Football | 11/9/2013 5:25:00 PM
Box Score
McPherson, Kan. – For the first time in what seems like a long time, both the offense and defense for Bulldog football were clicking, giving McPherson a 37-7 victory over inter-county rival Bethany College. Mac is now 4-6 overall and 3-5 in the KCAC.
MC started the game off with a bang as
Gerald Hardridge (Tulsa, Okla.) hit
Tremon Robinson (Dallas, Texas) for a 34-yard completion on a halfback pass. The Bulldogs would take 12 more plays before settling for a 22-yard field goal by
Mike Phillips (Spring Branch, Texas), putting Mac ahead 3-0.
The game hovered between the hashes for the next few possessions with neither team making any major moves until McPherson put together an 11-play drive that added seven to the board after
Havelock Pomele (San Jose, Calif.) ran in from 10 yards out. A couple drives later and
Trea Lott (Sterling, Kan.) intercepted Bethany at the MC 47 and returned it into enemy territory. From there, quarterback
Jordan Hoffman (McCordsville, Ind.) and the offense pounded another one in, this time with the QB taking it across the goal line for a one-yard sneak.
With just a few minute until half, McPherson strung together a few plays to get into field goal range for Phillips who blasted a 24 yarder through the uprights, giving McPherson a 20-0 lead at halftime.
After an impressive return to start the third quarter, the Swedes threw another interception, this one being picked off by
Micah Roehl (Dighton, Kan.) around midfield. While Mac didn't score on that drive, it kept the ball in Bethany territory which set up another Phillips field goal, this one coming from 28 out.
The two squads went back and forth to close out the third but the fourth started with MC having the ball on the Swede's side of the field, courtesy of a Pomele 39-yard run. Following two rejections from the one-yard line, Hoffman found his tight end
Jordan Brady (Mansfield, Texas) on third down for a score, putting the Bulldogs up 30-0 with 12:50 to play.
The Mac defense forced a five-and-out, giving the offense a short field which they took advantage of as Hoffman hit Hardridge for a 14-yard touchdown, bringing their daily total to 37.
With time winding down, Bethany finally found pay dirt, scoring on a quarterback keeper from the one-yard line. The 'Dogs then recovered the ensuing onside kick, all but securing their victory. After eating some clock, a missed 42-yard field goal gave BC the ball again which they gave right back to McPherson after four-straight incompletions. Mac took one kneel down, giving Sterbick his second triumph in Lindsborg 37-7.
Pomele took control of the ground game for McPherson, totaling 111 yards on 22 carries. Despite taking four sacks, Hoffman took care of business from his quarterback position as he threw for 202 yards and a couple TDs on 18-of-36. He found six different receivers with Robinson making a reception 11 times for 161 yards while Hardridge logged two grabs for 33 and a touchdown.
Allowing just 152 yards and nine first downs, the Bulldog D made a statement on Saturday. They recorded three takeaways and forced a 2.5 yards per play average.
Trenton Forrester (Salina, Kan.), who also claimed the punting duties for the day, led the team in tackles with five. Five players tallied four tackles and accumulated seven tackles for a loss and 2.5 sacks between them. Lott ended the day with a pair of picks and three solo stops.
One final game is left for McPherson football. The team travels to Winfield, Kansas to take on the 5-5 Southwestern College Moundbuilders on November 16th; kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. (CT)
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