The Little Giants picked off two Wheaton passes in the second half, but could not convert the turnovers into points. Two missed field goals in the fourth quarter, one from 38-yards with just seven seconds remaining in the game, and a fumble to open the third quarter helped secure the Wheaton win.
Defensively, Wabash held Wheaton to 72 yards rushing. Last week against St. Xavier, Wheaton had 233 rushing yards in its season opener. The Little Giant defense also kept the pressure on Wheaton quarterback Neil Anderson, sacking him six times in the contest and falling just two short of the Wabash single-game record. Sophomore linebacker Nathan Boulais (Indianapolis, IN/Ben Davis) led the way defensively for Wabash with 10 tackles, two for losses. B.J. Hammer (Carmel, IN/Carmel) followed his Wabash Player of the Week performance last week against Manchester with another outstanding effort. Hammer had five tackles, all for losses. He also had two sacks and a forced fumble.
The young defensive secondary came up with two interceptions, one on a tip drill play. Brad Taphorn (Indianapolis, IN/Cardinal Ritter) tipped Anderson's pass to a waiting Treven Upkes (Springfield, OR/Springfield) in the third quarter, and in the fourth quarter sophomore Chad Springer (Bringhurst, IN/Carroll) collected his first career interception.
The Little Giant offense moved the football, finishing with 353 yards of offense, but could not convert the plays into points. Quarterback Jake Knott (Lafayette, IN/Jefferson) set a Wabash record for total offensive plays in game. The sophomore threw 57 times, completing 32 passes for 266 yards. He also ran 13 times for 29 yards. Knott connected with sophomore H-back Ryan Short (Indianapolis, IN/Perry Meridian) twice for touchdowns, and was intercepted twice. Short finished with a career-high 13 receptions for 84 yards. Josh Bronaugh (Crawfordsville, IN/North Montgomery) saw plenty of action on offense for Wabash as well. The freshman back split time as a receiver and running back, catching five passes for 69 yards and carrying the ball twice for 20 yards.
Wabash is 1-1, and will open the home portion of the 2000 season on Saturday. The Little Giants will face Wittenberg University in the first North Coast Collegiate Athletic Conference game for Wabash, with the kickoff scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at Byron P. Hollett Little Giant Stadium.