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JACKSON -- It was
a historic win for the Millsaps program in front of 3,784 last Saturday
at Harper Davis field, throttling No. 14 Trinity 34-12 and capturing
its first Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference championship since
1996.
The Majors
ended the reign of a Trinity program that had won 13 consecutive
SCAC titles
and advanced to the playoffs nine consecutive
years – the second longest streak behind perennial powerhouse
Mount Union.
The 22-point loss was the worst the Tigers had suffered since
1993 and the worst SCAC loss since 1992. Most importantly, the
Majors locked up their first playoff bid since 1975.
Less than 24 hours later, the Majors found out their destiny,
traveling to Pittsburgh, Pa., to take on the 24th-ranked Carnegie
Mellon University Tartans (10-0).
Two months ago, Millsaps was a long way from a conference championship.
The Majors were 0-3, after dropping their opener to rival Mississippi
College and a pair of heartbreaking losses to Louisiana College
and Huntingdon.
After an open week, the Majors scored their first victory of the
season, routing Division II Lincoln University (Mo.) 52-10 thanks
in part to a school-record tying five touchdown passes from sophomore
quarterback Juan Joseph.
From there, the Majors launched perhaps the most memorable run
in school history, winning seven consecutive games en route to
a conference championship.
The Majors
routed Centre in the SCAC opener, followed by a victory over
Austin College
in the first road game of the season. The Majors
then blasted a DePauw team that had not lost to Millsaps since
joining the SCAC in 1998 and swept the Tennessee teams on the road
in Sewanee and Rhodes. That set the stage for the Majors’ victory
over Trinity in the championship game.
The Millsaps
offense has been the best in the SCAC in virtually every category
this
year. Joseph has led the SCAC in almost everything
and rewritten the Millsaps history books this season, throwing
for 2,265 yards and 21 touchdowns. The sophomore’s 200 completions
and 337 pass attempts are also school records.
Last week against Trinity, Joseph was held below 200 yards passing
for the first time this season, completing 18-of-31 passes for
142 yards. Though credit can go to the Trinity defense, the Millsaps
offense was kept off the field for much of the game, running 29
fewer plays than Trinity due to three touchdowns being scored by
the special teams and defense.
When talking about the Trinity victory, one would be hard-pressed
not to mention Chris Jackson. All the senior receiver/return man
did was return two punts for touchdowns (67 and 51 yards) and haul
in a touchdown pass.
Jackson, who was named the SCAC Offensive Player of the Week and
named to the d3football.com National Team of the Week, tallied
225 yards of total offense on the weekend. He had three punt returns
for 150 yards, one kick return for 40 yards and hauled in five
catches for 26 yards.
In turn, Jackson became the first in Millsaps history to return
two punts for a touchdown in a single-game and in a season.
Jackson is the SCAC-leader in receptions (59), yards (661), touchdowns
(9) and kick return average (22.7). He also averages 17.3 yards
per punt return.
While Jackson may be the go-to guy, Joseph has had a slew of great
receivers to throw to.
After an early-season injury, sophomore Eric McCarty (29 catches,
333 yards, 2 TDs) returned against Trinity for only his second
conference game of the season. Senior Josh Hanna (24 catches, 308
yards, 2 TDs) and sophomore Burt Pereira (19 catches, 242 yards,
2 TDs) have also been dependable targets. Pereira and Joseph hooked
up on a spectacular 19-yard touchdown pass against Trinity to put
the Majors up 6-0.
The Majors, however, will be thin at running back this week. Junior
Tyson Roy, who has put in a solid season thus far (98 carries,
698 yards; 27 catches, 342 yards), has gone down in the first quarter
of the last two games.
With Roy probable
for this weekend’s matchup and second-string
back Nick Namias injured, freshman running back Kenneth Metzger
will continue to take the bulk of the carries for the Majors. The
freshman from Mobile, Ala., has rushed for 161 yards on 42 carries
this season, including 21 carries for 56 yards against Trinity.
Joseph and the running backs have benefited from one of the best
offensive lines in the country. Led by senior center Conell Phillips,
Jr. (295 pounds), the Millsaps line has given up just four sacks
this season in 374 pass attempts, with an intentional grounding
penalty and a botched center-to-quarterback snap counting as two.
Junior James Antonini (288 pounds) and freshmen David Hardy (288
pounds), John Shivers (277 pounds) and Justin English (285 pounds)
round out an offensive line that is by far the best in the conference.
The emergence of a dominating defense has been the reason for
the turnaround. In the last seven games, the Majors have given
up just 10.8 points per game and have not surrendered more than
18 point in a 7-0 run. Not only has Millsaps held DePauw and Rhodes
to season-low point totals, they also held Trinity to its lowest
score in a SCAC game since 1996.
In that span, the Majors have also forced 20 turnovers, including
17 interceptions. The Millsaps defense has scored six touchdowns
on the season, including one in each of the last four games.
Marcus Harris and Ronnie Wheat have emerged as two of the big
playmakers on defense. Harris, a sophomore cornerback, has picked
off five passes this season, all coming in back-to-back games against
DePauw (two) and Sewanee (three). Harris also leads the SCAC in
passes broken up with 15 and ranks No. 5 in the country in passes
defended (20).
Few players in the country have been playing as well as reigning
SCAC Defensive Player of the Week Ronnie Wheat in the last several
weeks. After missing the first three games of the season, Wheat
has racked up 35 tackles including 6.5 tackles for a loss.
The junior linebacker has also picked off a league-best three
passes for 92 yards, including two for touchdowns in the last two
games. Against Rhodes, Wheat returned a pass 19 yards for what
turned out to be the winning touchdown and then followed that up
by picking off a Jacob Cannon pass and racing 73 yards to give
the Majors a 34-6 lead.
Michael Sims (three), Kirk Jackson (two) and Shawn Gillenwater
(two) also have multiple interceptions for the Majors, who have
picked off a conference best 18 passes on the season. Harris, Wheat,
Jackson, and Jacob Hanberry have all returned interceptions for
touchdowns so far.
Gillenwater, a junior linebacker, has put up All-SCAC numbers
in his first season with the Majors. Along with his two interceptions,
Gillenwater has logged in a team-leading 83 tackles on the season,
including 12 tackles-for-loss and 3.5 sacks. Junior lineman Casey
Younger is second on the team in tackles (63) and tackles-for-loss
(10.5), while sophomore lineman Denarold Anderson leads the Majors
in sacks with six.
CARNEGIE
MELLON SCOUTING REPORT:
The Tartans (10-0) are the champions of the University Athletic
Association, a conference consisting of only Washington University,
University of Chicago and Case Western Reserve University in football.
Carnegie Mellon runs a Wing-T offense of sorts, led by fullback
Travis Sivek and running back Robert Gimson.
Sivek, a junior, has already eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark this
season, rushing for 1,172 yards on 255 carries. The 6-0, 235-pound
fullback averages a little over 4.6 yards per carry and 117.2 yards
per game.
Gimson, the 5-10, 205-pound junior, has rolled up 862 yards of
rushing on 119 carries, averaging 7.2 yards per carry and 86.2
yards per game.
As expected in such an offense, the passing game does not play
a huge role. Sophomore Doug Facemyer has taken over the role as
quarterback in the last four games after an injury to original
starter Kevin Mulkern. Facemyer has completed 26-of-46 passes for
352 yards, and three touchdowns.
The Tartans have turned the ball over only seven times this season.
His main target is Mark Davis, who has reeled in ten passes for
322 yards this year, including a 76-yard touchdown.
Jonathan Scholl and Aaron Lewis lead a defensive unit that has
been solid against both the run and the pass. Scholl and Lewis
have tallied 72 and 71 tackles respectively, while James Rogers
has tallied 68. Lewis also leads the team in interceptions (five)
and fumble recoveries (two). The Tartan defense has also combined
for 21 sacks on the season.
While one player
has put up superhuman numbers individually, the entire defense’s
statistics are gaudy. The Tartans have given up a mere 12 total
touchdowns this season and only three on the
ground. Only three times have their opponents managed to put up
double-digits, and in those games, they only scored 10, 14 and
26 points.
With a stiff breeze and likely near-freezing temperatures, the
Millsaps offense will have to work against both the weather and
the stingy Tartan defense.
MATCHING
UP WITH THE TARTANS:
Scoring Offense: Millsaps (33.0 ppg); CMU (28.7 ppg)
Pass Offense: Millsaps (260.1 ypg); CMU (109.7)
Rushing Offense: Millsaps (121.7 ypg); CMU (272.2)
Total Offense: Millsaps (387.3 ypg); CMU (381.9 ypg)
Scoring Defense: Millsaps (20.4 ppg); CMU (8.2 ppg)
Pass Defense: Millsaps (252.5 ypg); CMU (134.1)
Rushing Defense: Millsaps (115.5 ypg); CMU (102.6 ypg)
Total Defense: Millsaps (368.0 ypg); CMU (236.7 ypg)
SCAC Offensive Players of the Week:
Week Three: RB Tyson Roy (vs. Huntingdon)
Week Five: QB Juan Joseph (vs. Lincoln University)
Week Six: QB Juan Joseph (vs. Centre)
Week Eight: QB Juan Joseph (vs. DePauw)
Week Eleven: WR Chris Jackson (vs. Trinity)
SCAC Defensive Players of the Week:
Week Eight: DB Marcus Harris (vs. DePauw)
Week Nine: DB Marcus Harris (vs. Sewanee)
Week Eleven: LB Ronnie Wheat (vs. Trinity)
D3Football.Com Team of the Week:
Week Two: WR Chris Jackson (vs. Louisiana College)
Week Three: RB Tyson Roy (vs. Huntingdon)
Week Five: LB Shawn Gillenwater (vs. Lincoln University)
Week Six: DL Casey Younger (vs. Centre)
Week Eight: DB Marcus Harris (vs. DePauw)
Week Nine: DB Marcus Harris (vs. Sewanee)
Week Ten: LB Ronnie Wheat (vs. Rhodes)
Week Eleven: DB Marcus Harris (vs. Trinity)
Week Eleven: RET Chris Jackson (vs. Trinity)
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