managing to convert just one of 14 third downs in the game.

     Micheli completed 15 of 22 passes for 189 yards, while Garcon led the air attack with six catches covering 75 yards.

     Defensively, Chris Kappas led the Raiders with 10 tackles while Patrick McCullough had nine and Tony DiReggi notched eight.  The Purple & White recorded five sacks and allowed just one.  McCullough had two, Matt Kostelnik and Matt Williamson each had one and Troy Chaffin and Sam Kershaw shared the other. 

Mount Union 52       St. John Fisher 10

Scoring

-Semifinals-

     Mount Union hosted the Bethel (MN) Royals in the semifinal round at Mount Union Stadium.  The Royals won their bracket with victories over Central (IA) (27-13), Wis-Eau Claire (21-12) and Concordia (WI) (28-0), and entered the contest 12-1 and champions of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

     The Raiders scored on all seven first half possessions in building a 41-0 halftime lead on the way to a 61-14 victory before 2,791 fans at Mount Union Stadium.

     Greg Micheli executed a perfect play-action fake on the third play from scrimmage and lofted a pass to a wide open Pierre Garcon for a 46-yard touchdown just 1:02 into the game, giving the Purple & White a lead it would never surrender.

     By the end of the quarter the Raiders had added 10 more points, on a Mike Zimmerman 21-yard field goal, and a seven-yard pass from Micheli to Chad Reynolds.  The quick start propelled Mount Union to its 11th win in 15 semifinal contests.

     Two plays into the second stanza it became 24-0 when Nate Kmic scored his first of three touchdowns on a two-yard run.  After Zimmerman's season long 37-yard field goal made it 27-0, Mount Union added two more touchdowns before intermission. 

     Kmic scored on a 10-yard run and then Craig Nickoli intercepted a Dan Einerson pass on the 14 to end what had been the Royals best drive of the game (11-plays, 48-yards) with 2:11 remaining.  Mount Union, rather than run out the clock deep in its own territory with a 34-0, threw the knockout punch.  The Raiders marched 86-yards in seven plays to make it 41-0 when Micheli scampered in from eight-yards out.

     The only scoring in the third quarter was a six-yard run by Kmic increasing the Raiders' lead to 48-0 entering the fourth.

     Nickoli intercepted his second pass of the day and returned it 20 yards to make it 55-0 and Cecil Shorts scampered 28 yards for a touchdown from the quarterback spot to finish Mount Union's scoring, while Bethel's touchdowns came on Einerson passes to Nick Otto and Jared Bangs.

     Micheli finished 16 of 19 for 258 yards, while Kmic ran for 104 yards on 19 carries and Garcon caught five passes for 111 yards.

     Defensively, Brandon Mack led the way with 11 tackles, while Tony DeRiggi and Jonathan Andrews each chipped in with nine.  Patrick McCullough recovered a fumble to go along with Nickoli's two interceptions.  Nicholi's interceptions were the first of his career and his return for a score was the team's seventh defensive touchdown of the season.

Mount Union 62       Bethel 14

Scoring

-Stagg Bowl-

     Mount Union faced Wis-Whitewater in the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl for the third consecutive year.  The Warhawks advanced with a 16-7 win over Mary Hardin-Baylor in the semifinals following a regional final win over Wabash (47-7), a second round win over North Central (IL) (59-28) and a first round victory over Capital (34-14).

     The Warhawks avenged losses to the Purple Raiders in each of the last two title games with a 31-21 win to claim the University's first football national championship.  Mount Union's 37-game winning streak, which had been the nation's longest, ended in the process.

     Whitewater senior running back Justin Beaver was named the game's Most Outstanding Player after rushing for 249 yards and scoring ionce.

     The Warhawks went ahead 7-0 on their first drive after stopping the Raiders on downs at the 29.  Whitewater went 71 yards in six plays and took a lead it would never relinquish when quarterback Danny Jones scored from a yard out.

     Whitewater made it 10-0 in the final seconds of the second quarter after Beaver raced 45 yards to the 19 and Jeff Schebler kicked a 32-yard field goal.

     It was a game of missed opportunities for Mount Union, which had six drives end inside the Warhawks' 35-yard line, three on downs and three on turnovers.  The Purple & White fumbled six times in the game, losing three, and threw an interception, finishing minus-two in turnover ratio for the game.

     The Warhawks went ahead 17-0 on the first possession of the second half, scoring when Beaver was hit and fumbled shy of the goal line with the ball bouncing into the endzone just out of the reach of Pat McCullough and Tony DeRiggi before Whitewater's left tackle Mike Sherman fell on it for the touchdown.

     But the Raiders responded with two touchdowns over the next six minutes to cut the lead to 17-14.  Kmic got Mount Union on the board on an 11-yard run, capping a six-play, 57-yard drive.

     Then DeRiggi forced a Beaver fumble, which was picked up and returned 19-yards by Jonathan Andrews to the Whitewater 19.  Kmic scored from a yard out eight plays later to make it 17-14 with 4:05 remaining in the third quarter.

     Over the next 10:05, Mount Union held Whitewater to 12 plays, 38 yards, two first downs and three punts, but had to punt twice itself and then turned the ball over on a fumble when Micheli was tackled at the Warhawks' 39 with 9:09 to go in a three point game.

     Whitewater regained a 10-point lead when Beaver scored his only touchdown on a 13-yard run.  The Purple & White answered right back, making it 24-21 on a 10-play, 71-yard march 2:35 later when Kmic scored for the third time on a four-yard run.

     But Whitewater put the nail in the coffin after the kickoff when Beaver broke off a 66-yard run to Mount Union's four and Jones just got across the goal line from a yard out four plays later with only 1:58 remaining.

     The group of seniors that walked off the field for the last time posted a 55-3 record during their four-year careers at Mount Union, including four Ohio Athletic Conference championships, three Stagg Bowl appearances and two national championships.  Over that four-year period, no Division III football team was better.

Wis-Whitewater 31       Mount Union 21

Scoring