On a surprisingly warm Saturday in November, the DePauw Tigers walked into Crawfordsville to fight for the only trophy that truly mattered to them: the Monon Bell. Both DePauw and Wabash came into the game ranked No. 11 and No. 23 respectively, according to the AFCA Coaches Poll. While neither team was eligible for an NCAC conference title, both teams were seeking an at-large bid to the NCAA Division III postseason playoffs. In 2022, the Tigers regained possession of the Monon Bell after a 49-14 victory over the Little Giants, and the streak continues with a 41-20 fourth consecutive win.
After a fortunate coin toss favoring the Tigers, Buddy Gomez ‘28 kicked off the ball 64 yards to begin the 131st Monon Bell Classic. Starting on the 22-yard line, the Little Giants drew first blood on their opening drive, with running back Xavier Tyler rushing 8 yards into the endzone for a touchdown to make the first score of the game 0-7. The Tigers stalled out and were forced to punt during their opening drive of the game after quarterback Scott Ballentine ‘28 was sacked twice before ever gaining a first down. After a 12-yard punt return, Little Giants junior quarterback Brand Campbell was sacked for a 5-yard loss on the first down, and afterward threw an interception to linebacker Joey Roland ‘25 to set the Tigers up on their own 42-yard line. After a short pass to running back Carson Johnson ‘27 for a 22-yard gain, Ballentine ‘28 found wide receiver Lleyton Lukowski ‘25 for a 9-yard touchdown pass, with Matthew Berry ‘27 kicking a successful PAT to make the game even at 7-7 at the end of the first quarter. The Little Giants’ offense then slowed to a halt for the remainder of the half.
In the second quarter, after an unsuccessful offensive drive by Wabash, Ballentine handed off to Johnson for a 24-yard touchdown run to make the score 14-7. Defensive lineman Chris Green ‘28 sacked the Wabash quarterback for a 4-yard loss and forced the Little Giants to punt yet again. After a 67-yard touchback from the senior punter Brody Rucker, the Tigers started on their own 25-yard line and strode 75 yards down the field with two explosive plays from the running back Johnson and wide receiver Ballentine ‘26. At the end of the drive, Scott Ballentine found tight end Palmer Samuels ‘26 in the endzone for a 9-yard touchdown play to make the score 21-7. The Wabash quarterback Campbell then found junior wide receiver Luke Adams for a 30-yard reception to flip the field, but it was all for nothing when Campbell was sacked for 8 yards by Green. Rucker’s punt pinned the Tigers on their own 7-yard line, but this did not stop the offense from slowing down as they marched down the field, allowing Ballentine ‘28 to pass to receiver Lukowski for an explosive 21-yard touchdown play to make the game 28-7 in the final scoring play of the first half.
After a twenty-minute halftime break, the Tigers started their offense on their own 11-yard line after a botched kickoff return, which was fumbled out of bounds. Ballentine ‘28 threw deep to Lukowski for a 43-yard gain before being tackled on the 1-yard line. Running back Caden Whitehead ‘27 then finished the job by rushing up the middle for a 1-yard touchdown run, but a missed PAT made the score 34-7. Wabash and DePauw sequentially exchanged punts until the Little Giants’ offense finally woke up from its four-touchdown deficit and found tight end Rowan Durbin ‘27 for an 11-yard touchdown pass to make the scoring gap a little smaller at 34-14.
As the fourth quarter came underway, the two teams exchanged a series of punts until eventually the Tigers started at their own 48-yard line. In the redzone, Ballentine ‘28 threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Ballentine ‘26 to pad the score to 41-14. On Wabash’s final drive, running back Xavier Tyler found himself in the endzone, bringing it up to 41-21.
This year’s Monon Bell game showed an exceptional performance from both DePauw’s defense and offense. Scott Ballentine passed for a phenomenal 328 yards and four touchdowns. The running backs rushed a total of 141 yards of offense, scoring two touchdowns in total. DePauw’s two best receivers in the game were Luokowski and Ballentine ‘26, who collectively received 168 yards of offense and three touchdowns. The Tigers’ defense was able to force six sacks on the Little Giants’ offense, with Wabash only converting 3-18 third downs and 1-3 fourth downs. Reflecting on the emotions surrounding the game, Head Coach Brett Deitz said in an interview that, “...the team, they’re all stoked! They’re all happy that the bell will be here in the Lilly Center for the next 365 days!” As the 93-year-old locomotive bell continues to ring in Greencastle, the football team looks forward to playing an away game versus Wisconsin-Whitewater on Nov. 29 at 12pm CST, as part of the NCAA Division III playoffs.
