Football | 11/5/2013 3:11:00 PM
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McPherson, Kan. – The annual inter-county rivalry game between the Swedes of Bethany College and the Bulldogs of McPherson College is slated for November 9
th at 1:30 p.m. (CT) in Lindsborg, Kansas. MC's Coach Sterbick got his first career win at Bethany last year.
The 'Dogs are coming off a 56-37 loss to the then No. 19 Sterling College Warriors. It was a high scoring affair last week as the two offenses seemed to be untouchable during a second quarter that produced 49 of the game's 93 points. Big plays were the name of the game for Sterling as they scored on five plays of 40 yards or more, three coming in said second period.
After fumbling on their opening possession of the game, Mac held off a fake field goal attempt by the Warriors but followed that up with a three-and-out. On their next play SC took it 42 yards to the house to start their five-straight scoring drives, all producing touchdowns.
McPherson did a nice job of answering Sterling's TDs in the second, making it past the goal line three times in a row. The 'Dogs had two scores from Tremon Robinson; the first happened when he picked up a Havelock Pomele fumble and leapt into the end zone and the second coming on a 30-yard catch and run. Pomele made up for his near-turnover and punched one in from a yard out, pulling the score to 28-21 Sterling.
After scoring right before halftime, SC came out and scored on their first possession of the second, jumping in front 42-21. Pomele added another touchdown to his day, bringing the Bulldogs back to a 14-point deficit.
The Warriors scored again in the third, taking a 49-27 lead into the final quarter.
Improving on his record, MC's Mike Phillips nailed a 37-yard field goal to kick off the fourth. Sterling then popped another one past the Bulldogs, giving them their 56 points. Mac found Robinson for a second time in the closing minutes, putting a 37 on the scoreboard for McPherson.
MC racked up 454 yards in the loss with 162 coming from the ground game which was led by Pomele with his 79 yards on 18 carries; Franklin tallied 58 net yards on two attempts. Hoffman had an impressive stat line, going 25-of-32 for 292 yards with no interceptions and two scores. Robinson pulled in eight grabs for 120 yards and a pair of TDs. Jon White was second on the reception list with five for 84 yards; Michael Ramos caught four for 38 before being sidelined with an injury.
If you take away Sterling's 267 yards they racked up on their five big scoring plays, the Bulldog D would have only allowed 312 total offense for the day. Unfortunately, those yards do count and as such Mac surrendered 579 to the Warriors. 202 of SC's yards were on the ground while 377 was passing yardage. Seniors Tyler Bruton and Cole Long posted nine tackles apiece to lead the team; they were followed by Dominique Henderson who had eight.
Following the Bethany competition, the final game of the 2013 season awaits the Bulldogs. Mac travels to Winfield, Kansas to play the Moundbuilders of Southwestern College; kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. (CT)
Scouting Bethany
On paper, the McPherson vs. Bethany game should be a good one as the two teams are right next to each other in the conference standings.
Last week, in what may be the upset game of the year, then 1-7 Bethany College, losers of six-straight, defeated then No. 7 Tabor College 24-17 in Hillsboro. The victory pushed the Swedes, in head coach Manny Matsakis' first season, to 2-7 on the year and gave them their first KCAC win of the season.
It was limitation of TC's yards and a pair of fumbles that was the difference between the Swedes and Tabor. The Blue Jays had been averaging well into the 400s for yards a game but BC held them to just 289 and barely over 200 on the ground. The Swede D also kept the high-powered offense sidelined by limiting their third-down conversions, 6-of-15. Bethany posted a handful over 300 yards of total offense in a balanced attack, 149 on the ground and 168 through the air.
BC running back Tevis Linnebur led the team in rushing with 78 on his 19 carries; he was followed by Zach Dovenbarger who rushed 10 times for 41 yards and a touchdown. The QB Dovenbarger threw for 168 on just nine completions; he had a couple TDs and INTs in the win. Rodney Molette picked up four pass receptions for 85 yards and one score while Kelton Evans recorded a pair of catches for 38 yards and the other TD.
This season Linnebur has racked up a team-high 596 yards on 145 attempts; he has five touchdowns and averages 66.2 a game. Jafar Thomas is second on the squad in rushing with 470 yards on 81 carries and has five touchdowns as well. Dovenbarger is 70-of-167 for 1019 yards from the QB position; he has totaled 12 interceptions, seven scores through the air and three more with his feet. Molette is the favorite target of the Bethany quarterbacks as he's amassed 25 balls for 370 yards and four TDs.
Steven Williams is the top tackler for the Swedes with his 64 stops, 10.5 for a loss including three sacks. Milton Collins has accumulated 52 for the year with 18 coming behind the line of scrimmage with 3.5 sacks.
Bethany's final game of 2013 will come against Bethel College in North Newton, Kansas on November 16th.
