Jeff Kahntroff/Student LifeThe scoreboard says it all. The Bears coasted to an easy victory over the Tartans, going undefeated in the UAA this season.
It was truly a tale of two teams Saturday at Francis Field.
Carnegie Mellon’s offense was almost entirely run-based – they racked up 306 yards on a mind-boggling 70 carries, and Washington University’s pass offense was potent as usual. Freshman Nathan Szep set all-time records for single-season passing yards and touchdowns in University Athletic Association conference play, and freshman wide receiver Brad Duesing broke WU records for receiving yards and receptions in a season.
In the end, the pass was mightier than the run as the Bears cruised to a 31-17 victory, finishing 4-0 in the UAA and winning the conference outright for the third time in the past four seasons.
The scoring got started on a 69-yard fumble return for a touchdown by sophomore defensive back John Woock. Woock, along with sophomore Tory Meyr and freshman Ryan Jakusz resurrected a Bears defense that was left for dead after the loss of All-American middle linebacker Brandon Roberts in midseason.
Sophomore Ben Lambert later added a 33-yard field goal to increase the Bears’ lead to 10-0 at the end of the first quarter. The field goal was his fifteenth of the season, also a single-season school mark.
Just before the half expired, Szep hit senior wide receiver Eric Catto on a quick ten-yard strike to give the Bears a 17-3 lead going into the locker room.
In the second half, it was a fitting finale for the “Freshman Connection” as Szep and Duesing connected for their eleventh touchdown strike of the season, a 56-yard bomb to put the Bears ahead 24-3.
“The upperclassmen receivers set a great example for me to follow,” Duesing said. “In practices, [senior wide receiver] Eric Catto had a great work ethic, and the coaching staff was very helpful in me moving from the high school game to the college game.”
Showing their versatility on offense, the Bears turned to the run late in the game in an effort to take time off the clock, and they were equally successful in moving the ball. Sophomore transfer Toby Neighbors, the Bears’ fifth starting tailback of the season, rushed for 35 of his 98 yards on a 77-yard scoring drive in the fourth quarter. Neighbors capped the drive with an impressive four-yard touchdown run to make the score 31-10 in WU’s favor.
“The offensive line did a great job all season protecting Nate [Szep] and giving the running backs open lanes to run through,” Duesing said. “We had a great game plan going into every week.”
Despite an unrelenting attack of sometimes creative and sometimes bizarre running plays, CMU simply couldn’t finish off enough drives or put points on the board when they needed to. The Tartan offense resembled a typical run-based high school scheme, relying on fakes, reverses, fake-reverses and every manner of trap and counter in the book.
CMU’s leading rusher, Ricardo Clark, finished the day with 102 yards on the ground, but, as a consequence of emphasizing the running game, CMU quarterbacks were able to muster only 62 yards in the air.
The Tartans added an 11-yard touchdown run from Sebestian Smelko with 1:52 remaining in the game to make the score 31-17, but there was not enough time for them to mount a significant comeback.
With the win, the Bears extended their school-record streak of winning seasons to ten. Earlier in the year, the prospects for a winning season looked dim. After week six, the Bears record stood at 2-4 with a challenging conference schedule still to play, but the young offense continued to gel and the defense, especially the secondary, created an identity for itself and proved to be a strength rather than a liability.
Because of Division III football’s playoff structure, the UAA champion does not receive a guaranteed berth in the postseason tournament, and only seven at-large bids will be given out to schools in small conferences such as the UAA. Due to their four losses and the multitude of equally talented teams across the nation, it is unlikely the Bears will be selected for the tournament.
“Winning the UAA was definitely a goal for us this season, and we’re glad we won,” Duesing said. “But, we want to do even better next season.”