By Clyde Hughes
D3football.com

It seemed it had all slipped away for the Wheaton Thunder over an eight-day span after its football team looked to be sitting on the top of the world ranked No. 4 in the country and playing essential for the conference title at home against North Central on Oct. 25.

But a resounding 44-21 loss to the North Central team that would receive the top seed in the Midwest region followed by a 37-23 loss the following week to unranked Elmhurst sent Wheaton stumbling out of the national rankings.

No. 25 Wheaton (9-2), given a second life by the NCAA selection committee as an at-large playoff team, beat No. 20-ranked Trine 14-0 on the road last week and now enters the second week of the playoffs with a renewed energy. The Thunder will travel to Hollett Little Giant Stadium in Crawfordsville, Ind., to take on No. 15 Wabash (10-1).

"It was like a shot of adrenaline," said Wheaton's cornerback and kick return specialist Pete Ittersagen. "We were surprised and excited all at the same time. When you feel you're not going to get something and you're able to get it anyway, you have a greater appreciation for it and you just want to go as far as you can."

Wheaton coach Mike Swider said one of the things in Wheaton's favor was its playoff history. Including this season, the Thunder has made the playoffs five times since 2002 and reached the regional finals in 2003 before it lost to Mount Union 56-10. Since 1999, Wheaton is a perfect 6-0 in first-round games.

"When you win that first round game, it legitimizes your selection," Swider said. "We challenged our players about winning the first-round game because it helps us down the road. We are focused now on being the best we can be because when you reach the round of 16, everybody has numbers. You won't run into a team that hasn't done something special this season."

Wheaton, particularly its offense, bounced back with victories against Illinois Wesleyan 44-10 and Carthage 51-24 to end the regular season. That appears to have been enough to convince the powers to give them a playoff shot.

The Thunder is averaging 34.3 points a game, but has a reputation as a top defensive club, giving up 17.2 points a contest. Wheaton's run defense is particularly stout, giving up 89.3 points a game.

Against Trine, with an offense that was averaging nearly 32 points a game with a victory over No. 18-ranked Franklin already under its belt, Wheaton's defense pitched a shutout. The Thunder held Trine to 66 yards rushing after Trine averaged 191.9 yards a game all season.

"We've been playing pretty solid on defense," Swider said. "We turned the ball over four times and we still had a shutout. That's because we're playing exceedingly well in the red zone. We bent but never broke. Our kids really played well in the red zone."

But Wheaton will meet its defensive equal in Wabash. Wabash is ranked 13th in the nation in total defense, limiting teams to 253 yards a game. Wabash is coming off a 20-17 victory over No. 11 Case Western Reserve last Saturday.

Wabash, which breezed through to the North Coast Athletic Conference title, only stumbled in the final contest of the season against rival DePauw 36-14 in the Monon Bell Game.
"Wabash is a great opponent," Ittersagen said. "Offensively, their quarterback (junior Matt Hudson) is a player. We've scrimmaged them and seen him on film. We have to shut them down up front. We've got to pressure him at quarterback. We have to execute our jobs and do what we are suppose to bed doing."

Swider said in a game with two experienced playoff teams, little things such as special teams, field position and eliminating turnovers can play vital roles in who wins.

"We have to generate some first downs against them," Swider said. "We want to eliminate three-and-outs. We may not score but what we do is improve our field position the next time we have to ball so we can score. When you're playing a good team like this, you want to get first downs and keep the ball moving."

Wheaton is no stranger to winning. Over the past nine years, Wheaton has been one of the most successful football programs in Division III with an .800 winning percentage (80-20).

Swider now has the most victories in school history as a coach with a 105-31 record since taking over the program in 1996.

Swider said regardless of what happens Saturday, he wants his team to make the most of this second chance they got on the season. He said the Thunder can make a big statement for Wheaton with a victory over Wabash.

"Christmas came early here in Wheaton," Swider said. "We're just happy to be alive and kicking and we're very excited about this opportunity. Wabash is a solid team and everyone is good at this level. We're looking forward to the game."