Choctaws put up a signature win
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The Choctaws (5-1), now 4-0 in the ASC, hardly have the race wrapped up with four conference games remaining. But of their four remaining ASC opponents, only Howard Payne (3-3) has a record of .500. Mississippi College could still lose one of these four games and still take home the conference’s automatic bid (Pool A).
It was the Choctaws' first win over the Crusaders since 1998 and ended a 33-game conference winning streak (one short of Hardin-Simmons' ASC record) for UMHB.
At first look, the most shocking thing would be the play of the Mississippi College defense. They had entered the game allowing nearly 40 points per game. Yet, they limited the Crusaders, who entered the game putting up well over 40 a game to just two touchdowns.
We mentioned that there are some plays to be made against the Crusader defense last week because of their aggressive style. The problem is, can you make enough of them? Usually, with UMHB, one or two big plays is not enough. Their offense will continually drive the ball and wear down a defense leading to large point totals.
And the Choctaw offense did make two big plays, totaling 95 of the 292 total yards in the contest. Quarterback Adam Shaffer did a nice job buying time in the pocket before finding Renard Ellis on a 49-yard scoring pass to even the score at 7-7 early in the second quarter. Then, trailing 14-7 in the third quarter, a weak side sweep to speedy Stephen Knight broke for a 46-yard touchdown to even the game.
Which leads to the question, what happened to Crusader offense? UMHB gained a season-low 322 yards. Injuries and inexperience at quarterback may have affected their continuity. Leading rusher Quincy Daniels, nursing a sore knee, did not play and second leading rusher Rickie Williams broke a bone early in the third quarter and appears lost for the season. Center Dustin Davis, also an important cog in the run game, also went down during the game.
Desmond Mays, the former Choctaw, stepped in to rush for 115 yards, but the Crusaders could be in the same boat as last year when their tailback position looked like a MASH unit.
The Crusaders have been tremendous converting third downs this season, but were just 2-of-12 on Saturday. They also went 0-of-2 on fourth down. Freshman quarterback LiDarral Bailey was sacked four times, including twice in the fourth quarter.
Crusader coach Pete Fredenburg made a controversial call late in the game by pulling Bailey and inserting junior Kyle Noack at quarterback. Noack, the starter earlier in the season, had a second and ten pass intercepted with less than two minutes to go in the game. The series was his first of the game.
“We felt like we had missed some reads earlier, nothing bad. It was just a gut feeling that maybe (Noack) could give us a little spark," Fredenburg said of the change to Eric Drennan of the Temple Daily Telegram. "It turned out to be a bad decision, and it was my decision."
After the turnover, Shaffer was able to drive the Choctaws to the UMHB 14 to set up the winning field goal. The senior was 3-for-3 for 39 yards on the drive after starting the day just 15-of-37. You have to feel good for Shaffer who is returning this season from his second season-ending knee injury. The senior’s statistics, 125 of 205 passes completed for 1539 yards, are not outrageously impressive. However, his 17 :2 touchdown to interception ratio is.
An experienced senior quarterback is always tough to beat. Perhaps, this was the difference is the game. Shaffer wasn’t having the greatest game, but he had enough experience and confidence to execute the offense in a pressure situation.
Bailey, the freshman, has a bright future, but was unable to lead the Crusader offense for a decisive score in the second half. It’s a learning process. You have to take your lumps sometimes when you are starting a freshman signal-caller. I have a feeling after talking to him after the following the Hardin-Simmons game a few weeks ago that he’s a smart, humble player who will be able learn from his mistakes and grow from this experience.
At any rate, as mentioned before, both teams are still in good shape to earn playoff bids barring an unforeseen collapse. The Crusaders will have the chance to avenge their only regular season loss from last season when they host Southern Oregon (2-5.) The Choctaws will have to travel to ASC rival East Texas Baptist, who has lost three in a row.
SCAC Decision Saturday
The SCAC title is still very much up for grabs as we enter the season’s eighth week. There should be greater clarity in this race as all four teams in contention pair off on Saturday. Well, maybe.
Centre (6-0), the SCAC leader at 3-0, travels to Millsaps (4-3, 3-1 SCAC.) The Colonels have had two weeks to prepare for the Majors and they may have needed it.
Starting quarterback Tyler Osterman is still out with a broken bone, but the jury is still out on whether last season’s starter Grant Conliffe can moved the team effectively after their 14-13 win over Birmingham-Southern a couple weeks ago.
When Centre scored on their first two possessions, they did it mostly on the legs of running backs Jonathan Pinque and Chase Porter. Pinque rushed for 139 yards and a pair of touchdowns on the day, gaining nearly half his yards on those two series.
The Colonels drove to the BSC 4-yard line on their third possession, but interestingly went for it on four down and goal. Conliffe’s pass was incomplete and the Centre offense spent the rest the game stuck in neutral.
The Colonels turned the ball over on an interception that was returned for a touchdown on their first possession of the second half, then stalled out on several other drives that reached BSC territory. All that in spite of converting 10 of 19 on third down and respectable 20-of-38 for 187 passing yards from Conliffe . The Colonels will need to make more big plays this Saturday to win and take points when they have the opportunity. Their longest pass play on the afternoon was just 21 yards.
A Centre win Saturday would keep them in the drivers’ seat for the SCAC title. They finish with Rhodes before traveling to Trinity on Nov. 7.
Millsaps, could put themselves back at the top of the SCAC for the fourth straight year with a victory and little help from Trinity. The Majors topped the Tigers 24-6 earlier this season but lost 29-27 to DePauw. They bounced back from a disappointing collapse in the fourth quarter against Huntingdon a couple weeks ago to beat Rhodes last week 38-22, but were outgained in the contest 313-270. Chris Graves was back in at quarterback after being knocked from the game in Alabama. So both teams face some question marks entering the game.
Speaking of Trinity and DePauw, both teams have just one SCAC loss. They also meet up in Greencastle at Blackstock Stadium this Saturday in what is basically an elimination game.
The best possible route to the SCAC title and automatic bid for Trinity is to hope for a Centre win against Millsaps and beat the Colonels later in the season. The Tigers appear to be rolling again, outscoring their last two opponents 81-14. The defense has really stepped up allowing just 256 yards total for those two games.
For DePauw, it is just the opposite. They lost to Centre in the conference opener, so they need a Millsaps win Saturday.
All this will determine a champion, assuming that there is not a spoiler out there in the SCAC like improved Austin or tough-luck Rhodes squad.
Mail Bag
I really enjoy reading is Peter King’s Monday Morning Quarterback column on SportsIllustrated.com. I like that he interacts with his readers by addressing people’s thoughts and ideas in his mailbag section every Tuesday. After last week’s column, I received this from a DePauw fan about my choice of offensive player of the year at the midway point of the season. I going to share it and then add my response.
“First of all -- I really enjoy your columns -- and perspective. I’m sending the following as a DPU fan and for the purpose of offering another opinion…
You selected Adam Shaffer as best offensive player at the midpoint of the season---and he is a very deserving player … BUT … consider the comparison with DePauw’s Spud Dick…
From the NCAA Web site…
Passing Yards Per Game
Spud Dick 318.75 ranked 10th
Adam Shaffer 269.00 ranked 25th
Passing Efficiency
Spud Dick 173.82 ranked 10th
Adam Shaffer 164.11 ranked 19th
Total Offense
Spud Dick 315.25 ypg ranked 14th
Adam Shaffer 262.00 ypg ranked 47th
While Adam is hitting nearly 65% of his passes, Spud is hitting more than 70%. In 3 of Spud’s 4 games he has been over 200 in passing efficiency…and coming off a concussion, led his team to a win over Millsaps for a 4-1 record and 3-1 mark in the conference.
Adam Shaffer is very deserving of best offensive player at midyear ... I just want to make you aware of some great things that Spud is doing in Greencastle. I am a fan of quarterbacks -- and for my money, Spud Dick is as good as they come at playing the position (making reads, delivering the ball, being a leader).
Thank you again for the great work you do, Jason!
The QB Scout”
I’ll admit that I considered Spud and that his numbers are superior. But the reason that I went with Shaffer was simply his unbeaten conference record and a 16:1 touchdown to interception ratio. (Obviously, I picked before the win over UMHB, but with a lack of humility, it does make me look good.)
DePauw’s loss to Centre was the big thing for me. Dick was knocked from the game and missed the next game too. DePauw was expected to be the favorite in the SCAC coming in and laid an egg in the conference opener. Spud’s been a great player but is he going to be able to get them into the playoffs?
He’ll need to have big game if DePauw is going to knock off long-time nemesis Trinity. I’ve felt your pain, we had the same problem getting over the hump at Wesley in the '90s when I coached there. But it makes it feel that much better when you get there. Maybe, this is the year for the Tigers of Indiana. We’ll see in the next couple weeks.
That was my reasoning and your points are well taken. Thanks for reading. Please, keeps the feedback coming.
Contact Me
You can reach me at jason.bowen@capital.k12.de.us, Conrad on Post Patterns or on Facebook at Facebook.com/jasonbowen3.