The DePauw University football team traveled to Springfield,Ohio this past Saturday, picking up their first loss of the season from 16th-ranked Wittenberg University.
Wittenberg beat DePauw 21-10, advancing to 5-0 on their season record, while DePauw dropped to 4-1 overall and 3-1 in the conference.
DePauw started off the first half with a one-yard run by senior wide receiver, Ian Good. Jake Kennedy of Wittenberg responded, scoring a touchdown off a three yard pass, evening the score at 7-7.
Senior kicker Marko Adams drilled a 21-yard field goal to push DePauw ahead. The kick was the 29th of Adams’s career and set a new school record.
With four minutes remaining in the first half, DePauw had Wittenberg at 10-7. It was at this point the game started going downhill for DePauw, when senior quarterback Matt Hunt fumbled on a second down. Wittenberg’s Carter Harris recovered the ball on the DePauw 20-yard line.
After gaining possession, Wittenberg receiver, Luke Bowling, tossed a 20-yard pass to Luke Landis on the first play for a touchdown. The extra point added to Wittenberg’s lead 14-10 with 3:29 left in the first half.
DePauw was unable to respond on their next series, punting the ball to Wittenberg’s 46-yard line.
Wittenberg quarterback Jake Kennedy completed a pass to Landis, advancing to the DePauw 13-yard line. Deshawn Sarley of Wittenberg moved up two yards on a first down run. On a third down, Kennedy and Bowling were able to finish an 11-yard score. With just 49 seconds left, Wittenberg improved to 21-10 over the Tigers.
Both teams failed to score in the second half, but an interception by senior defensive back Cody Baker in the fourth quarter gave DePauw an opportunity. With 10:53 remaining in the game, the Tigers pushed to the Wittenberg 23-yard line, but gave it up after two incomplete passes on third and fourth downs.
DePauw’s defense remained solid and held off Wittenberg before mounting their own offensive barrage that ended on the Wittenberg 23-yard line. A 41-yard field goal attempt by senior kicker Marko Adams was just wide right, ending the series.
“This was a tough loss for us, because we all felt like we were capable of winning that game,” Hunt said, “We had plenty of chances to put more points on the board, and the defense was playing really well. We definitely had chances and we need to capitalize.”
Junior wide receiver, Ben Wilson, expressed his motivation for the rest of the season. “We have to play each week as if it could be our last at this point, and we can't overlook anyone,” Wilson said, “We have to get better every day if we want to achieve everything we set out to do this season.”
Despite the loss, Good has high expectations for the team moving forward. “You can expect to see very lopsided scores. Our offense is going to be putting up a lot of points, and our defense is going to be making it very hard for teams to score,” Good said, “You can expect to see a team on a mission. We are going to be playing with a lot of passion, taking advantage of each opportunity we get. Oh and you can also expect to see the [Monon] bell.”
DePauw continues the season on Saturday as they travel to Allegheny College. The game will start at 1 p.m. and will be live-streamed on the DePauw athletics website.