HUGE CORRECTION: Eric Schweller punted for the Chargers on Saturday. I thought the box score was wrong. I was wrong. Very sorry to have reported it as Andrew Wilburn. Great job Eric.
A win is a win is a win is a win. Yes it is. Everything at Hillsdale College today was tailor made, an impeccable day for football. Unfortunately, the 20-13 Charger victory over the University of Findlay wasn't nearly as pretty as the surroundings.
If a mistake filled loss has the ability to cause the proverbial hang over a week later, then that game 7 days ago to Ashland was a potent concoction. Another 4 turnovers and an overall lack of crispness summed up a lot of the Charger performance today--things that drive coaches to the nut house.
But as Otter and his staff have greatly improved the Hillsdale College product to its current level, have we gotten so spoiled that we can't appreciate several positive aspects of the effort?
Luckily for Hillsdale, there were enough other great performances to more than offset the blunders.
Hillsdale completely bullied Findlay on both sides of the ball. By the end of the day, Oiler defenders were drawing straws on the sidelines to see who was going to face Hillsdale's Jared Veldheer. Big #66 had an absolutely dominating performance at his left tackle slot.
Speaking of bullying, Vinnie Panizzi continues to punish GLIAC defenders. The junior tailback had 117 yards on 27 bruising carries and a pair of touchdown. Speaking of bruising, Panizzi had to leave the field after one extremely hard collision. Fans were arguing over whether it was a busted collar bone or a separated shoulder. I guess none of the above was the correct answer because Panizzi returned shortly after and proved to be the most reliable option for Hillsdale today.
Mark Petro continued to be solid in the kicking game, connecting on field goals of 32 and 21 yards and a pair of extra points. Punter Eric Schweller got the nod today over Andrew Wilburn and uncorked a 58 yarder in second half. Schweller also dropped two of his four punts inside the 20. After today's performance, He and Wilburn are now statistically the GLIAC's top punting team.
The Charger defense wasn't flawless today but played awfully well. A trick double pass went for 37 yards on the last play of the first quarter and would set up the Oilers for a field goal that tied the game a 3 a piece. The only other really big play Hillsdale would give up on the day came later in the 2nd quarter, a 40 yard seam route that gave Findlay its only lead of the day, 10-3. Those 77 yards would account nearly 30% of the Oilers' offensive output.
The secondary would be redeemed as it was a Charger defensive back who would seal the victory with what became the day's prettiest single moment. Down only a touchdown with a minute and a half, Findlay made a 9 play 39 yard push all of the way to the Charger 25 yard line looking to force overtime. On 1st and 10 with 24 seconds left in the game, Alex Wojcik stepped in front of a Lanzara pass and iced it with an interception.
That big play on the Oiler's last possession bookended a blocked field goal that kept Findlay off the board as it took the game's opening possession to Hillsdale's 13.
Hillsdale held Findlay to just 50 rushing yards on the day, 3 better than the 53 surrendered last week against Ashland. Tom Korte played lights out once again as he collected another 12 tackles on the day. He had a lot of help though. Defensively Chargers were flying to the ball all day.
The Chargers had a field day pestering Findlay quarterback Anthony Lanzara who was sacked 4 times. Austin Niemiek got to Lanzara twice. Eric Weber had one solo sack and got some help from Drew Berube on another. The Chargers have 19 sacks on the year and are tied with Grand Valley for the league lead.
Speaking of Grand Valley, Hillsdale faces the Lakers in Allendale next Saturday night.
