Football | 9/25/2014 3:05:00 PM
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McPherson, Kan. – Saturday's 7:00 p.m. (CT) conference game between McPherson College and Kansas Wesleyan University will be the annual Blake Reed Memorial Game at McPherson Stadium. It is the first home game for the 0-3 Bulldogs this season.
Blake Reed was an inspirational leader and manager for four years at McPherson High School before committing his time to the McPherson College football program. Blake had a tremendous love for the game of football and it showed in his devotion to his teams
In Blake's honor, a special committee established the Blake Reed Mac2Mac Football Scholarship with the intention of benefitting a McPherson High School Bullpup football player or a McPherson College football player who exemplifies the character of Blake Reed and is pursuing a degree from McPherson College. In a special event at halftime of Saturday's game, the committee will present the scholarship to a member of the McPherson football family.
Each season, Bulldog football plays a game where all proceeds from the day will go to fund the Blake Reed Scholarship.
For additional information about the scholarship, please contact the McPherson College Advancement office at 620-242-0400.
The Bulldogs are coming off a difficult 13-0 loss to Bethel College. After a two hour delay, the contest turned into a defensive battle as barely 500 yards of total offense was gained by the two teams combined. BC scored their first touchdown prior to the rain/lightning delay and scored again in the final quarter but missed the extra point. McPherson had their chances, driving into scoring range multiple times but two missed field goals and a couple interceptions kept the Bulldogs off the scoreboard.
Joey Chase led the 'Dogs in rushing with his 42 yards on 15 carries. Redshirt freshman Cody Groff became McPherson's third quarterback in as many games and threw the ball 29 times, completing 12 to his teammates and three to the opponent; he ended the night with 110 yards passing. Three Bulldogs had receptions on Saturday with Michael Ramos leading the way with his six for 74 yards.
Jimmy Wilson was again a terror for the opponent, racking up 10 tackles with seven being solo stops; three of his tackles were for a loss and the senior also recorded a forced fumble and recovery. Defensive end Ben Kimbrough tallied six tackles and was followed by three others with five.
McPherson in the National Rankings: The Bulldog D is now third in the NAIA in opponent third down conversion percentage at 23.3% - Bethel was a mere 1-of-12 on third down Saturday. Wilson is ranked in the top-10 of the NAIA in three categories; the senior is fourth in forced fumbles per game (0.7), fourth in tackles for a loss per game (2.7) and seventh in total tackles for a loss (8.0).
After their home contest with Kansas Wesleyan, Mac will travel to Ottawa, Kansas for a 6:00 p.m. competition with the Braves of Ottawa University.
Scouting Kansas Wesleyan
After losing their first two contests of the Coach Drinkall era, Kansas Wesleyan started conference with a 42-37 win over the winless Southwestern College Moundbuilders.
It was a KWU led first half as the Coyotes, on the shoulders of their runningback Taylor Sachs, took a 21-3 lead into the locker room. The Builders didn't go down without a fight and pulled within five points at the start of the fourth quarter. Just as SWC was starting to gain some momentum, Kansas Wesleyan took an 88-yard kickoff to the house which all but put things to bed. Southwestern scored once more but ended the game losing 42-37.
The Coyotes totaled 482 yards of offense with Sachs being responsible for 173 of it as he rushed for 140 on 22 carries, had five catches for 33 yards, and ended the night with four touchdowns. Quarterback Jake Curran threw for 191 yards on a 15-of-26 night with one pick and two scores. On the receiving end, Michael Guerrero pulled down two for 41 and Matt Jones led the team in yardage with his solo reception for 54 yards.
The KWU defense gave up 548 yards with 339 coming on the ground; they did record four takeaways. Tanner Ranieri and Kretien Webb each recorded nine tackles with Ranieri having seven solo stops. The D didn't record any sacks but were responsible for four tackles for a loss for seven yards.
Sachs has totaled 250 yards on the ground and 151 yards receiving, leading the Coyotes in both categories; he also has tallied a team-high 26 receptions. Curran has a quarterback efficiency of 137.7 as he's thrown for 834 yards on 60-of-105; he has tossed five touchdowns and just one interception on the year. Mitch Kufahl is the team's second-leading receiver as the tight end has pulled down 14 passes for 218 yards; he is followed by wide-out LonDarius Thomas who has 12 recptions for 208 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Kansas Wesleyan has allowed 1706 total yards on the season, giving up 570 per outing; their opponents are racking up an average of close to 300 yards a game on the ground and 275 through the air. The team has been outscored 133-85 through their first three games. Colby Donohue and Webb each have 20 tackles on the season with Donohue leading the team in tackles for a loss with 7.5 for 16.5 yards.
