McPHERSON, Kan. – McPherson College closes out the 2017 season by hosting Sterling College in the season finale. Kickoff from McPherson Stadium is slated for 1 p.m. The 8-2 Warriors, ranked 16th in this week's NAIA Coaches Poll, are coming off a 39-20 victory at Saint Mary last Saturday.
Senior Day
The team will honor eight seniors prior to the game – Isaac Murphy, Ashton Serpas, Tyrone Campbell, JJ Aleman-Perez, Ben Padilla, Jaelon Barnes, Wes Stevenson, and Isaiah Hill. The program will also honor Braden Bush, who would have been a senior on this year's squad. Bush passed away in June due to a severe asthma attack.
Game Broadcasts
After a number of years riding the terrestrial airwaves, all McPherson College athletics broadcasts have moved online for the 2017-18 academic year. Broadcasts can now be found on the Bulldogs' Game Central portal powered by Stretch Internet at http://www.macbulldogs.com/gamecast. Matt Cole returns as the play-by-play voice for Bulldog athletics to broadcast a full slate of 10 football games, virtually all McPherson home basketball games and select road basketball contests. Pregame for Saturday's video broadcast will start at approximately 12:45 p.m.
The Series
Sterling holds a 42-31-2 advantage in the all-time series with McPherson. The Warriors have won five in a row and nine of the last 12 overall. The teams have split the last 10 meetings in McPherson. The Bulldogs' last win was a 24-17 triumph at McPherson Stadium in 2011.
Last Meeting
Ed Crouch threw for 340 yards and three touchdowns, but the Bulldogs had no answer for the high-powered offense of the No. 15 Warriors, who pulled away late for a 44-31 win at Smisor Stadium.
Sterling led 20-7 after a quarter as Cedric Phillips scored on a 4-yard keeper then threw TD passes to Nathan Frame and TJ Brown. The lone McPherson score came when Crouch hit Brandt Wolters for a 36-yard touchdown pass on the Bulldogs' second drive of the game.
McPherson added a 25-yard Calef Contreras field goal to make it a 10-point game with 1:14 to play before halftime, but the Warriors' quick-strike offense responded just before halftime when Phillips hooked up with Frame from 21 yards out with one second remaining to take a 27-10 lead at the break.
Sterling extended the lead to 34-10 with a touchdown just one minute into the third quarter, but McPherson rallied for 21 straight points in the frame, cutting the Warrior lead to 34-31 as Crouch scored on a 1-yard run and found Brandt Wolters and Jackson Goodmiller with short TD passes.
The Warriors scored 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to close out the game.
The teams combined for 1,020 yards of total offense in the game, including an even 800 through the air. Phillips finished 31-of-44 for 460 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions.For McPherson, Crouch finished 22-of-48 through the air for 340 yards and three touchdowns, giving the Bulldogs their first 300-yard passer since Jordan Hoffman threw for 362 in a 51-31 win over Bethel on September 21, 2013.
Wolters was Crouch's favorite target on Saturday, hauling in eight passes for 127 yards and two touchdowns.
Dalton Whitfield led the Bulldogs defensively with nine tackles, while Dominic DeLuca registered seven tackles, including a team-high six solo stops.
Last Week
McPherson hung close with No. 19 Tabor for three quarters, but the high-powered Bluejay offense put up 17 unanswered fourth-quarter points to score a 46-29 last Saturday at McPherson Stadium.
On its third offensive series, McPherson gambled on a fourth-and-3 after being held to seven yards on the first three plays, and it paid off as Jake Tiernan found Jackson Goodmiller down the seam for a 23-yard touchdown.
Tabor responded with a 1-yard Logan Vach TD run to cut the McPherson lead to 7-6 after the PAT hit the upright. Daniel Mendenhall broke a long return and nearly scored on the ensuing kickoff, setting the Bulldogs up at the Tabor 34. Tiernan found Brandt Wolters for a 23-yard gain on first down, but the drive stalled out in the red zone and McPherson came away empty-handed as a 21-yard field goal attempt sailed wide left.
The Bluejays responded with a 33-yard TD pass from Curry Parham to Zach Johnson, then added a 23-yard Austin Smith field goal midway through the second quarter to make it 16-7.
On the ensuing drive, Tyrone Campbell broke a 55-yard run to get the ball inside the Tabor 20, then finished off the drive with a 5-yard TD run to make it 16-14. The Bluejays extended the lead to 15 with touchdowns on its next two drives. Parham first hooked up with Austin Conway for a 25-yard touchdown, then hit Johnson for a 31-yard TD pass.
McPherson cut the lead back to seven in the final minute of the first half as Ashton Serpas returned an ill-advised halfback pass attempt 40 yards for a touchdown.
Serpas later blocked a 35-yard field goal attempt by Smith. Taking over after the block, McPherson kept to the air, driving 74 yards on seven plays before Tiernan found a leaping Desmond Anderson in the end zone for a 39-yard touchdown to tie the game at 29-29 with 1:30 to play in the third quarter.
Parham scored on a 1-yard QB keeper on the first play of the fourth quarter to put Tabor up 36-29. He later connected with Johnson for a 44-yard score, giving the Bluejays a two-touchdown lead. Smith added a 19-yard field goal with 5:06 to play to conclude the scoring.
All told, the Bluejays racked up 658 yards of total offense. Parham accounted for over 400 yards on his own, throwing for 370 yards and four touchdowns and rushing for 71 yards and another score. The majority of those yards through the air were gained courtesy of Johnson, who caught eight balls for 230 yards and three touchdowns. On the ground, Drevion Cooper rolled up 166 yards on 13 carries.
Tiernan performed admirably in his third start, completing 18 of 31 passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns. He also threw two interceptions and was sacked once. Goodmiller hauled in a team-best five passes for 40 yards and a touchdown. Campbell topped the 100-yard mark for the second time this season, finishing with 116 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.
Thomas Lanktree led McPherson with 12 tackles, while Serpas and Chandler Tisby added 10 apiece. Tisby also had a pair of tackles for loss.
Looking at the Bulldogs
With the insertion of Jake Tiernan into the starting lineup, the Bulldogs' offense has shifted more towards the pass. Averaging 363.2 yards overall, McPherson averages 204.6 yards through the air and 158.7 on the ground to rank fifth in pass offense, seventh in rushing offense and eighth in total offense. McPherson also has the league's No. 3 scoring offense at 32.7 points per game.
With three starts under his belt, Tiernan 61-of-116 through the air for 689 yards and seven touchdowns - an average of 229.7 yards per game.
Tyrone Campbell leads the team in rushing with 440 net yards and a 62.9 yard-per-game average. He also has five touchdowns.
Jackson Goodmiller continues to lead the team in receiving with 45 catches for 462 yards and seven touchdowns. Eman McNeal has added 28 catches for 374 yards and five scores, while Desmond Anderson has 24 catches for 448 yards - an average of 18.7 yards per catch - and four TDs.
The Bulldogs have slipped to ninth in the KCAC defensively, allowing 410.4 yards per game. Most of the damage has been done through the air, where McPherson ranks last among KCAC schools at 295.1 yards per game. The Bulldogs continue to have one of the NAIA's top rushing defenses, ranking 16th nationally at 115.3 yards per game.
Defensively, Lanktree has 86 tackles, including 2.5 tackles for loss and 0.5 sacks, to rank fifth among KCAC players and 13th nationally. He also has two forced fumbles and has two interceptions. In the trenches, Isaiah Hill continues to be an intimidating force. He has 46 tackles overall with 11.0 for loss and 7.0 sacks. Hill has ranks 15th in sacks per game (0.9) and 20th in total sacks. Charles Tisby adds 10.0 tackles for loss and four sacks to the mix. Alwin Crawford ranks sixth nationally in interceptions per game (0.7) and eighth in total interceptions (5).
About the Warriors
Sterling enters the weekend needing a victory to guarantee a share of the KCAC title and the league's automatic berth. The Warriors rank fifth in the league in total offense (372.8 ypg) - a ranking built primarily on a rushing offense that averages 198.7 yards per game. Through the air, Sterling ranks seventh at 174.1 yards per game.
Eric Butler has taken charge of the Sterling offense, completing nearly 60 percent of his passes for 1531 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also ranks second on the team in rushing with 591 yards and seven scores. Aaron Chisholm leads the team in rushing at 79.8 yards per game.
Darryl Talley has received more targets than any other Sterling receiver. He ranks in the top-5 in the NAIA in receiving with 68 catches and 847 yards. He also has four of the Warriors' 11 receiving touchdowns.
Sterling ranks in the top half of the KCAC in defense, allowing just 372.1 yards per game -- 142.1 on the ground and 230.0 through the air. Kenya Edner has posted a team-high 96 tackles. Swain Williams has added 71 tackles, including 15.0 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks, while Dezmond Howard has 14.0 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.
