Johnnies bring it home

SJU football defeated Concordia 35-28 on Oct. 1, a week after falling to Bethel. The Sept. 24 defeat against against then-No. 20 ranked Bethel was their first loss of the season.

After wins over two nationally ranked opponents, UW-Whitewater and UW-River Falls, big plays from the Bethel offense hurt the Johnnies. SJU started the scoring by going 70 yards on 19 plays in the opening drive, capped off with a two-yard touchdown run by senior running back Henry Trost.

Bethel responded immediately with a touchdown in three plays, including a 45-yard touchdown pass. After the two sides exchanged seven total punts, senior John Kohler intercepted a pass at the Johnnie 32-yard line. The interception sparked a 72-yard drive that resulted in a field goal and a 10-7 SJU lead at halftime. The second half started similarly to the first as both sides exchanged a touchdown.

Bethel scored on a 38-yard touchdown pass followed by junior quarterback Aaron Syverson’s 58-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Jimmy Buck to put the Johnnies back up 17-14. The score would stay that way through the third quarter. Early in the fourth quarter, Bethel capped off a nine-play drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass to gain the lead. SJU would answer back with a touchdown of their own, another from Trost.

Bethel did not take long to respond, getting the ball back and immediately throwing a 72-yard touchdown pass to take the 28-24 lead. SJU would get the ball back twice in the final nine minutes of the game, but both drives ended in interceptions, sealing the 28-24 win for the Royals. Big plays were the highlight of the game. The Johnnie defense allowed six plays that resulted in 20 or more yards.

“Every game you play, whether you win or lose, there is substantial learning that takes place. Bethel is a very good football team, and you cannot make mistakes against them,” Head Coach Gary Fasching said. “We gave up too many big plays on defense, and we turned the ball over a couple of times on offense. We know that we have to be at our best when we play every game. We need to execute the game plan and eliminate mistakes.”

The Johnnies were able to bounce back Saturday to secure their 71st homecoming win since 1925.

“We moved on,” senior defensive lineman Michael Wozniak said. “One of the things SJU has always done well is not dwelling on the past, whether it be with a win or a loss. At our team meeting on Monday, we made sure everyone’s mind was in the right spot and we shifted focus towards Concordia.”

The Johnnies didn’t get out to a fast start and didn’t finish the game strong, but what they did in the second and third quarter proved to be the difference. Concordia started the scoring with an 11-play touchdown drive to put the Cobbers up 7-0 in the first quarter. But the second quarter is when the SJU offense got into a groove. The Johnnies scored touchdowns on their first four drives of the second quarter in just 16 total plays.

All four touchdowns were passing touchdowns, a 28-yard pass to first-year Dylan Wheeler, a three-yard pass to senior Zach Jungels, a 47-yard pass to senior Darian Washington and a 60-yard pass to Buck. By the end of the first half, the Johnnies held a 28-7 lead.

The Johnnie offense struck again in the third quarter with a 20-yard touchdown pass to Jungels, his second of the day. But in the fourth quarter the Johnnies looked weary as the offense only totaled 12 yards until the subsequential kneel downs that ended the game. The Cobbers threatened with three touchdowns in the fourth quarter but an onside kick that went out of bounds with 53 seconds left allowed SJU to run the clock out and take the 35-28 win.

A struggle so far this season has been the running game for the SJU offense. The Johnnies currently rank 239 out of 240 Division III teams in total rushing yards with just 154.

“It is an area of concern,” Fasching said. “We want to be more balanced on offense. At times we have run the ball very well and then struggled at other times. That will certainly be a point of emphasis going forward.”

One concern the Johnnies do not face is throwing the ball. Quarterback Syverson currently ranks fifth in all of Division III in passing yards per game with 317.25.

“I think what we’ve done to be successful is being able to make big plays when we need to,” senior wide receiver Nick VanErp said. “We have an incredible set of skilled guys in our backfield, at wide receiver and our tight ends. But we know that we always have room to improve and find what that is each day at practice and work on it.”

Consistency has been an emphasis for the Johnnies.

“We truly have 11 great guys who have helped us be successful thus far,” Wozniak said about the Johnnie defense. “Going forward, the focus will be on being consistent. We know what we’re capable of, but we have to achieve that level every play.”

Fasching wants to see the Johnnies play well in every quarter in the future.

“We have to put together a complete game on all sides of the ball,” Fasching said. “We play well in parts, and then we seem to struggle in other parts of the game. We have to continue to develop on offense, and we have to play better defense. We have to take care of the football, eliminate penalties and eliminate big plays on defense.”

The Johnnies look to improve their record as they head to Minneapolis this Saturday, Oct. 8, to take on the Augsburg Auggies.