Lincoln Plews
Senior Sports Writer
The football team took on the DePauw Tigers in a wind- and rain-swept John P. Papp Stadium this past Saturday. Turnovers were the story of the game for the Scots in the 27-16 loss. Wooster now stands at 2-6 on the year (1-4 in conference).
The Scots offense had no trouble moving the ball on Friday, outgaining the Tigers by 100 yards in total offense despite losing starting QB Richard Barnes ’14 to an injury early in the first quarter. Wooster failed to turn these yards into scores, however, in large part due to turning the ball over four times (including a key pick-six interception in the fourth quarter).
The contest began with the Scots and the Tigers trading touchdowns and missed extra points in the first quarter, with the score tied 6-6 heading into the second. The second quarter saw the Scots’ only lead of the game, when they went up 9-6 off of a 33-yard field goal from Tyler Gerwig ’15.
Thanks to a blocked DePauw field goal attempt and despite a pair of fumbles by the Scots, Wooster maintained this lead going into the halftime break.
The beginning of the third quarter showed further promise for the Scots. Wooster defensive back Mitchell Czerniak ’15 picked off a DePauw pass two minutes into the second half, and the Scots drove the ball all the way to DePauw’s eight-yard line on the ensuing possession.
However, for what would prove to be the first of two such occurrences in the game, the Scots failed to score when within 10 yards of the opponent’s end zone. A DePauw defensive back picked off back-up quarterback Brett Frongillo ’14’s attempted touchdown pass in the end zone, bringing the drive to an abrupt halt.
DePauw capped the third quarter with a 37-yard touchdown drive to put them ahead 13-9 going into the fourth. With 8:37 to play in the final quarter, they took a commanding 20-9 lead off of a 34-yard touchdown pass.
The true turning point of the contest came on the following Wooster drive. With 5:46 to play, the Scots threatened to bring the game within reach on a 2nd-and-2 at the DePauw five-yard line.
Frongillo ’14 dropped back and fired, but his throw bounced off the hands of a Scots receiver and right into the clutches of DePauw safety Robby Schuler. Schuler proceeded to return the pick 95 yards for a touchdown, giving DePauw an insurmountable 27-9 lead.
The Scots took the ensuing kickoff and capped a nice drive with a 28 yard catch-and-run score from wide receiver Chase Ullman ’15 to make it 27-16 with 3:45 to play, but this would prove to be the final score of the game.
Wooster’s last-ditch onside kick attempt took a high bounce but was safely secured by DePauw, who ran out the clock to finalize their 27-16 victory.
Other than his turnovers, Wooster back-up QB Brett Frongillo ’14 performed quite well in the game. He completed 21 of 38 passes for 226 yards and a score, in addition to running for another 115 yards.