LEBANON, ILL. – Iowa Wesleyan College scored first but was done in by bad second and third quarters in a 48-3 loss to McKendree University in both teams’ season finale.
The Bearcats scored 21 points in the second quarter and added two more touchdowns in the third quarter, quickly turning a close game into an ugly day for the Tigers. With the loss IWC finished its season 3-8 overall, 1-6 in the Mid-States Football Association Midwest League.
The Tigers scored first and played the Bearcats on even ground for a quarter, stopping McKendree’s option offense on its first two drives. IWC then scored on its second drive, with Scott Knipfer (Sr.-Cottage Grove, Wis.) drilling a 37-yard field goal with 1:52 left in the quarter to make it 3-0. The three points gave Knipfer the all-time school record for career field goals with 21, breaking the record of 20 set by Steve Wasko from 1985-87.
Things started to turn sour on the next drive, though, as George Smith broke through up the middle for a 53-yard touchdown run. The Bearcats missed the extra point to keep the score at 6-3, but on the Tigers’ second play of their next drive a fumble after a long pass play gave McKendree the ball back again in IWC territory.
The Bearcats scored on their second play of the second quarter to make it 13-3, and IWC’s offense began to stall going into the wind, giving McKendree continued good field position. The Bearcats made it pay finally with a touchdown late in the quarter, and then got the ball back and executed a two-minute drill to perfection for one more touchdown before halftime.
McKendree added two more scores early in the third quarter, taking advantage of back-to-back interceptions, and added one more touchdown in the fourth quarter. The Tigers were held to 93 yards in the second half and a total of 182 yards in the game and were unable to score in the final minutes despite a fumble recovered by Derek Glasscock (Fr.-Beckemeyer, Ill.) in Bearcat territory.
Bryan Abihider (Sr.-Hemet, Calif.) completed 23 of 34 passes for 129 yards, throwing shallow pass routes for most of the day but becoming the first IWC quarterback since Wyatt Miller in 1998 to throw for over 2,000 yards in a season. Lawrence Moore (So.-Country Club Hills, Ill.) had 11 catches for 37 yards and finished with 1,001 yards receiving on the season, the first Tiger since Bruce Carter in 1991 to finish with over 1,000 yards receiving in a season.
Jaren Maybin (Jr.-Baltimore, Md.) rushed for 48 yards on 14 carries and finished 30 yards shy of 1,000 for the season. The Tigers had just nine first downs in the game, tying for the team’s lowest mark of the season, and committed four turnovers.
Seniors Jerry Wimes (Mount Dora, Fla.) and Kyle DeRossett (Dupo, Ill.) both finished their careers with strong performances, recording 11 tackles each. Chris Owens (So.-Greer, S.C.) also added 11 tackles, and Scott Baldwin (Jr.-Penn Valley, Calif.) also had eight tackles, including two sacks.
McKendree finished with 344 yards of offense, using the short field to its advantage on the majority of its drives. The Bearcats had only two drives longer than 46 yards and had four touchdown drives of 27 yards or fewer.
The game was the final one for ten IWC seniors, including Knipfer, Abihider, Wimes, DeRossett, Clint Hunold (Donnellson, Iowa), Lonzell Maddock (Seattle, Wash.), Tyler McGuire (Mount Pleasant, Iowa) and Mervin Shaw (St. Louis, Mo.). Seniors Deleon Bolds (Chicago, Ill.) and Quentin Lang (Bellwood, Ill.) were among four IWC starters who missed the game due to injury.
For more information regarding the IWC football program or any of the Tiger athletic teams, contact sports information director Adam Glatczak (319-385-6306 phone; 319-385-6384 FAX; aglatczak@iwc.edu e-mail) or log on to IWC's athletics web site at www.iwc.edu/athletics.
