Gators Take on First of Three W’s - Wabash

Oct 4, 2006

Football Game Notes (PDF)
Gators of the Week

MEADVILLE, Pa. – Over the next five weeks, the Allegheny Gators hit the road for a trio of road trips to the W’s – Wooster, Wittenberg, and this Saturday Wabash – sandwiched with home games against Kenyon and Ohio Wesleyan. The trip to Wabash is likely to be the most daunting, both in terms of their opponent and in distance as the Little Giants are the defending North Coast Athletic Conference champion and the trip takes over seven hours and eats up 451.5 miles according to Mapquest.com.

The game pits the top offense in the NCAC, Wabash, against the top defense, Allegheny. The Little Giants come into the game averaging 41.5 points per game, while also ranking second in the conference in passing yardage (320.2 ypg).

Allegheny, on the other hand, gives up just 11.2 points per contest, while leading the league in pass defense (131.8 ypg) and pass defense efficiency (85.3). Helping that number has been the fact that the Gators have intercepted eight passes during the season, four coming from defensive back Andy Toner and two from linebacker Michael Cox. In all, Allegheny leads the conference and is fourth in Division III in turnover margin, averaging a +2.5 per game this season.

The scoring total is a skewed number, however, as Washington & Jefferson returned an interception for a touchdown late in the Gators’ only loss, while the Denison score came via a blocked punt return. In all, the starting defense for the Gators has given up just 18 points this year, as the Westminster and Hiram touchdowns came against the second and third string defense.

“I think we have improved from the spring time through fall camp and through the season,” said Allegheny head coach Mark Matlak. “When you watch our tape there is still room for improvement too.”

One of the big reasons for the defensive success has been the team’s ability to have players step into starting roles due to injuries or other factors and succeed. Every game this season has seen a bench player come into prominence. In the week 1 win over Westminster, Aaron Walter stepped in to the starting role at middle linebacker to record five tackles.

Against Washington & Jefferson, both Dale Ackerman and Toner each received increasing action in the middle of the game due to injuries, Ackerman at defensive tackle and Toner at defensive back. In the Hiram victory, Toner, in his first start of his career, picked off a school-record-tying three interceptions. Last week, Craig Lawrence and Dave Kleppick each got their first collegiate start, Lawrence picking up six tackles and a sack in the 17-point Allegheny win and Kleppick four tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss.

“Sometimes you get surprised when you put a guy in,” noted the head coach. “We have had to put the guys in with necessity of injuries, and sometimes you get surprised. We’ve had some good surprises. Dave Kleppick and Craig Lawrence last week, and Andy Toner the week before to name a few.”

Not to be overlooked, however, is the Gator offense, which has been hitting on all cylinders this fall. The Gators are putting up 432.5 yards of total offense per game this season, 276.5 through the air and 156 on the ground. The main catalyst for the squad is senior quarterback Jimmy Savage, who is on pace to shatter the school’s single season passing totals, as the third year starter has completed 80-of-140 passes for 1,088 yards and nine touchdowns against just three interceptions, all of which have been tipped by either a wide receiver or a defensive lineman.

Savage has been spreading the wealth this season, as 12 different players have a pass reception from the senior, including 10 in the Denison win. Senior Dallas Robinson and junior Jim Lieb pace the dozen receivers with 20 and 14 receptions, for 287 and 240 yards, apiece.

Wabash came into the 2006 season having lost All-American quarterback Russ Harbaugh to graduation, but the offense ran by Dustin Huff seems to be running on premium right now, putting up better offensive numbers than the 11-1 team a season ago.

Huff, who completed all nine of his passes last year for 149 yards, is 82-of-123 in the 2006 campaign for 1,265 yards and 16 scores. He is on pace to finish with the highest yard per game average in school history, having already thrown for over 300 yards three times, including a 416-yard effort against Ohio Wesleyan in which he tossed five touchdowns. He had his least productive game the last time out, a 10-of-14 effort against Earlham in which he threw for 150 yards and three touchdowns.

“The new kid is like a clone of Harbaugh,” noted Matlak. “The thing you come away with against Wabash is how efficient they throw the ball – how accurately they throw the ball. You have to be impressed because it is like they are throwing on air. There aren’t many balls contested. It will be a real challenge, but that is the fun part. It will test us to see how far we have come or to see how much we have to improve.”

Huff’s two primary targets, Geoff Walker and Mike Russell are quickly climbing into the Wabash College annals. Walker, who is ranked 21st in Division III in yards per game (99.5) and 24th in receptions per game (6.8), has climbed from 25th to 19th in career receptions in WC history. Russell has been no slouch himself, hauling in 18 passes this season for 351 yards, an average of 87.8 yards per game.

The squad will leave Meadville on early Friday morning and stop at The Ohio State University and practice before busing the remaining distance later that afternoon. Kickoff is set for 2:00 at Little Giants Stadium in the Homecoming Game for the hosts.

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