Franklin and Mount St. Joseph Set to Square Off in Cincinnati
October 23, 2008
CINCINNATI , OH - The Lions of Mount St. Joseph will welcome Franklin College to Athletic Complex Field Saturday afternoon. The Mount (4-2, 2-2 HCAC) enters the game looking to spoil Franklin 's (5-1, 3-0 HCAC) attempt for a second consecutive conference championship. Both teams enter Saturday's game after claiming victories last weekend. The Grizzlies dominated Anderson 56-27 on the road, while Mount St. Joseph defeated Hanover 37-19.
The Grizzlies ended a five game losing streak to the Mount last season with a 28-19 win in Cincinnati and went on to claim the school's first HCAC football championship.
Franklin will put up its nationally ranked offense against a nationally ranked Mount St. Joseph defensive unit. The Grizzlies enter the game ranked 25th in total offense (422.67 ypg), fifth in passing offense (326.8 ypg) and eighth in scoring offense (41.5 ppg). Franklin has been led by the arm of senior quarterback Chad Rupp (Evansville , Ind. /Memorial) this season. Rupp ranks sixth nationally in passing yards per game (315.33 ypg), seventh in passing efficiency (170.98), and has completed 66.2% of his passes for 1,892 yards and 20 touchdowns. He matched his career-best with six touchdowns last weekend against Anderson and was named the HCAC Player of the Week on offense.
The Lions saw their string of conference titles end at three in a row after suffering a loss to Franklin a year ago. The Mount defense will look to slow down the high powered passing attack of the Grizzlies. MSJ currently ranks fifth nationally in passing efficiency defense (86.15) and seventh in scoring defense (11.7 ppg), but will have to be on top of their game against FC. Mount St. Joseph 's defensive unit picked off a high powered Hanover passing attack seven times last weekend.
Senior defensive back Nick Yahl (St. Mary's, Ohio/Memorial) and junior defensive lineman Alex Harbin (Cincinnati , Ohio /Elder) will look to limit Franklin 's passing attack. Yahl has tallied five interceptions this season, including three last week against Hanover , while Harbin has posted 6.0 tackles for loss and two sacks.
Saturday will mark the 13 th meeting between Franklin and Mount St. Joseph with the Lions leading the series 7-5. Kickoff is set for 1:30 PM.
In other conference action .
Defiance (0-6, 0-3 HCAC) will look for their first win of the season as Anderson (3-3, 2-1 HCAC) heads into Coressel Stadium Saturday afternoon. Last weekend, Defiance dropped a hard fought decision against Rose-Hulman 28-21. Running back Lewis Caralla (Tampa , Fla. / East Lake ) turned in his best performance of the season with 188 yards and a touchdown on only 18 carries. Freshman quarterback Rick Powell (Rochester , Mich. /Cousino) completed 11 passes for 117 yards and two touchdowns to lead the passing attack. Anderson saw its win streak snapped at three in a row with a 56-27 Homecoming loss to Franklin . Sophomore running back Darryl Stott (Union City , Ind. /H.S.) led the Ravens with 107 yards and a touchdown on the ground, while quarterback Mitch Grider (Brookville, Ind./Franklin Co.) completed 18 of his 35 passes for a career-high 212 yards and two scores. Stott ranks second in the HCAC this season rushing the football, averaging 101.2 yards per game. AU will try and avenge last season's 34-7 loss to the Jackets. Defiance leads the all-time series between the two schools, posting a 28-18-1 record against Anderson .
Rose-Hulman (6-1, 4-0 HCAC) and Bluffton (1-5, 0-3 HCAC) will tangle Saturday afternoon in Terre Haute, as the host Engineers look to stay alone in first place in the conference standings. Rose pulled out a 28-21 win on the road against Defiance last weekend, while the Beavers fell to Manchester 17-7. RHIT defeated the Jackets thanks to a very balanced offensive attack. Junior tailback Calvin Bueltel (Huntingburg , Ind. /Southridge) crossed the 100-yard mark for the fourth time in as many conference games, finishing with 128 yards and two touchdowns. Junior quarterback Derek Eitel (Marshall , Ill. /H.S.) threw for 236 yards and two scores to pace the passing game. Bueltel currently leads the HCAC with 806 yards rushing and nine touchdowns this season. Bluffton's offense continued to struggle in a 17-7 loss to Manchester . The Beavers managed 215 yards against the Spartan defense and only converted 3 of their 15 third down conversions. Freshman quarterback Derek Dunlap (St. Mary's, Ohio/Memorial) will make his first college start Saturday against Rose-Hulman. Dunlap has completed five of his 14 passes for 55 yards this season. Last season, Rose-Hulman earned a 21-14 win over Bluffton and leads the all-time series with the Beavers 4-0.
The Hanover College football team will look for its first win of the season as the Panthers (0-5, 0-3 HCAC) travel to Manchester (4-2, 2-1 HCAC). Hanover enters Saturday's game after a seven turnover performance in a 37-19 loss to Mount St. Joseph . The Panthers surrendered 474 yards of offense to the Mount's offense and continues to rank last in the HCAC in both scoring defense (43.4 ppg) and total defense (457.6 ypg). Freshman quarterback Nick Sharp (Indianapolis, Ind./Franklin Central) finished 41 of 69 passing for 476 yards, two touchdowns, and seven interceptions in the loss. In three games as a starter, Sharp is averaging 368.7 yards per game passing. The Hanover defense will have a tough test against the Manchester offense. The Spartans lead the league in rushing (207.2 ypg) and rank second in the HCAC in total offense (402.0 ypg). The black and gold earned a 17-7 win against Bluffton last weekend. In the win, junior running back Brandon Wells (Woodburn , Ind. /Woodlan) found the end zone twice and galloped for 92 yards on 23 carries. Hanover has dominated the series with Manchester , leading the all-time mark 54-11. The Panthers have won eleven straight and 34 of the past 35 games, dating all the way back to 1971. Hanover defeated Manchester 30-28 last season.
Oct. 25 Schedule
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Franklin at Mount St. Joseph |
1:30 PM |
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Anderson at Defiance |
1:30 PM |
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Bluffton at Rose-Hulman |
1:30 PM |
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Hanover at Manchester |
1:30 PM |