Visiting Heidelberg pounced on some Adrian miscues early on to set the tone for a 57-7 non-conference football victory on Saturday in the season opener for both teams.
= Final Score: Heidelberg University 57, Adrian College 7
= Location: Kapnick Field at Docking Stadium; Weather: Partly Sunny, 75 degrees, Wind W 9 mph
= Records: Heidelberg Student Princes 1-0 overall, 0-0 OAC; Adrian Bulldogs 0-1 overall, 0-0 MIAA
TOP DAWGS
= Freshman linebacker Dwight Mann led all defenders with a game-high 13 total tackles in his collegiate debut.
= Sophomore Jack Wurzer threw for 165 yards on 13 completions.
= Senior running back Colton Randle ran 16 times for 64 yards.
= Junior wide receiver Henry Wilson had three catches for 85 yards and a touchdown.
= Sophomore defensive back Brandon Kwiatkowski led all student-athletes with eight tackles for a total of 11. Fellow classmate Steven Moses also had 11 total stops in the secondary.
= Leonard Cohen, a freshman linebacker, came up with two sacks (13 yards) among four solo tackles and six total.
THE OPPOSITION
= Quarterback Jimmy Gephart threw six touchdown passes on 25-for-35 and 322 yards.
= Branden Short led all rushers with 116 yards on 26 carries.
= Tyler Matuszak led the visitors with six tackles, including three for loss of seven yards.
= Tramon Wiley intercepted two passes and finished with two tackles.
= Elijah Brechbill had four solos among five total tackles.
HOW IT HAPPENED
= The ‘Berg jumped out to a 30-0 lead in the first quarter and never looked back. Keivon Belcher caught a 13-yard TD pass from Gephart to cap the game’s opening drive in nine plays, 65 yards and 2 minutes, 28 seconds of elapsed time. Adrian’s first offensive series ended with a wild snap from center at the home 33, ending up in the end zone for a safety and 9-0 Student Princes lead at the 10:32 mark.
= The Bulldogs got on the scoreboard with 11:51 left in the second quarter when Wilson hauled in an electric 68-yard catch-and-run from Wurzer down the left sideline into the end zone.
= But on the ensuing kickoff, Montavious Year scampered down in front of his sideline for an 87-yard TD return to make it 37-7 just 13 seconds later.
= The Student Princes led 44-7 at halftime.
= Adrian had a 25-yard field goal attempt blocked.
= The Student Princes also dominated the key statistics: total offense (591-228), first downs (37-14), turnovers (0-2), third-down efficiency (46%, 6 of 13–14%, 2 of 14), yards passing (348-165) and yards rushing (243-63).
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
= Heidelberg competes in the Ohio Athletic Conference, which has claimed 13 NCAA Division III Football championship titles–all by Mount Union.
= Despite the loss today, Adrian still leads Heidelberg in the all-time series, 12-5, including a 7-3 home mark. This marked the first meeting between the schools since 2005 when the ‘Dogs crushed the Student Princes, 61-14, at home.
= The ‘Berg defeat Adrian for the first time since Sep. 14, 1996 in Tiffin, Ohio, a 10-7 victory, snapping a seven-game losing streak to the ‘Dogs.
UP NEXT
= Adrian has its road opener next Saturday at Hanover, which is a seven-time NCAA Tournament participant including last season.
This article was written using a press release and information generated by Adrian College’s sports information department. Media in this article is courtesy of Adrian College athletics. For more college sports, follow us on Twitter @MWSNsports or like our page on Facebook.
