W&J can rise up with win over Case
Redemption can be four quarters away for Washington & Jefferson College’s football team.
The Presidents can shake up the standings in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference with a win over Case Western Reserve Saturday afternoon in Cleveland.
A loss would probably be devastating to W&J’s postseason hopes.
“We’ve been in playoff mode ever since we lost (to Carnegie Mellon in Week 3),” said W&J head coach Mike Sirianni. “I don’t think that changes. The opponent is a little bit better but they are treated the same way.”
Case Western Reserve is undefeated and coming off a victory over highly regarded Westminster last week.
The Presidents (3-1, 4-1) got out of the gates slowly but finished strong in a blowout of Bethany. A victory over Case (3-0, 4-0) would cause a jam at the top of the conference standings with possibly four other teams.
To stop Case, W&J has to keep the Spartans’ offense off the field. So that means the run game is critical to W&J’s success.
“A win will give us a lot more confidence,” said W&J tailback E.J. Thompson. “It means a lot to know that we can win out and still win the conference championship. There is nothing but upside if we win the game.”
Thompson has been part of a three-pronged running back attack. He, Jordan West of Wash High and Joey Koroly of Trinity have given the offense a charge after losing all-conference wide receiver Andrew Wolf for the season. Thompson leads the team with 288 rushing yards and a 4.7-yard average per carry.
“Coach Sirianni said he wanted to run the football more and when Wolf went down, and a few other people got hurt, that’s what we started to do it,” said Thompson. “That opens up the passing game so that our receivers can shine.”
Case Western Reserve is led by quarterback Drew Saxton, who is having a great sophomore season since arriving from South Fayette High School. He has passed for 992 yards with eight touchdowns and three interceptions. Saxton and wide receiver Colt Morgan have hooked up for 29 receptions, 420 yards and six touchdowns.
“Last year, Drew was surrounded by five seniors, who all knew what they were doing and who knew how to get open,” said Case head coach Greg Debeljak. “All were big-play guys in certain situations. This year, he’s adapted to the people around him. He’s been a great leader, he’s helped the coaches develop the players and that makes us a harder team to defend.”
Kickoff is 1:30 p.m.
Waynesburg at CMU
Waynesburg will be looking to win a second straight game when the Yellow Jackets visit CMU Saturday night in a Presidents’ Athletic Conference game.
Waynesburg (1-3, 1-4) is coming off a one-point victory over Thiel last week behind new quarterback Mason Schrenker, who threw for 104 yards last week. Schrenker was replaced by previous starter Tyler Perone for the final few offense of possessions but is expected to start against CMU.
Carnegie Mellon (3-1, 4-1) is coming off a 29-26 overtime loss to Grove City.
Kickoff is at 7 p.m.
Clarion at California
After a disappointing 17-6 loss at Indiana in the annual Coal Bowl, California will look to right the ship with a homecoming game against Clarion.
Kickoff is at 4 p.m.
The Vulcans were working on their red zone offense this week after not being able to score a touchdown against the Crimson Hawks. Cal (1-1, 3-2) allowed nearly 400 yards of offense to IUP.
Clarion has lost the last 14 games in the series with Cal.