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Magnificent Seven

Raiders Reign Supreme

Pride of Carnation City brings home 7th NCAA National Championship trophy

     SALEM, Va. - Mount Union's seventh national football title was simply magnificent.

     In a playoff run that witnessed the Purple Raiders continually turn back postseason opponent after opponent with larger point margins, Mount Union put an exclamation point on Stagg Bowl XXX with a 48-7 victory over Trinity that left little room for doubt who would reign over Division III football for a third straight year.

     In a contest that was overshadowed by a quarterback controversy on Trinity's part, the Purple Raiders made Roy Hampton's absence from the game a non-issue as they mastered a game plan that neutralized the swirling gale-like winds that approached 40 miles per hour en route rolling up 490 yards of offense on 82 plays and showing the football world that the Tigers' defense couldn't stop them.

     Meanwhile, the Mount Union defense held the nation's top offense to just 203 yards - over 300 under its per game average - and allowed just one long drive the entire afternoon in a brutal first collegiate start for signal-caller Dan DesPlaines in Trinity's first-ever trip to the Roanoke Valley.

     When it was all said and done, the Raiders were clutching their unprecedented seventh national crown and had surpassed Georgia Southern for the most championships earned in a playoff format and tied Oklahoma for most overall titles.

     "This is what it was all about," smiled Raider senior running back Dan Pugh.  "This is what we've prepared for all season long and since we were freshmen.  This is as big as it gets and it feels good to be a part of it."

     Pugh knew he would be a major factor in the game in the first and third quarters when the Raiders were going into the wind and that was obvious when he carried the ball on Mount Union's first seven plays from scrimmage.

     "We knew going into the wind, we were going to have to run the ball," said Pugh.  "That's just the nature of the game in winds like that."

     The Stagg Bowl MVP responded by going 253 yards on 49 carries for four touchdowns and in the process broke or tied nine records, including Oklahoma's Barry Sanders mark for most touchdowns in a season at 41.

     He scored his first touchdown on a 19-yard jaunt that was set up by a Justin Burton interception on DesPlaines' first passing attempt of the game.

     "On the draws Dan was very patient like when he broke to the outside for his first touchdown," said Mount Union head coach Larry Kehres.  "We tried to get him some steam and get a quick corner to get him running down hill on some sweeps today.  It was difficult to run inside on their two linebackers most of the game.  When we got him some room in the backfield to let him pick and choose where he wanted to go it was his bread and butter.  That's what he did today and he's done that all year."

     Trinity head coach Steve Mohr agreed that Pugh was a force to be reckoned with after the 2002 Gagliardi Award winner added runs of two, one and two yards for touchdowns as well as a two-point conversion.

     "(Pugh) is not your typical Division III running back," said Mohr.  "He made people miss in the open field and he had power.  He is the complete package and you can see why he is the nation's top player."

     Of course when the Raiders had the wind at their backs, they went to the air.  In the second quarter alone, quarterback Rob Adamson was 9-of-14 for 124 yards with touchdown passes to Randell Knapp (nine) Derrick Leach (19) after failing to connect on his first three attempts.

     "Rob Adamson has been playing his best football all season in the last four games," said Kehres.  "He has led his team through the playoffs well and the halftime score was a good indication of that."

     For the day, Adamson was 12-of-23 for 222 yards and three touchdowns, including a second one to Leach for 55 yards.

     "The wind was definitely a factor and Mount Union did a good job of running against it to change field position," said Mohr.  "They've got a great football team and we were disappointed we didn't play better, but that had a lot to do with what Mount Union was doing.  Our only momentum came on our third quarter drive, but they killed that."

     The Tigers' (14-1) only score came on an 18-yard completion from DesPlaines to B.J. Smith that was aided by a Raiders' personal foul.  It was one of two sustained drives Trinity managed to put together as the first resulted in a missed field goal attempt.

     Mount Union held DesPlaines to an 8-of-19 effort for 86 yards on the day and limited Tigers running back Jeremy Boyce to 92 yards on 15 carries.

     "If you can grow up in a day, this was it for me," said DesPlaines, who learned the Wednesday prior to the game that he would start when Hampton was dismissed.  "Their defense was fast.  A couple of times when I took off, I didn't have anywhere to go."

     Kehres lauded Trinity on the way it stepped up to the adversity.

     "It's a very difficult thing to play without your starting quarterback in a game like this," said Kehres.  "No team on that short of notice could be expected to win without some time to deal with the situation."

   NOTES

     Mount Union cornerback Chris Kern has been selected to play in the Hula Bowl in Hawaii on Feb. 1. ... Mount Union did not give up a punt return yard all season.  In the official statistics, opponents had two returns that went for zero yards. ... Raider defensive tackle Jeff Knoblauch played in his first game since suffering a torn ACL in Week 7 and his appearance came just 4 1/2 week after undergoing surgery. ... The Raiders now own a 2-0 series record over Trinity.

Mount Union 48       Trinity 7

Scoring

Individual Statistics

Rushing - Mount Union, Pugh 49-253, Bruney 4-18, Strauch 1-3, Burghardt 2-3, Ciccone 1-0, Adamson 2-(-9);  Trinity, Boyce 15-93, Hunt 1-24, Federle 2-4, Urban 2-0, DesPlaines 9-(-4). 

Passing - Mount Union, Adamson 12-23-0-222;  Trinity, DesPlaines 9-18-1-86.  

Receiving - Mount Union, Knapp 4-58, Liddell 3-34, Leach 2-74, Sirianni 2-52, Pugh 1-4;  Trinity, Urban 3-19, Hunt 2-35, Boyce 2-5, Smith 1-18, Respondek 1-9.   

  *By Jack R. Weber Jr.  Appeared in The Alliance Review 12-23-02; photos by Bill Gough.