 Junior tailback Chris Morris rushed for 178 yards and four touchdowns. |
The Little Giants jumped out to a 28-0 first-half lead in a dominating performance. Wabash churned out 359 yards and 21 first downs in the first two quarters while holding MacMurray to a total of 38 yards and only two first downs.
Leading the offense for Wabash was junior running back Chris Morris, who gained 141 of his game-high 178 yards and scored three of his four touchdowns in the first half.
Meanwhile, Wabash senior quarterback Jake Knott threw with pinpoint accuracy, hitting 18-of-21 passes for 194 yards in the first half. He hooked up with All-American tight end Ryan Short on a three-yard touchdown pass with 21 seconds remaining in the half to post Wabash to a 28-0 lead.
"Our offense takes what defenses give us," said Morris, who scored the game's first two touchdowns and now has 17 on the season. "Our offense is capable of running or passing, so when they put five guys in the box and double teamed Short, that created some running lanes."
Wabash's defense was smothering. MacMurray entered the game averaging 204 rushing yards per game. The Little Giants allowed only 171 total yards including minus-13 rushing yards on 26 attempts. Ends Josh Stanton (7 tackles, 1 sack) and Aaron Selby (6 tackles, 1 sack) led the way. Each player forced a fumble, and Wabash forced three turnovers in the game.
"Our defensive philosophy is to shut down the running game and put pressure on the quarterback," said Wabash coach Chris Creighton, whose team has won 18 games in a row. "We've been tough against the run all year. MacMurray has a great rushing attack, but we've seen a lot of good rushing teams so our guys were really up for it."
After the Wabash defense held MacMurray on its first drive, the Little Giant offense went on a 12-play, 74-yard drive that ended with a Chris Morris one-yard touchdown run for a 7-0 Wabash lead. Four minutes later, Morris capped a four-play, 84-yard drive with a 30-yard touchdown scamper, though Mark Server's extra point was no good. The key play on the Little Giants' second scoring drive was a 55-yard pass from Knott to sophomore receiver Brandon Clifton.
Server redeemed himself early in the second quarter with a 26-yard field goal that ended a nine-play, 54-yard drive.
Wabash wasn't done scoring in the first half. Morris finished a workman-like 11-play, 77-yard drive with a 13-yard run to the goal line with 6:21 remaining, then Knott hooked up with Short from three yards out for a 28-0 Wabash lead.
"The stats and numbers were there in the first half, but we made a lot of mistakes," said Morris. "That goes with our theme of always being hungry. It may have been our best half of football this year, but will it be our best? We just want to look for ways to get better every single game."
MacMurray got untracked in the second half by going to the passing game. The Highlanders' only significant drive came mid-way through the third quarter after Knott was intercepted by Jacob Kinsey. MacMurray then went on an 11-play, 46-yard drive and converted two fourth down plays before Jonan Tiarks hit Terry Davies on a four-yard touchdown strike. The extra point made it a 28-7 Wabash lead.
The game belonged to Wabash after that. Knott and Morris executed offensively, churning out an 11-play, 72-yard drive to drain the clock in the third quarter. Wabash again drove early in the fourth, only to fumble at the MacMurray 14-yard-line. On the next play, Tiarks was sacked by Selby, then fumbled, and Wabash had the ball only feet from the Highlanders' goal line.
Senior Matt Piechocki ended the scoring with a one-yard rumble on the next play. Olmy Olmstead's extra point made it 42-7 Wabash.
Wabash outgained MacMurray 473 to 171 and dominated time of possession. Wabash's defense allowed the Highlanders to convert on just one-of-12 third-down conversion attempts.
Wabash will host NCAC-rival Wittenberg (10-1) in the second round of the NCAA Division III Football Championship next Saturday, November 30 at 12:00 p.m. EST.
Wittenberg won at Hanover 34-33, blocking a field goal attempt in the final moments to secure the victory. Wabash and Wittenberg met on October 12 with the Little Giants earning a hard-fought 46-43 win in overtime.
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