Sat., Nov. 16 • 1 p.m. • Frank M. Lindsay Field
Decatur, Ill.
LAST WEEK: The Titans scored the most points in a game since 1997 in downing Elmhurst, 57-29, snapping a two-game losing streak. Senior John Spellman (Wilmette, New Trier HS) set three IWU single-game records - most rushing touchdowns (5), most TDs (6), and most points (36). He had 98 yards on 14 carries and was chosen as the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin “Player of the Week” (see below). Senior Josh Akin (Naperville, Benet Academy) completed 16 of 24 passes for 232 yards and three touchdowns. Sophomore Eric White (Antioch HS) had 10 catches for 103 yards and a touchdown. On defense, senior Tolley Steckel (Winchester HS) had 11 total tackles and Vince Heaton (Wheaton, Warrenville South HS) had 10 total stops.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Chosen by Titan coaches to honor top players in the week’s game
and practices.
OFFENSE: John Spellman, senior, back, Wilmette (New Trier HS)
DEFENSE: Tolley Steckel, senior, linebacker, Winchester (HS)
SPECIAL TEAMS: Brian Klesath, junior, kicker, Peoria (Notre Dame HS);
Tom Kudyba, freshman, holder, Des Plaines (Elk Grove HS)
SCOUT (Offense): Dan Smessaert, sophomore, receiver, Indian Head Park
(LaGrange Lyons HS); Jon Pritchard, sophomore, line, Galesburg (HS); Tom
Kudyba, freshman, quarterback, Des Plaines (Elk Grove HS)
SCOUT (Defense): Jacob Norris, junior, line, Springfield (Sacred Heart
Griffin HS); Kyle Wolfe, sophomore, line, St. Joseph (St. Joseph-Ogden
HS).
JUST FOR KICKS: Junior Brian Klesath (Peoria, Notre Dame HS) made a 28-yard field goal against Elmhurst, giving him an IWU season record 11. That eclipsed the old mark of 10 held by Dave Pearce since 1981. Klesath, who tied the single-game record with four field goals vs. North Central, is 24-of-36 in his career, second all-time at IWU, behind Pearce (29 field goals from 1979-82). Klesath had a career-long 44 yarder in the win over UW-LaCrosse.
CATCHING UP: Sophomore Eric White (Antioch HS) has 964 receiving yards after the first nine games, good for fourth in an IWU single season. His 72 catches is second most in a season, behind Ed Brady with 80 in 1983. In his career White has 1276 yards, which is 13th all-time at IWU, and his 92 career catches is 12th...On the passing end, Josh Akin (Naperville, Benet Academy) is 10th all-time in passing yards at IWU with 2938. Akin’s 2195 yards of total offense is ninth best in a season.
SPELLMAN RECORDS: Senior John Spellman (Wilmette, New Trier HS) set three IWU one-game scoring records vs. Elmhurst: points (36), touchdowns (6) and rushing touchdowns (5). The marks were previously held by Chris Bisaillon, who had 30 points and five TDs vs. Carroll in 1989, and by Chris Ross (North Park, 2002) and Maury Parker (Carthage, 1990). Oddly enough, it was the injury to Ross two weeks ago that has given Spellman the chance to play - prior to the Carthage game he had six carries for 16 yards this fall.
CCIW STATS: IWU has the individual leader in nine categories of the latest College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin statistics. Josh Akin (Naperville, Benet Academy) leads in passing (191.8) and total offense (240.3) per game. Eric White (Antioch HS) is tops with 7.83 catches and 102 receiving yards per game... Senior Kevin Kaplan (Cary, Cary-Grove HS) leads with 0.5 interceptions per game and with a 19.4 punt return average, while Josh Addis (Essex, Reed-Custer HS) is the leader in kickoff return average (23.8). Brian Klesath (Peoria, Notre Dame HS) leads the CCIW in kick scoring (46 points) and with 10 field goals vs. league foes. The Titans are third in total offense (367.7) and fifth in defense (347.8) in CCIW play...Millikin is fourth in total offense (365.3) and third in defense (294.2)
LEAGUE HONORS: Senior John Spellman (Wilmette, New Trier HS) and North Central running back Steve Holder share the “Offensive Player of the Week" honor in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin for Nov. 9, while North Central’s Bobby Miller claimed the defensive honor. IWU senior Chris Ross (Chatham, Glenwood HS) was "Offensive Player of the Week" in the CCIW three times this fall and Josh Akin (Naperville, Benet Academy) was “Offensive Player of the Week” Sept. 14.
FOR THE RECORD: With six victories, IWU is assured of finishing over the .500 mark for the ninth straight year and for the 13th time in the last 14 seasons...Titan teams are 28-9 in November in the Norm Eash era... Since 1995, IWU has won 57 of its last 71 games (.803). The 14 losses have come to Wheaton (5), Millikin and Augustana (3 each), Mount Union, Washington U., and Carthage (1 each)... The Titans are 57-17 (.770) at home and 48-26-1 on the road (.638) under Eash...IWU is 46-9 (.836) at Wilder Field in the last 11 years (1991-2002).
ALL-TIME: IWU is 490-351-42 (.578) in 110 years of football. Before the season, IWU was tied for 16th among Division III schools (with St. John’s [Minn.], 484-211-24 in 91 seasons).
THE COACHES: Norm Eash (Illinois Wesleyan, 1975) is in his 16th season as head coach at IWU and has an overall record of 105-43-1 (.706) and a CCIW mark of 80-35-1 (.691) with conference titles in 1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, and 2001. Eash, the CCIW “Coach of the Year” in 1992, 1996 and 2001, is fourth in all-time CCIW coaching wins, behind IWU’s Don Larson (142 wins), Bob Reade of Augustana (112) and Carthage’s Art Keller (105). Eash is second in victories at IWU, behind Don Larson (166 wins in 33 years, 1954-86)...Doug Neibuhr is in his seventh season as head coach at Millikin and has an overall mark of 45-22 overall and is 31-16 in the CCIW. Neibuhr, a 1974 Millikin grad, was head coach at Wittenberg for seven years prior to returning to Millikin. Neibuhr was 50-18-1 at Wittenberg and led the Tigers to a playoff appearance in 1995. He is 89-36-1 (.684) overall as a collegiate coach.
The Norm Eash Record - Year-by-Year
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SCOUTING THE BIG BLUE: After falling behind 24-0 early in the second half last week, Millikin’s rally fell short in a 24-17 loss at North Central. Millikin had 398 total yards to North Central’s 261 and the Big Blue had 23 of the game’s 34 first downs. But the Big Blue gave up 87 yards on nine penalties and had five first-half turnovers, three of which were converted into scores. Junior Donnell Brown replaced freshman Justin Stessman at quarterback midway through the second quarter and went on to complete 23 of 42 passes for 265 yards and two TDs while rushing for 57 yards on nine carries. Jay Graziano also had 54 yards on 11 carries. On the receiving end, Mike Gardiner caught six passes for 98 yards and Michael Marker had three receptions for 58 yards and one TD. Andy Beals made a career-best 50-yard field goal for Millikin.
THE SERIES: Dating back to 1904, Millikin has a 50-37-7 lead over IWU. The Titans have won the past two seasons, and prior to that Millikin had won three straight. Prior to that, the Titans had won three in a row and five of the last six. Millikin won nine consecutive games from 1982-90. Despite being 94 meetings old, the rivalry isn’t in the top 15 of Division III longest series.
ON THE AIR: The IWU/Millikin game will be broadcast live on the Internet at WJBC Radio.
CHRIS ROSS: Senior running back Chris Ross (Chatham, Glenwood HS), out for the year with a torn MCL in his right knee, was on a pace to become IWU’s all-time single-season rushing leader - for the season Ross had 871 rushing yards, eighth in an IWU season and leaving him 209 yards behind Kurt Swearingen, who had 1079 in 1977. Against North Central Ross tied a school mark with 39 rushing attempts in a game, held by Swearingen (1977 vs. Augustana) and his 238 yards rushing is third best in a single game at IWU, behind Chris Humbles (273 vs. North Park, 1991) and Deon Hornsby (244 vs. Thomas More, 1996). At Chicago he ran for 206 yards and vs. North Park he ran for 187 yards and tied a school-record (at the time) with four TD runs.
IWU ALUM COACHES: Three of the CCIW coaches are Illinois Wesleyan graduates - the Titans’ Norm Eash and North Park’s Robin Cooper, both from the class of 1975, and North Central’s John Thorne, who graduated in 1969. Four other coaches are the head mentors at their own alma maters - Jim Barnes (Augustana), Doug Niebuhr (Millikin), Mike Swider (Wheaton), and Tim Rucks (Carthage), while Elmhurst’s Paul Krohn is a Mankato State graduate.
UNDER THE LIGHTS: On Sept. 21, 2002, IWU won the first home night
football game played at IWU’s Wilder Field since 1971. The Titans were
to have played Aurora at night on Sept. 15, 2001, but the game was cancelled
in light of the national tragedies of Sept. 11. The last home night game
was on Oct. 2, 1971, when Carthage downed the Titans, 22-19. Home night
game results from 1965-2002:
Sept. 24, 2002 - IWU 31, Washington U. 24 (OT)
Oct. 2, 1971 - Carthage 22, IWU 19
Sept. 19, 1970 - IWU 21, Wheaton 21
Oct. 5, 1968 - Carthage 20, IWU 13
Sept. 30, 1967 - IWU 17, Augustana 3
Oct. 1, 1966 - IWU 20, North Park 0
Sept. 25, 1965 - IWU 34, Illinois State 7
MEDIA GUIDE: The 2002 Illinois Wesleyan football media guide, complete with player and coach profiles and all-time records, is available for $5 via mail. Send a check to: Sports Information Director, Illinois Wesleyan, P.O. Box 2900, Bloomington, IL 61702-2900.
HONORS: Four players return that were first team all-CCIW choices last season - senior defensive back and punt returner Kevin Kaplan (Cary, Cary-Grove HS) (20 tackles, five interceptions, led league in punt returns); senior linebacker Mike Clark (Joliet, West HS) (82 tackles, 45 solo, 13 tackles for loss); senior offensive tackle Adam Miller (Elgin, Larkin HS); and junior wide receiver Tim Snyder (Glen Ellyn, Glenbard South HS) (27 catches for 396 yards). Kaplan is also a third team preseason All-American (Don Hansen Football Gazette).