THE CASE FOR MOUNT UNION.
The Purple Raiders have an astounding 139-4 record since the year 2000. It is inconceivable that Larry Kehres and MUC should be underdog in ANY football game until their program comes back to earth, at least a little bit. Much has been made about MUC's losses of All Americans RB Nate Kmic and QB Greg Micheli. Understandably, many wondered how the Purple Raiders would handle the loss of the best passer and the best running back in the nation. This year, Kurt Rocco stepped in at QB and leads the nation in QB Efficiency Rating. Wide Receiver Cecil Shorts is considered by many to be the most prolific receiver in the nation. So Mount went from having the best QB and best RB in the nation to having the best QB and best WR in the nation. Not exactly a transition that would cause the bottom to drop out.
UW-Whitewater features a balanced attack which can beat an opponent either on the ground or through the air. For most defensive coordinators, it's a matter of "picking your poison". However, Vince Kehres, has the most talented defense in the nation at his disposal. MUC ranks #1 in the nation in scoring defense, #2 in the nation in overall defense, #1 in the nation in defending the run, and #5 in the nation in sacks. Last week, UW-W's Rbs Levell Coppage and Antwan Anderson carried the ball a combined 22 times against Linfield's 62nd ranked defense against the run. Only 5 of their 22 carries resulted in gains of more than 5 yards. The going figures to be even tougher against the #1 ranked Purple Raiders.
The Purple Raiders have the #2 ranked scoring defense in the nation, averaging 46.5 points per game. Their Average margin of victory is nearly 39 points per game. Whereas Whitewater was embattled in close games the last two weeks, MUC hammered their quarterfinal and semifinal opponents by a combined score of 79-10. While last week's game was a tight 10-7 heading into the fourth quarter, the Purple Raiders outscored the #3 team in the Nation 14-0 in the final quarter with their starting quarterback out with injury.
Mount Union has the higher ranked defense, the most explosive player on the field, a head coach with an overall record of 289-21-3, the nation's #1 scoring defense, and 10 National Championships. Purple Raiders fans have plenty to be confident about when the ball is teed up Saturday morning.
THE CASE FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN- WHITEWATER
This game has been the motivating factor behind all of the extra sprints, the extra lifts, the extra drill work, the extra EVERYTHING this Warhawks football team has put in for the last year. When these teams met last year, MUC scored two early long TD passes putting UWW into a deep hole the rest of the day. Instead of folding, the Warhawks outscored the Raiders 26-17 over the last 54:45 of the football game. In the second half, the UWW offensive line appeared to control the line of scrimmage as RB's Antwan Anderson and Levell Coppage were sprung for gaines of 7,8,8,9,12,15, and 18 yards among their 20 second half rushes. For the game, UWW had 31 first downs to Mount's 15. But none of it was enough in a bitter 31-26 defeat to a Mount Union team boasting two of the best players in D3 football history in RB Nate Kmic and QB Greg Micheli. UWW returns 19 of 22 starters from Stagg Bowl 36.
This year's UWW team has shown incredible offensive balance, having gained 3221 yards passing and 2940 yards rushing. In 14 games, UWW has gained more yards passing 8 times and more yards rushing 6 times. Either element is fully capable of carrying the load, depending on what the defense tries to take away. A 14-0 record clearly establishes that either recipe is a winning one. Which one will Mount Union try to take away? If the UWW offensive line begins to take control as they did last year, what will Mount Union do to stop the running attack? Will they sneak an 8th man in the box? If so, Jeff Donovan, who has completed 72.8% of his passes is fully capable of gashing the MUC defense.
In 228 carries, Levell Coppage has gained an incredible 1996 yards and scored 32 touchdowns. In the top 15 rushers in terms of yards per game, no one has averaged as many yards per carry as Coppage's 6.9.
Defensively, Mount Union has not played a team ranked as high as UWW in terms of defending the run. UWW, playing in the rugged WIAC, has given up only 78.9 yards per game. Wesley, is not far behind UWW at 81.0 yards per game. Mount gained 208 yards against Wesley, but 98 yards of those were gained by Cecil Shorts, the All America wide receiver who played quarterback most of the second half. The Mount Union passing attack, which averages 284.6 yards per game, gained only 113 yards through the air with the combination of Rocco, freshman Neal Seaman, and Shorts.
The snowstorm has already begun in Salem. The weather could be a definite factor as the teams battle Saturday morning. The general consensus is that UWW would be MUCH more comfortable relying on their rushing attack to win a game than the Purple Raiders.
Percentages tell us that the team that wins the turnover battle has the greatest chance to win the football game. UWW has been amazing at taking care of the ball this year. They have turned the ball over only 12 times in 14 games. MUC has turned the ball over 23 times. Also, UWW has fumbled only 8 times all year compared to 22. Statistics would tell us Mount Union is far more likely to turn the ball over than the Warhawks. And in a snow game, that could spell disaster for the Purple Raiders.
In a sense, UW-Whitewater has worked and played for this moment all year long. They have risen to the occasion with each and every challenge. As Warhawk fans wake up Saturday morning, they have every reason to be excited. There is every reason to believe this team will finish the task they started a full year ago.
No comments:
Post a Comment