It was the Purple Raiders’ 11th consecutive appearance in the game, but the first time in the last three years with Kehres as the coach that they came out on top.
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Helping Mount Union reach another unprecedented level will be five Steubenville/Weirton-area natives.
Mount Union, which is located in Alliance, Ohio, has been the king of Division-III football for almost a quarter century. The teams are experienced not only with each other, but in championship games as well. “We need to just stay aggressive and use the playmakers that we know we have on our team. But now we have a chance to redeem ourselves”.
Mount Union coach Vince Kehres told an interviewer he just didn’t have the words. The Purple Raiders are averaging 53.6 points and 556 yards per game this season. These two teams have faced off in eight of the last nine Stagg Bowls, with the Warhawks winning the past five match ups.
Added Nero, “I don’t think we were relieved to beat them, just excited to make another Stagg Bowl”.
Mount Union (14-0) earned its return trip last week by dispatching its nemesis, Wisconsin-Whitewater, 38-6 in the semifinals.
Mount Union is solid up front defensively, led by seniors Tom Lally and Mike Furda. As a team, Mount Union ran for 330 yards and outgained St. Thomas 531-328. The Tommies also played for the title in 2012, losing 28-10 to Mount Union.
St. Thomas came up short, but there were some impressive performances for the Tommies. The Tommies score 52.5 points per game, and allow just 9.9 points.
The Tommies (14-1) twice held leads – 14-0 in the first quarter and 21-14 in the third – but couldn’t hold off the Purple Raiders, who won their 12th NCAA Division III title and their first since defeating the Tommies three years ago in the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl.
“They do a great job of attacking different areas of the field within their run game with different play selections and different personnel groupings”, Caruso said.
“The offensive staff wanted to be able to run the football in the third quarter going into that wind”, said Kehres, who was part of 10 titles as a player and assistant coach under his father.
“The team goals are the same as always”, Luke said. Lally has recorded 18 sacks and 23.5 tackles for losses while Furda has totaled 11.5 sacks along with 15.5 tackles for losses.
“This year my defensive coordinator (Chris Kappas) has really used me in more versatile ways”, Furda said. That’s really why I had two interceptions this season. “I had a great mentor, a lot of great mentors, and a lot of great coaches and players who contributed to this”. St. Thomas narrowed the gap to a touchdown but Mount Union responded with two fourth-quarter touchdowns.
Logan Nemeth ran for 220 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while the Raiders put up 330 yards on the ground in the victory. Namdar also is second in the nation with 19 touchdown receptions. “There were three guys back there – the quarterback and two backs – that made it tougher to read the play”. The game will be televised on ESPNU and ESPN3 (Spanish version) with kickoff set for 7 p.m. (ET).
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St. Thomas wide receiver Jack Gilliland (4) is tackled after his reception by Mount Union defensive back Tre Jones during the first half of the NCAA Division III football championship game in Salem, Va., Friday, Dec. 18, 2015.
