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Triple Crown!

Mount Union wins its third national championship

Raiders lambast Lycoming, 61-12

     SALEM, Va. - Back in mid-August, 217 Division III teams from around the country began preparation for the 1997 campaign.

     On Saturday afternoon, only one remained standing - Mount Union College.

     For the third time in five seasons, the Purple Raiders won the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl by beating Lycoming College of Williamsport, Pennsylvania by a lopsided 61-12 final.

     "We could have played our best football today, the very best we could have played, and still been beat by this team," said Warriors' head coach Frank Girardi. "They are by far the best team we have faced, and they are the best team in the country.  The are just outstanding."

     The Purple and White continued their reign as the premier team in Division III with exclamation points.

     Heading into the contest, the Purple Raiders needed just 54 points to set an all-divisions record in college football for the most points scored in a single season. They did that early in the fourth quarter when Reiko Gollate caught an 11-yard pass from Bill Borchert to give the Raiders a commanding 55-6 advantage with 12:06 left.

     Mount Union added another touchdown with 5:30 remaining when Steve Evans plunged into the end zone from two yards out, giving the Raiders a 61-6 edge.

     They ended the season with a total of 752 points.   It breaks the record of 744 held by Georgetown of Kentucky.

     Borchert himself broke the record for touchdown passes in the postseason, while Evans became the first player to win his third national title since a handful of Augustana players did it in the 1980s.

     "This was an excellent game and it started with the defense," lauded Mount Union head coach Larry Kehres. "We held them in the third quarter after allowing them to run 150 yards in the first half.  I think that set the tempo for how the rest of the game played out."

     With three quick strikes that lasted a combined 2:13, the Raiders took the wind out of Lycoming's sails in becoming the first back-to-back title winner in 12 seasons.

     "We still felt we could win this game at halftime," said Warriors quarterback Jason Marraccini, who was sacked six times on the day.  "We'd been down before and when they missed the field goal at the end of the first half, we really felt we could come back."

     Following a blocked punt recovered by Vince Kehres on the Warriors' first drive of the third quarter, Borchert scrambled into the end zone from 10 yards out on the very next play to score his only rushing TD of the year.

     "That blocked punt was really the nail that closed it," said Girardi.  "It really took us out of our game."

     The Raiders scored twice more in the third stanza when Brian Tyla and Ryan Gorius scored touchdowns on passes of 14 and 18 yards.

     There was never and doubt of which team was in control of the game.

     "I think this win is more impressive than last year's," stated Kehres.  "We couldn't stop Rowan last year on the ground and trailed 24-21 at halftime.  This year, we controlled the game early and stayed up."

     Mount Union opened the scoring on its first possession, eating up 78 yards in 1:49.  The drive was capped when Ryan Gorius ran 20 yards, diving into the end zone.  The Purple and White, vastly known for its passing game, threw only one play of the six-play series.

     "That set the tone for the game," said Borchert.  "It gave the team a lot of confidence and the offensive line a lot of confidence."

     But however potent the Raiders offense was, the defense matched it.

     "I don't think their defense gets enough credit," said Girardi.  "They controlled us all day."

     The Purple Raiders defense did what it's done all year, holding the Warriors to three-and-out on their first possession and scoreless in the first quarter.  In fact, the Purple "D" only had seven first-quarter points scored on it all year, that coming during the second meeting with John Carroll in the second round of the playoffs.

     Mount Union went up 14-0 with 3:47 remaining in the first quarter when Marc Lantos scored on a 23-yard pass.

     Lycoming lessened the deficit to 14-6 early in the second stanza when Jason Marraccini threw a 5-yard strike to Joe Sprang.  The PAT attempt by Jeff Cook failed.

     As has been the case during their championship run, the Purple and White immediately retaliated, going 65 yards in seven plays as Reiko Gollate was on the receiving end of a 36-yard pass.

     Mount Union continued to increase its advantage when Brian Tyla caught a short 3-yard toss while standing wide open in the end zone to complete a 75-yard, seven-play drive.  The 47-second march was keyed when Kevin Knestrick took an inside screen pass 55 yards to the Warriors' 3-yard line.  It was the first time the Raiders had used the play all season.

     With 1:02 remaining in the first half, Raiders defensive back Chris Cicchinelli picked off a Marraccini pass.  Mount Union was unable to capitalize when Bill Andrea's 35-yard field goal attempt failed a time expired.

     The Raiders compiled 697 yards of total offense to break the mark of 682 which it set last year.

     "It didn't matter who we played today," said Borchert.  "After my sophomore year and after last year, this team realized how much talent it had and I think we all had this goal in mind.  There's something magical about playing down here for us."

                          NOTES

     In 25 years of NCAA Division III championship play, the North Region has won the Stagg Bowl 14 times.  The South has not won a title since 1982.  They were the 22nd and 23rd undefeated teams to play in the game.

     Lycoming and Mount Union were the first two unbeaten teams to meet in the championship game since 1984.

     Of the 50 Stagg Bowl berths, teams from Ohio and Pennsylvania have accounted for 21.  Ohio has the most Stagg Bowl appearances with 13 and leads with eight titles.

Mount Union 61      Lycoming 12

Scoring

Individual Statistics

Rushing - Lycoming, Thompson 19-80, Love 2-3, Hill 2-2, Selvenis 1-(-3), Marraccini 19-(-15);  Mount Union, Gorius 7-86, Evans 13-63, Borchert 8-42, Lantos 6-37, Pollock 8-29, Gollate 1-3, Smeck 1-(-2). 

Passing - Lycoming, Marraccini 14-6-1-82, Showalter 1-1-0-34, Heintz 1-0-0-0;  Mount Union, Borchert 40-24-0-411, Zeppernick 1-1-0-28, Smeck 0-0-0-0. 

Receiving - Lycoming, Dumas 4-69, Maskerines 1-28, Regenski 1-14, Spang 1-5;  Mount Union, Tyla 7-102, Knestrick 6-163, Gorius 3-34, Gollate 2-47, Kershner 2-41, Lantos 2-27, Evans 2-17, Pollock 1-8.

  *By Jack R. Weber Jr.  Appeared in The Alliance Review 12-13-97; photos by Bill Gough.