W&J dealt devastating loss by Case Western
CLEVELAND – The playoff hopes for Washington & Jefferson College’s football team came to an end on a rain-soaked field at Case Western Reserve Saturday night.
The Spartans came into this game undefeated in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference and left with arguably its most important victory in this century.
Case Western Reserve produced the final stop of the game on an interception to seal a 35-28 victory that left the Presidents searching for answers.
“These two games we lost were lost by me in November and December of last year,” said Sirianni of this loss and a loss to Thomas More three weeks ago. “We took stuff for granted. There is nothing we can do about it now. We know we only have three games left. We’re not playing an ECAC game. I’ll take the blame for focusing on other things and not on making our team better. These other teams improved. We’re not better.”
Case Western Reserve (6-0, 6-1), which plays Thomas More in two weeks, scored three of the last four touchdowns. The killer came with 5:03 remaining to play when quarterback Rob Cuda hit Bryan Erb with a 39-yard touchdown to complete a two-play, 71-yard drive after W&J (3-2, 5-2) had tied it 28-28 on tailback Ryan Ruffing’s third touchdown of the game, a three-yard run.
“We haven’t played a game of any national significance since 2000,” said Case Western Reserve head coach Greg Debeljak. “After last year’s 3-7 record, this senior group has done a great job putting us back on the map. I told the kids at the beginning of the week that they were winning playoff games when I was playing at John Carroll. They had 30 years of big games. No one in our program has played in a big game.”
Cuda completed 21 of 35 passes for 278 yards and five touchdowns. None was bigger than the one he threw to Bryan Erb that resulted in a 32-yard touchdown. It was a busted play as teammate Bryan Lynch ran the wrong route and was standing next to Erb when he caught the football and broke free for the score that gave the Spartans a 28-21 lead. Erb caught nine passes for 147 and two TDs.
Coughlin completed 28 of 37 passes for 377 yards and two touchdowns. One went 59 yards to Ryan Zubik that gave W&J a 21-14 lead in the third quarter. Zubik finished with 12 catches for a career-high 196 yards. Dan Lis caught seven for 64 and Ruffing five for 67, most coming on screen passes.
“Both teams made play after play after play,” said Debeljak. “We have Washington U., Carnegie Mellon and Thomas More. We have a lot left. We’ll have fun for 24 hours and then get back at it.”
W&J had the football last, starting at its 20-yard line after a punt to the end zone, with 49 seconds to play. Coughlin threw an 11-yard completion to Lis but then was penalized for intentional grounding, requiring 10 seconds to run off. Case was penalized for roughing Coughlin on the next play and he was forced out of the game.
Alex Rowse came in and was intercepted for the only turnover of the game.
“We have three guaranteed games left,” said Lis, “and we’re going to do what we can (to win them).”
The shootout expected didn’t materialize in the first half as the game was tied 14-14. Incredibly, the first 15 minutes produced zero points, four Case Western punts and two W&J failures to make a first down on fourth-down gambles.
W&J finally broke through with 8:49 left in the second quarter. Coughlin found Ruffing with a 14-yard touchdown on a screen pass.
Just as quickly, Case drove down the field, tying the game off a 12-play, 80-yard drive. Cuda found Zech Medved with a 10-yard pass in the back of the end zone with 5:14 to go before halftime.
It was still enough time for two more scores with these offenses.
W&J made it 14-7 when Ruffing turned a stretch play down the sideline for a 29-yard touchdown.
It didn’t last long as Case roared back down the field, scoring with 26 seconds left on a Cuda to Ethan Albers pass of seven yards.