McPHERSON, Kan. – McPherson College travels to Southwestern College Saturday evening looking to bounce back from a loss in its Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) opener last weekend. Kickoff from Richard L. Jantz Stadium in Winfield is slated for 6 p.m. The 0-3 Moundbuilders, who have been tested by a tough early-season schedule, are coming off a 28-14 loss at Sterling College.
The Series
Southwestern holds a 43-18 edge in the all-time series, which dates back to 1922. McPherson has controlled the series recently, however, winning eight of the last nine. The Bulldogs have also won three of the last four in Winfield. The teams have only met one other time on Sept. 23 - in 1995 - a 36-29 McPherson win in Winfield.
Last Meeting
The two teams met to open the 2016 KCAC schedule with McPherson claiming a 27-20 victory on Sept. 17 at McPherson Stadium. Trailing 20-7 after one quarter, the Bulldogs responded with the games final 20 points. Ed Crouch accounted for 356 yards of total offfense, running for 148 yards and throwing for 208 and four TDs.
New Home, Familiar Voice for Bulldog Football 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, sports editor at the McPherson Sentinel, 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.
Saturday's broadcast will begin at 5:45 p.m.
A Look Back at Last Week: Bulldogs Fall to Bethany in Aerial Showcase to Open KCAC Slate
Delayed until Sunday due to lightning in the Lindsborg area, McPherson and Bethany provided their own fireworks once the game kicked off as the Swedes outlasted the Bulldogs, 57-43, in the KCAC opener for both schools.
The teams combined for 1,091 yards of total offense, including 835 yards and 11 touchdowns through the air. McPherson signal-caller Ed Crouch won the yardage battle with a career-high 425 yards, compared to 410 yards for Bethany's Isaiah Salazar, but Salazar finished with seven touchdown passes to Crouch's four.
The Bulldogs got on the board first with an 80-yard Crouch-to-Desmond Anderson touchdown pass. The Swedes responded with a pair of Salazar TD strikes before McPherson could counter with a 1-yard Corey Davis scoring run to tie the score.
Bethany tacked on two more first-half touchdowns and then one more early in the third quarter to build a 21-point lead. The Bulldogs began to slowly chip away at the lead, cutting the advantage to just six on a Jack Reid field goal and Crouch TD passes to Anderson (45 yards) and Eman McNeal (5 yards).
The teams traded TDs in the fourth quarter with McPherson scoring on a 12-yard keeper by Crouch and a 3-yard pass from Crouch to McNeal, but Bethany answered each volley with one of their own as Aaron Knox scored on a 1-yard run and Salazar threw for two more scores.
Crouch finished 23-of-38 overall, becoming the first McPherson player to throw for 400 yards since Shane Mascarenas hit the mark on the button against the Swedes in 2010. He also had 49 yards on the ground. Davis rushed for 92 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries in his first collegiate start.
Dominic DeLuca had 16 tackles (nine solo) and Thomas Lanktree 15 (seven solo) to lead the Bulldogs defensively.
Breaking Down the Moundbuilders
Southwestern outgained No. 20 Sterling, 290-286, in its last outing, but the Warriors used a late pick-six to put the game out of reach in a 28-14 win over the Moundbuilders last Saturday at Sterling.
The Moundbuilders have had a challenging start to their season, opening with losses to now-No. 25 Hastings (52-35) and FCS nonscholarship Drake (55-14) before facing Sterling.
Quarterback Christian Gordon leads a balanced Southwestern offense that has averaged 164 yards through the air and 141 yards on the ground. He has 477 yards and six touchdowns, but is completing just 37.3 percent of his passes (38-of-102) and has five interceptions. He also ranks third on the team in rushing with 82 yards on 30 carries and two scores.
Carrying the load in the rushing game have been Keyshawn Wyatt and Silas Jefferson. Wyatt has a team-leading 181 rushing yards - averaging 5.3 yards per carry - but has yet to find the end zone. Jefferson has 102 yards on 29 carries. Southwestern may find it difficult to improve on those numbers as McPherson currently sports the league's best defense against the run. The Bulldogs, who also rank fifth in the NAIA, are allowing just 55.5 yards per game on the ground.
Gordon's most popular target has been Donny Ebanks. With 17 catches for 280 yards and three scores, he represents over half of the 'Builders receiving yardage and nearly half of the team's catches. Jacob Sigmon has hauled in seven passes for 86 yards and two scores.
Defensively, Southwestern has four players averaging six or more tackles per game. Marquis Hodge leads the way with 23 tackles, including 18 solo stops. Grant Torgerson has 22 tackles (13 solo) with 2.5 tackles for loss, while David Ashilonu has 20 tackles (14 solo) and 1.5 tackles for loss. Up front, Dallas Allen has 19 stops and a team-best 5.0 tackles for loss.
A matchup to watch will be when McPherson kicks off. Jordan Conway ranks third in the NAIA with 289 kick return yards, averaging 19.3 yards on 15 returns. Kickoff coverage has been an area where McPherson has struggled, allowing 27.1 yards per return.
Looking Ahead: Football Program to Dedicate Locker Room Prior to Sept. 30 Game Against Bethel
The Bulldogs return home next week for their first home game since Sept. 2 as Bethel College visits McPherson Stadium in the annual Blake Reed Memorial Football Game. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. on Sept. 30.
Prior to the game, McPherson will dedicate its football locker room in Reed's honor and memory. The dedication will be at 2:30 p.m. on the McPherson Stadium Concourse directly behind the newly constructed ticket booths at the southwest corner of the complex.
The event is open to the public and there will an open house in the locker room following the dedication.
