Senior offensive lineman Jared Daiber prepares for the snap during a 23-0 victory against Rhodes College. (Josh Goldman | Student Life)

For seniors Tim Machan, a defensive back, and Jared Daiber, an offensive lineman, the football season is far from over. Despite a 28-8 loss in the last game of Washington University’s 2009 season, the two will be playing one more game.

Machan and Daiber have been selected to play in the 2009 Tazón de Estrellas, on Saturday, Dec. 19, on the Tec de Monterrey Campus Estado de México near Mexico City.

“It is almost like having two last games,” Daiber said. “It was nice to have my last game with [Washington University], the team that I’m closest to and the team that I really know the teammates the best, but it was also good to know that it wasn’t really my last game and that I get to play one more time.”

The two have known about their nominations since early November.

“It means a lot. I was nominated by [Coach Kindbom], so it means that he had the confidence in me and the belief in me that I was a good enough player to represent our team and our country for the Division III level,” Machan said.

Senior Tim Machan returns a punt in a 23-0 victory vs. Rhodes College on Oct. 3. Machan ended the season with three interceptions and 43 solo tackles. Two Bears football players, Daiber and Machan, have been selected to play in the 2009 Tazón de Estrellas in Mexico this month. (Josh Goldman | Student Life)

The game pits an NCAA Division III all-star team, Team Stars and Stripes, against Mexico’s best college players. Tec Monterrey is the premier private university system in Mexico. Its teams have captured eight of the past 10 Liga Major football national championships.

“They don’t have divisions for their college teams, so we’ll be playing pretty much the best [players] that they have,” Daiber said. “It’s a little intimidating, but I’m pretty excited.”

Team Stars and Stripes is composed of players representing a total of 35 universities from 20 states. The roster was announced on Dec. 2.

“I’ve always played with some really good players…but I’m pretty excited,” Daiber said. “It’ll be really interesting to play on a team where everybody really knows what they’re doing. If we get to know each other the week that we’re [in Mexico], it’ll be fun to see what we can do.”

The team will practice at the Tec Monterrey (CEM) facility in Atizapán de Zaragoza near Mexico City, from Dec. 14-18. During the week, they also will visit the Aztec Pyramids and the nation’s capital.

“I’ve never been to Mexico,” Machan said.

Machan was second in tackles (67) and interceptions (three) for the Bears this season. A first-team all-University Athletic Association (UAA) selection in 2007 and 2009 at defensive back, he has registered 183 career tackles and ranks seventh in school history with 12 interceptions.

“It’s a reward for a good career,” Machan said. “I’ve started for three years, played a lot of football here at Wash. U. and I think it’s a recognition of my efforts. Like I said, I am very honored and by no means have felt entitled to something like this.”

Daiber started all 10 games for the Bears this season, earning a second-team all-UAA selection. He is a three-time UAA All-Academic Team selection.

“Linemen don’t really have any stats, so it’s kind of hard to be honored,” Daiber said. “You don’t really get shout-outs, or you’re not really often player of the week…so it’s really nice to be recognized for my individual accomplishments.”

A crowd of around 10,000 is expected to attend the game.

“That’s a lot more people than I’ve ever played in front of,” Machan said. “It’s going to be a big crowd, a big atmosphere for a game, and I get to represent America and Wash. U.”

The team’s sixth loss, a 28-8 defeat, came Saturday at the hands of the undefeated No. 7 Case Western Reserve University Spartans of Cleveland, Ohio.

“I know that everybody left everything out on the field, so that’s all you can ever ask for,” senior running back and co-captain Matt Glenn said. “It would’ve been nice to walk away with a victory, but unfortunately we didn’t.”

The win for Case Western (10-0, 3-0) not only gives them the University Athletic Association championship, but also their third straight undefeated season and a 31-game winning streak in the regular season.

“When it’s all said and done, I think we’re a little disappointed, but it wasn’t because of a lack of effort. They’re a good team, too,” head coach Larry Kindbom said. “It would’ve taken not just a good effort, but a good performance to beat them, but I think we had the opportunities.”

Case running back Greg Meyer led a nine-play, 77-yard touchdown drive to start the game. His 7-yard run into the end zone gave the team a 7-0 advantage with 10:45 left in the first quarter.

The Bears’ defense responded and gave the offense a chance to tie the contest. Senior defensive back Nick Vom Brack intercepted quarterback Dan Whalen on Case’s second drive, returning the ball 38 yards to the Spartans’ 25-yard line. Junior Tim Johnson’s 41-yard field goal missed wide left.

“On defense, we didn’t play anything close to a perfect game,” senior linebacker and co-captain Andrew Berryman said. “The whole time, we had to go out and worry about ourselves and keep putting the offense in positions [to score].”

Junior defensive back Brandon Brown intercepted Whalen one drive later. The Bears would be limited to a three-and-out.

Despite a 42-yard run by Glenn and a 20-yard catch by junior Tom Gulyas on their next series, the Bears failed to score on a first-and-goal, turning the ball over on downs at the 2-yard line.

“We were able to put together a couple of drives and had some big plays, but in the end, it came down to finishing,” Glenn said.

The defense forced a safety on Case’s following drive, but the Spartan offense quickly responded. Meyer added another rushing touchdown with 3:11 left in the first half, giving the Spartans a 14-2 lead heading into halftime.

Case extended its lead with a 13-play, 67-yard touchdown drive with 7:55 left in the third quarter, but Wash. U.’s 17-play, 65-yard drive could not replicate the same success. The Bears turned the ball over on downs for the third time.

“We just had to play…a little better on every play,” Kindbom said. “It would’ve put us in position to win that game in the fourth quarter.”

The Bears did connect for a 3-yard touchdown rush by Glenn with 5:46 left in the quarter, but the Spartans took advantage of a failed onside-kick attempt, sealing their victory with a 22-yard rush only 1:25 later.

Wash. U. used three different quarterbacks in the loss, but completed only 22 of 47 attempts for 172 yards and averaged 3.7 yards per attempt. The team gained 309 yards of total offense, while Case had 385.

“I’m obviously not extremely happy with our record and how we [finished], but I think we grew as a team and got a lot better as the season went on,” Glenn said. “You can’t have any regrets. I love the team, love playing with all the guys out there.”

Junior running back Jim O’Brien runs the ball through the University of Chicago defense during Saturday’s 44-37 victory. The win was the last home game of this season, with the seniors being recognized before the game and head coach Larry Kindbom recognized for his 20 years as the Bears’ head coach during halftime. (Daniel Eicholtz | Student Life)

For the second time in the final half of Saturday’s game against the University of Chicago, junior running back Jim O’Brien was free.

He had zipped past the entire Maroons defense and was now in open field, with nothing between him and the end zone.

“I looked back a few times, just to gauge where [the defensive players] were at, just ready to maybe high step or something if they were going to dive,” O’Brien said. “It was just running as fast as I can, really just nothing else, hoping that I could beat them out.”

O’Brien’s run, a 51-yard touchdown with 9:32 left in the fourth quarter, put Washington University on top for good, 31-30. His career-high 163 rushing yards made the difference in a 44-37 rallying win on Senior Day, regaining possession of the Founder’s Cup for the Bears.

“The season hasn’t exactly gone how we planned or wanted it to, but, regardless of the record…if we’re 8-0 coming in or 0-8 coming in to this game, it’s going to be the same just because it’s such a big game for us,” O’Brien said. “We were ready to get that Founder’s Cup back on our side.”

Since the creation of the University Athletic Association in 1987, Wash. U. has faced Chicago annually, marking the very first UAA game. The Bears are 18-6 in the series and 18-10 all-time against the Maroons.

After a 14-yard rushing performance in the first half, the ground unit picked up 284 yards on 20 carries in the second. The Maroons outgained the Bears in total offense, however, 541-418.

O’Brien’s first touchdown of the game came on the Bears’ first possession. His 3-yard touchdown run capped a 10-play, 74-yard drive, highlighted by a 30-yard tailback pass from none other than O’Brien himself.

Chicago tied the game on two plays, ending a drive with a 27-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Marshall Oium. He had 401 passing yards on the day. A Chicago rushing touchdown made the score 13-7 minutes later.

Sophomore linebacker Daniel Sufranski intercepted Oium’s pass one possession later, returning the ball 29 yards to the Chicago 6-yard line. On fourth and goal, the Bears faked a field goal, taking the lead on senior defensive back Bryce Buchanan’s pass to junior linebacker Nick Diehl.

“Our coaches had noticed…that when we line up for field goals, [Chicago] leaves the tight end completely untouched,” Buchanan said. “We figured if we just faked a field goal and had him just run out for a pass, he’d be wide open, and he was.”

Chicago’s fumble at its 3-yard line set up another score. Junior Tim Johnson’s 22-yard field goal gave the Bears a 17-13 lead with 14:05 left in the first half. Two more Chicago touchdowns in the quarter, however, put Wash. U. in a 10-point deficit.

Oium threatened to put his team ahead even further, taking the ball down to the 9-yard line with under a minute in the half, before Buchanan intercepted his pass on second down. Despite the pick, the Maroons took a 27-17 lead into the break.

“We went into halftime and decided that as seniors, that’s not how we wanted to go out,” Buchanan said. “We came out on fire the second half.”

With 4:02 left in the third quarter, O’Brien blew by the Chicago secondary for an 85-yard rushing touchdown. Chicago stretched the score to 30-24 with a 27-yard field goal, but shortly after O’Brien broke for his third score of the game.

“We just kind of had to throw everything out and just get back to the basics,” O’Brien said. “They took it to us in the first half…Nobody wanted to lose like that, to go out on that note back here at home.”

Seniors halfback Greg LaChaud and running back Matt Glenn each had rushing touchdowns in the fourth quarter, 59-yard and 1-yard runs, respectively. Glenn’s came with two minutes left in the game, ensuring victory.

“When you have multiple backs [scoring], it usually comes down to the offensive line,” head coach Larry Kindbom said. “They made some good adjustments during the ball game.”

The victory gives the Bears (4-5, 1-1) a shot at a UAA title in the final game of the season next weekend, on Saturday, Nov. 14. A win will not come easy against No. 9 Case Western Reserve University (8-0, 2-0) in Cleveland at noon (ET).

“Case has been undefeated the past couple of seasons going into our game, and we’ve played them [closely]. We’re not going to hold anything back here,” Buchanan said. “We’re going to go up there to Cleveland and see if we can play spoiler and take one away from them.”

Junior Tom Gulyas rushes forward in an Oct. 17 game against the College of Wooster. Gulyas had a game-high four catches for 40 yards in a 21-13 loss to Carnegie Mellon University on Saturday. (Daniel Eicholtz | Student Life)

“Special teams…is really no different than offense or defense. We’ve been playing well but not well enough long enough,” head coach Larry Kindbom said. “I think if you play well enough long enough, you score more points, you get more shutdowns and then you don’t have the quirky kind of things that we had on special teams.”

On a 55-yard CMU punt with 1:14 left in the third quarter, senior defensive back Tim Machan fumbled the catch at the Wash. U. 10-yard line. The Tartans recovered, scoring on a 4-yard touchdown rush a minute later.

The Bears’ ensuing possession ended with the same result. Sophomore punter Austin Morman fumbled a bad snap from junior offensive lineman J.J. Gotlieb, which was also recovered by Carnegie Mellon.

Starting at the Bears’ 15-yard line, it only took two plays to take the lead. A 2-yard rush put the Tartans on top for good, 14-13.

“Our defense puts a big emphasis on when we’re put in a bad situation…where the opposing offense gets the ball inside the [20-yard line]. We really stress holding them to a field goal or getting turnovers,” junior defensive back Brandon Brown said. “We just couldn’t come up with those stops yesterday.”

CMU put together a 75-yard, 8:32 touchdown drive late in the fourth quarter. The 15-play series consisted of 14 carries, ending on a 1-yard touchdown run.

“After the second touchdown, it was 14-13. We were losing. It wasn’t a question of anything, at that point, other than the offense has to score more points,” junior runningback Jim O’Brien said. “We just knew that no matter what, we had to get on the [scoreboard] again. For whatever reason, we couldn’t do that.”

Given possession with only 1:36 left in the game, junior quarterback Stephen Sherman’s desperation pass was picked off, securing victory for the Tartans.

“It was just hard to come back,” Morman said. “Once they had momentum, we kept fighting, but it just didn’t work out.”

Despite holding the Tartan passing offense to only 30 yards, the Bears defense allowed 234 rushing yards.

“The defense played lights out the first [three quarters],” Brown said. “The rest of the game, I don’t know what happened, but, the momentum shifted from us being up 13-0 to them getting that quick touchdown and getting right back in the game. They took it from there.”

Senior co-captain Andrew Berryman led the team with 13 tackles, while Machan had nine. Brown and sophomore linebacker Kyle Larkin each added eight tackles.

The Bears took the lead early in the first quarter. O’Brien broke loose on Wash. U.’s second play of the game for a 42-yard rush. Junior Tim Johnson ended the drive with a 36-yard field goal.

“We had to settle for some field goals and didn’t sustain [many] drives,” O’Brien said. “A huge difference in that game was that we just couldn’t finish once we got down in the red zone…with touchdowns.”

Senior halfback Greg LaChaud caught a 10-yard touchdown pass with 12:30 left in the second quarter, pushing the score to 10-0.

Johnson hit another field goal, this time from 27 yards out, 8:33 through the third quarter. The Tartans took the lead minutes later.

“When you’re in control of a football game, at some point you have to put it away,” Kindbom said. “If you don’t, you’re just leaving the door of opportunity open for that other team.”

Washington University (3-5, 0-1) takes on the University of Chicago (4-3, 0-1) on Saturday, Nov. 7, in the final home game of the season. The team’s 14 seniors will be honored shortly before kickoff at 1 p.m.

Junior Stephen Sherman looks to pass in an Oct. 17 game against the College of Wooster. Sherman threw a 22 yard touchdown pass to sophomore Austin Morman in a 26-14 victory against Ohio Wesleyan University. (Daniel Eicholtz | Student Life)

“It feels like we’ve been playing with a sense of passion on the field on Saturdays and especially throughout the week in practice too,” said senior co-captain Andrew Berryman, a linebacker. “It just seems like we’re a different team when we play with a fire under us.”

The Bears allowed only 13 yards of offense in the first quarter, forcing four three-and-outs.

Senior defensive back Tim Olivos intercepted the Battling Bishops’ first pass of the game, but senior co-captain Matt Glenn fumbled at the 1-yard line on the following drive.

“I think just sometimes turnovers happen. Maybe it was our confidence or something else,” junior running back Jim O’Brien said. “It just seemed like we couldn’t put everything together…as an offense.”

Both teams were held scoreless until 2:27 left in the first quarter. Sophomore linebacker Nick Hillard blocked Ohio Wesleyan’s fourth punt of the game, leading to a Wash. U. safety as the football fell out of bounds in the end zone.

“We’ve been working on it in practice, rushing the kicker…We felt we had a good shot this week,” Hillard said. “On the left side, Tim Olivos came off and he took the [fullback]. Since he took the [fullback], there was an opening, and I just ran through. We got the block. It was pretty much exactly the way we planned it. It worked great.”

Sophomore Brandon Rogalski’s 20-yard field goal on the ensuing drive put the Bears on top 5-0.

The Battling Bishops’ first play of the second quarter led to another Red and Green score. Junior defensive lineman John Schneider recovered a fumble on the OWU 14-yard line, giving the Bears tremendous field position.

“Every day [in practice] we have a number that we have to get, in turnovers, and it’s one of the things we pride ourselves on. We get the [opposing offense] in situations, stop the run, make them pass the ball,” Hillard said. “Fumbles are a big thing too.”

Sophomore receiver Austin Morman caught a 22-yard touchdown pass three plays later.

After back-to-back Wash. U. turnovers, Ohio Wesleyan got on the board behind a 14-yard quarterback draw with only 16 seconds left in the first half.

While the Battling Bishops were held to only 67 yards of total offense in the half, the Red and Green recorded just 100 yards.

“We knew going into it that it was going to be a pretty tough, defensive game,” Berryman said. “Both defenses were pretty strong, and the whole week [before the game], our defensive coordinator told us that the best defense on Saturday is going to win the game.”

Glenn put the Bears ahead 19-7 with a 41-yard touchdown run with 5:49 left in the third quarter. The 77-yard, eight-play drive consisted of seven rushing attempts.

Defense continued to play a key role. Sophomore Kyle Larkin recovered a fumble and ran it back 43 yards for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter, directly turning defense into offense again.

“It’s always huge to have big game-changing plays like that. There’s times when our offense has off-days and times when our defense has off-days,” Berryman said. “We just try to play as a team together and not let that separate us.”

Ohio Wesleyan added another touchdown late to cut the deficit to 26-14, but junior Brandon Brown’s 42-yard interception return with 1:02 left in the game ended any hopes for a comeback.

Senior linebacker Bryce Buchanan recorded a team-high eight tackles, while Berryman, junior linebacker Kyle Huber and Schneider each had seven.

University Athletic Association play begins for Wash. U. (3-4) this Saturday at Carnegie Mellon University (4-3). Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. (ET) in Pittsburgh.

Junior Jim O’Brien runs the ball during last Saturday’s football game vs. the College of Wooster. O’Brien rushed the ball for 105 yards and earned a touchdown, but the Bears couldn’t hold onto the lead losing 20-24. (Daniel Eicholtz | Student Life)

The College of Wooster had already been stopped on their previous two trips inside the red zone. Faced with a fourth and one at the 30-yard line, time running out, and an inspired Washington University defense in the way, another stop seemed probable.

Fighting Scots senior quarterback Austin Holter proved otherwise, single-handedly earning the last 30 yards, including a 27-yard TD rush to win the game on Saturday, Oct. 17, 24-20.

“‘Very disappointed’ is the best way to sum up my feelings, because it was definitely a team we could’ve beaten and a team we should’ve beaten,” senior defensive back Tim Machan said.

Despite a stalwart defensive performance in the second half, Holter drove all over the field, accounting for 409 total yards, 272 through the air and 137 on the ground.

“One of the problems [in stopping Holter] was sloppy tackling. There were a couple instances where we had him either for a short gain or no gain at all and missed the tackle,” Machan said.

The Bears came out strong after the opening kickoff. Charging down the field, backed by two pass interference penalties, Wash. U. quickly took the lead. With 9:58 left in the first quarter, junior running back Jim O’Brien capped the nine-play, 61-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown run.

“We were talking about it before the game…our last 10 or 12 games, whoever has scored first has ended up winning the game. We knew [scoring early] increased our chances of winning a lot,” junior receiver Tom Gulyas said.

Wooster responded with 17 unanswered points. After a field goal and a touchdown pass, Holter’s 30-yard pass with only 1:30 left in the half bumped the score to 17-7, with the Fighting Scots on top.

Freshman running back Chris Castelluccio’s 41-yard return on the following kickoff set up a score for Wash. U. Gulyas caught a pass in the corner of the end zone from junior quarterback Stephen Sherman, cutting the deficit to 17-13. The extra point attempt was missed.

“Two-minute drills—that’s something we do a lot in the game, just because the situation calls for it. It’s something that we work on twice a week during practice,” Gulyas said. “It was really nice to be able to execute almost perfectly. It felt like we almost scored too quickly.”

The Bears would settle for a 17-13 score entering the break.

Their first drive coming out of the break would change that score. Senior captain Matt Glenn, getting his first major playing time since an injury in the season opener, scored the lead-taking touchdown. His one-yard push into the end zone came after a 13-play, 68-yard series.

“[Matt Glenn] is definitely a great short-yardage [running] back…on a third and one, just let him plunge up the gut and just move the pile into the end zone,” Gulyas said.

Wooster was stuffed in the second half. After being forced to punt on their first two drives of the half, their third drive came down to Wash. U.’s goal line. On fourth and goal, the Bears’ defense came up with a stop on Holter’s quarterback keeper, taking over on downs.

One drive later, it was sophomore defensive lineman Daniel Sufranski who came up with the stop. Sufranski stripped Holter of the ball at the Bears’ 11-yard line and came up with the fumble.

“We had a lot of confidence at that point. We had the confidence that we could beat them and we were definitely feeling good,” Machan said. “But that quarterback gets loose on one play and it changes everything.”

Holter would not be held down for a third time, scoring the go-ahead touchdown with only 2:18 left in the game.

“We were playing man [coverage] behind, so the secondary was playing the receivers. Any time your secondary is in man [coverage], they don’t react as well to the run because their first read is to protect the pass,” junior linebacker Kyle Huber said. “That gave [Holter] some extra room to run and as soon as that guy gets room, he gets going and he can put a move on some guys.”

Given a chance to respond, the Bears came up short. Sherman’s fourth and 17 pass was broken up, ending hopes for a win with 1:18 on the clock.

Sherman finished the game with 150 yards through the air, while O’Brien had 105 on the ground. Gulyas’s reception put him over the career 1,000 receiving yards mark.

Wash. U. (2-4) returns to action on the road on Sunday, Oct. 24, against Ohio Wesleyan University (1-5). Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. (ET).

The Bears ultimately lost to the Little Giants, who entered the game leading the country in offensive production (50.8 ppg), 31-12 on Saturday, Oct. 10.

“The whole game, the whole mindset…was not that ‘we’re in this game.’ It was, ‘We’re going to win this game,’” senior co-captain Andrew Berryman said. “That was felt throughout the team.”

Little Giants senior quarterback Matt Hudson went 32 of 45, throwing for 335 yards with three touchdowns.

“We knew it was going to take an almost error-free game to go in and beat them, because we knew they were good, but we knew they were beatable,” Berryman said. We kind of showed that yesterday.”

Junior Stephen Sherman had his own career day for Wash. U. at the quarterback position, throwing for 218 yards, but the Bears offense was outmatched in total offensive yards, 272-478.

Both teams were held scoreless in the first quarter, while a 42-yard pass from Sherman to senior Matt Mangini put the team at the Wabash 29-yard line.

In great position to take the lead with less than five minutes left in the quarter, senior halfback Greg LaChaud fumbled the ball on the very next play, giving Wabash possession.

“We have put in some new plays during the course of the year, and one of time’s tests of things in football is that when you put a new play in, you’ve got to run it a thousand times before you put it in on the field. We didn’t necessarily do that,” head coach Larry Kindbom said. “That fumble was more of a result of not working on that play enough times over the course of the year.”

On the following series, Wabash turned to freshman running back Nathan Walters who capped a 70-yard, 5:04 drive with a 1-yard touchdown.

Wash. U. finally broke into the score column late into the second quarter. Senior defensive back Tim Olivos capitalized on a Little Giants fumble, returning it 59 yards to the Wabash 5-yard line. Berryman forced the fumble. Sophomore kicker Brandon Rogalski scored two minutes later on a fake field goal, but his extra-point kick was blocked.

The Little Giants responded with a nine-play, 55-yard drive resulting in a field goal, taking a 10-6 lead into the half.

Hudson’s 29-yard touchdown pass to sophomore receiver Brady Young extended the score to 17-6 with 5:51 left in the third quarter, but the Bears answered on the ensuing series.

“There’s no doubt Wabash is an incredible team,” junior receiver Tom Gulyas said. “We definitely knew we needed to sustain a drive and get a touchdown…Obviously to even up on the scoreboard and also to give our defense a rest, because [Wabash] has so many offensive weapons.”

Sherman’s 73-yard pass to Gulyas ended the three-play touchdown drive, but a two-point conversion attempt failed.

The Little Giants came right back with another touchdown at the hands of Hudson, extending their lead to 24-12. Junior safety Jake Martin ended Wash. U.’s chance for a response, intercepting Sherman’s pass on the following series.

A 14-yard touchdown pass from Hudson to junior receiver Wes Chemblee pushed the score to 31-12 with 11 minutes left in the game.

With the loss, Wash. U. drops to 2-3 for the season. The season continues at Francis Field on Saturday, Oct. 17, against Wooster College (3-2). Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.

“[Our defensive performance] gives us a lot of confidence from here on out, to know that we can hang with one of the top 10 teams in the nation,” Berryman said, “So that gives us confidence going into the next few games against Wooster and then heading into conference play that we can go out and dominate all these offenses, because we’re not going to face another offense this good.”

Tim Machan returns an interception against Rhodes College on September 4. Machan led the Bears with eight tackles in a 23-0 win. (Joshua Goldman | Student Life)

In a must-win game against Rhodes College Saturday, Oct. 4th, senior defensive back Tim Machan perhaps made the biggest play of the day only seven minutes into the game. With the Lynx driving into the red zone, Machan intercepted a pass into the end zone, returning it 33 yards. The Lynx would be shutdown for the rest of the game. Machan’s interception and team-leading eight tackles earned him Student Life’s Male Athlete of the Week.

Student Life: Take us back through that interception.

Tim Machan: I think they were down to like the 10-yard-line. We were in a zone coverage. I just got a good read on my receiver’s route, got my eyes back to the quarterback and saw the ball coming. I stepped up, and I got a nice return…I think there was one guy I had to beat and I would’ve been gone.

SL: That big of a play has to do something for not only the defense, but for the entire team. What kinds of things were you hearing and seeing after that interception?

TM: It had been the first moment this year where I felt that the team really kind of collectively celebrated. Even in the Westminster game, we had flashes of it…but it really seemed to kind of bring everyone together and then move forward together, and we just dominated the rest of that game.

SL: Just a small fact, but that interception put you at No. 10 for career interceptions at Wash. U.. Does that mean anything to you?

TM: Not right now. Maybe in 10 or 20 years, when I’m telling my kids or my nephews and nieces about it, that’ll be something I’ll enjoy, but right now, it’s not all that important to me. In that game, we had four people get interceptions. That’s the more important stat, when we succeed as a team and as a defense. I’d be lying to say that it’s not fun, but that’s not why I play football.

SL: What are you looking to do every time you step onto the field for a game?

TM: When we take the field, what I’m looking to do is “use my techniques and play my assignment”, and that’s something that I hadn’t always done. At the beginning of this year, I had struggled a little bit, but when I got back to that, I noticed a difference in my play. It’s not worrying about the statistics, it’s not worrying about the big hit, it’s worrying about the little things you have to do; where you line up, what your first movement is, who you’re reading, how long your eyes are there before you’re back to the quarterback. When you focus on those things, then big plays come.

SL: It’s your senior season; you only have a few games left. What is something you want to accomplish by the end of the season?

TM: I want to win a UAA championship. That’s something that hasn’t been done since I’ve been here. The guys who graduated last year hadn’t done it. The guys who graduated the year before had done it as freshmen. My brother was in that class…and that’s something that is important to me.

Tim Machan and the Bears take on undefeated No.11 Wabash College this Saturday, Oct. 10.

Junior running back Jim O’Brien eclipsed 1,000 career rushing yards in a Wash. U. 23-0 pounding of Rhodes College. O’Brien ran for a career-high 146 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. (Josh Goldman | Student Life)

Junior runningback Jim O’Brien answered those questions on Saturday, earning a career-high 146 rushing yards in the team’s 23-0 win over Rhodes College (2-3).

“[The win] added another level of confidence for the team,” O’Brien said. “Just knowing that we’re going to [stumble] no matter what…and just knowing that we can rebound like that shows a lot about the team and how we carry ourselves.”

The Bears (2-2) ran for a net 222 yards, a season high, and had a 378-273 offensive advantage over Rhodes.

“One of the stresses that we had early…this week was to come out fast and come out strong,” O’Brien said.

On the opening possession of the game, Rhodes threatened to score. With the ball at Wash. U.’s 9-yard line and positive yardage gained on all 13 plays of the drive, a touchdown seemed inevitable.

Senior defensive back Tim Machan intercepted an end-zone pass and returned it to the 33-yard line. The Bears had four interceptions in the game, while Machan led the defense with eight total tackles.

“We knew that we were backed up against the wall…in any situation, you’re hoping for a turnover, but we were just hoping to force a field goal,” Machan said. “Then the quarterback kind of overthrew the ball and I was in the right position for it.”

O’Brien took over the first quarter. With 4:25 left in the quarter, he punched in a 2-yard touchdown to give the Bears the lead. O’Brien’s 37-yard rush previously on the drive set up the score.

In the first half alone, O’Brien picked up 78 yards on nine carries. His performance broke the career 1,000-yard rushing mark.

“I think yesterday I just was able to get out into open space a little bit more,” O’Brien said.”The [offensive] line was just creating the holes…so I definitely give 100 percent credit to the line.”

An unsuccessful Lynx fake-punt led to Wash. U.’s next touchdown. Junior quarterback Stephen Sherman found sophomore receiver Easton Knott wide open in the end zone for a 27-yard touchdown reception.

Senior halfback Greg Lachaud tacked on another six points with a 1-yard touchdown rush with 4:59 left in the third quarter. The seven-play, 76-yard drive came entirely on the ground.

Up 20-0 with 3:20 left in the game, sophomore Brandon Rogalski sealed the victory with a 29-yard field goal. The field goal was the Bears’ first successful kick in seven games.

“It feels very good to get the shutout, having the offense put points on the board, and the defense plays well,” Machan said.

Sophomore punter Austin Morman was key in the win, averaging 43.2 yards per kick, while Sherman went 11 for 17 for 113 yards and a touchdown.

“We went into the game knowing that field position and special teams were going…to be a big part of winning the game,” Morman said. “I just tried to put [the ball] as far back, inside the [20-yard line], as I could and hopefully giving the defense good position, so they could play as well as they did.”

The Bears will travel to Crawfordsville, Ind., on Saturday to take on No. 12 Wabash College (4-0).

“Yeah, they’re ranked…but we’ve got a feel for them,” O’Brien said. “We know that they’re not superhuman…that they’re just like us; that they’re just going out there to play.”

With a final score of 46-0, it was evident that the Tigers were dominant on both the offensive and defensive fronts; the second quarter alone provided 36 of Wittenberg’s 46 points.

The Bears’ defensive players stepped it up in the second half, effectively halting Wittenberg’s scoring frenzy, excluding a field goal in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter. But their performance was unable to prevent a shutout.

Wash. U. beat Wittenberg 30-27 last year.

The Bears had trouble with their running game throughout the day. Wittenberg had a net gain of 208 yards from rushing alone, while the Bears had a net loss of 7 yards. Wash. U.’s top-performing runningback, junior Jim O’Brien, had a net gain of 31 yards and an average of 2.1 yards per run, while Corey Weber of the Tigers gained 73 yards with zero losses. The Bears were unable to penetrate the Tigers’ defense, leaving the Bears with only their passing game.

But Washington University’s passing game left much to be desired as well. Junior starting quarterback Steve Sherman threw for 63 yards on an 8-for-15 performance and suffered one interception. Junior Mitchel Bartel was limited to 34 yards on a 5-for-8 outing. The Bears combined for a total of 106 passing yards (the Tigers had 237), suffered four sacks and fumbled the ball twice.

“As a team we just aren’t producing like we know we’re capable of,” senior co-captain Matt Glenn said.

The inability to stop Wittenberg’s offensive players in the first half was what gave Wash. U. the finishing blow. Many of Wittenberg’s touchdowns were from big plays in which the receivers seemed to slip through each one of the Bears’ defenses. A prime example was the 83-yard kickoff return in the second quarter by the Tigers’ Brandyn Brown for their fourth touchdown. That play immediately followed a blocked punt, which resulted in a Wittenberg safety.

Washington University’s defense finally stopped the Tigers in the second half.

“The game was very disappointing to our team as a whole,” senior co-captain Andrew Berryman said. “I think the positive thing that we can take from the game is that we didn’t quit in the second half, only allowing three points.”

The Bears have a bye next week, which they will use to fix the issues made evident by Saturday’s game and to prepare for the game against Rhodes College in two weeks. The Bears hope to train heavily in their running game and in stopping opponents from making big plays.

“Having a bye week is going to be very beneficial to us for us to heal up from injuries and work on a few things,” Berryman said.

The team is not only set on proving itself after Saturday, but also set on breaking last season’s 5-5 record.

“We are going to have a focused and productive two weeks of practice and come out and beat Rhodes,” Berryman said.