The game started slow  for the Johnnies, who scored only one TD and held a 7-0 lead after the first quarter. Things heated up in the second quarter as the Johnnies went back to passing plays that narrowly missed connecting in the first quarter that were successful in the second quarter. The Johnnies went into halftime leading 41-0.

Special teams performed well, forcing a couple of fumbles on back to back kick-offs giving the Johnnies short field situations in the second quarter.

Defensively the Johnnies played a nearly mistake free game, highlighted by 3 interceptions by Bobby Fischer.

Bobby Fischer Jr. CB

Maze Thompson had 6 tackles,including 2 QB sacks. Andrew Rose added 5 tackles. Jake King had 5 tackles, including a QB sack. Lukas Inveiss and Andrew Rotschafer forced fumbles for the Johnnies. Paul Plombon, Jack Daggett and James Obler also had QB sacks.Nolan Lortz also recorded a pass interception for the Johnnies. As a team the Johnnie defense held Hamline to 8 1st downs, 22 net rushing yards and a total of 111 yards of offense for the day.

The offensive explosion was something the Johnnies had been looking for all season. To end the season on a high note,albeit to a winless team,has to give the Johnnies confidence going into the off season. Acknowledging the shortcomings of this team in early season games and working around them to end the season on a 4 game winning streak is a credit to the players and the coaching staff.

Connor Bruns was again the starting QB for the Johnnies and he made some adjustments in the second quarter of pass plays that were just off the mark in the first quarter leading to two TD passes as well as running for two scores in the second quarter. Harry Awe also threw an option pass for a  TD  in the second quarter. Awe was 3 for 3 on pass attempts for the season,all for TDs.

The scoring recap for the day is as follows; Bruns was 11 for 20 for 183 yards passing and 3 TDs with 0 interceptions. John Ries 6 for 9 for 58 yards and a TD with 0 interceptions. Bruns had TD runs of 2 and 12 yards. Other Johnnie rushing TDs were scored by Jake Essler of 1 yard and Colin Moynihan of 4 yards;both were scored in the 4th quarter. Receiving TDs for the Johnnies were caught by Taylor Freetlly of 20 and 25 yards,both thrown by Bruns. Brent Graboski caught the 4 yard TD pass thrown by Awe. Wade Powers also caught a 25 yard TD pass thrown by Bruns. In the third quarter Harry Awe caught an 11 yard TD pass from Ries. Jimmie Mattson was 7 of 8 on PAT attempts. One snap was mishandled and a running try for a point after was attempted,but was unsuccessful.

Once again the Johnnies will not be participating in the NCAA Division III Play-offs,the first back to back seasons that the team has not made the field since the 1983-1984 seasons. The 6-4 record is the worst finish since the 1997 season. The Johnnies have tremendous opportunities next season and beyond as many young players were given opportunities to play this year and responded well. Followers of Johnnie football will remember that MIAC Championships and NCAA Division III Play-off appearances came after these previous blips on the radar screen. With the hard work and dedication by the players and coaching staff in the offseason I like the Johnnies chances in 2012 and beyond.

***Photo courtesy of GoJohnnies.com

Our own bit of misery as Johnnie Football fans is minimal when compared to the multitude of troubles plaguing major college athletics.  When St. John’s deviates from its traditional place as MIAC football champions our fall world appears rightfully out of place. Despite our anguish we can all be thankful our complaints can be limited to a soon to be 6 – 4 football season.
 
To send this year’s season off and to begin the hot-stove conversation for a revived 2012 Johnnie Football team, we invite all of you to Gabe’s By the Park this Saturday for a Johnnie vs Hamline Piper pregame primer.  Located at 991 North Lexington Parkway in St. Paul, Gabe’s www.gabesmn.com is as Bob Wicker indicates, “… a long chip shot from the Hamline football field”.
 
Doors open at 9am however be prepared to load up on beer nuts as the grill won’t be ready until 11am.  Bob expects most guests to show up about then.  And until then…
 
 
 
JohnnieUp Everybody!

Click HERE to view full screen images as a slide show. Look for “slideshow” near the upper right of the screen.

It’s Friday and my bags aren’t packed.  There’s no need to check in online, to download a coupon for the off-site airport parking or to confirm reservations with Hertz or the St. Cloud Homewood Suites.  I sit in my office wondering what on earth I am to do this weekend. 

Last weekend we stayed an extra day so we could spend some extra time, see people and say thanks and good-bye.  We had a nice chat after Sunday Mass with Fr. Don Talfous and spoke to Jake Redding and his little brother.  We walked around campus and saw the beauty that the storm had left in the now ghosted trees.  And then we walked down to the field, which lay undisturbed under its new blanket of snow.  Peaceful, yet empty – an emptiness that is not to change this season.

Unique to soccer perhaps, they use the term “unlucky” to explain situations in which the result does not match the effort given.  By that term, this year’s Johnnies were indeed unlucky; they gave great effort  but received only good, not great, results.  In the end, they were a much better team than their record, and no one in the playoffs would have wanted to find themselves paired up against them.  At season’s end, the Johnnie offense was rolling and the defense was holding.  Watch the highlights of the Hamline game at GoJohnnies.com or below. and you’ll get a sense of the utter ease with which the team was playing.  No doubt every member of that team aches that they cannot keep playing. 

So we wait for next season.  For some of us, though, the experience of next season will be dramatically different.  As parents of an indispensible Johnnie senior, next year will bring newly indispensible players to replace him.  Noel and I will still come to games – though not every week! – and we’ll still be at the Stiftungfestivities and in the stands cheering for the Jays.  We just won’t have the same connection (and dare I say joy) that we’ve had watching our son wear the red and white.  Who knows, maybe it will be easier and less taxing; Noel won’t worry about injury and I won’t worry about missed tackles.  But it sure will be different.  (Damn, if it’s this hard for a parent, how on earth do the players cope?)

Thanks to everyone who made us and our son so welcome (you know who you are).  We’re proud to be Johnnies.

A somewhat fitting finale to a five year long distance relationship…. The Stantons from NorCal

On the day the Johnnies put up 604 yards of offense, including 404 passing yards and took a 35-0 lead into halftime. The scoring came early and often as SJU took their opening possession 51 yards in 5 plays capped off by a 2 yard TD run by Sr. RB Jakob Reding.

Hamline came back with an 11 play drive, but were not able to convert on the field-goal attempt and the Johnnies got the ball back at their own 3 yard line. SJU turned around with a 10 play drive of their own, which resulted in a 6 yard touchdown run for Sr.QB  Joe Boyle.The Johnnies increased their lead to 14-0.

The Johnnie defense held strong and forced the Pipers to punt after 3 plays and the Johnnie offense took up where they left off with another scoring run by Boyle,this time from 4 yards out to cap off a 10 play 61 yard drive. The Johnnies lead is increased to 21-0.

The Pipers did show some signs of life on offense with their next drive, accumulating 24 yards before they were forced to punt the ball back to the Johnnies. After feeling a sense of urgency, Joe Boyle and Jr. WR Sam Pederson connected on the very first play of this possession for a 86 yard TD pass. In doing so, when they entered the record books with the fourth longest touchdown pass in school history as well as increasing the lead at this point to 28-0.

Both teams exchanged interceptions but, as half-time approached Joe Boyle found Soph. WR Max Forster for a 71 yard pass play that made it down to the 3 yard line. As time was winding down in the half and two penalties later it appeared of that the Johnnies would let this scoring opportunity slip away before time expired in the half. Never fear Johnnie fans, Fr. RB Nick Schneider scored from 13 yards out with 12 seconds on the clock. The Johnnies went into the locker-room leading 35-0.

In the third quarter Boyle hit Soph. RB Stephen Johnson with a 21 yard TD pass with 9:31 remaining in the third quarter. The Johnnies lead was increased to 42-0.

Boyle was relieved by Sr. QB  Andrew Hengel who closed out the scoring when he threw a  39 yard TD pass to WR Mitch Bidleman with 5:54 remaining in the third quarter,to make the final score SJU 49-Hamline 0.

Sr. QB Andrew Hengel

Boyle was 11 for 17 passing for 318 yards with 1 interception and 2 TDs giving him back to back 300 yard games.

The leading rusher for the Johnnies was Sr. RB Bryan Virnig who racked up 56 yards on 4 carries. Ian Goldsmith Soph. DB had 7 tackles and Sr. DL Griffin Hayes had 1 1/2 sack and Sr. DL Kyle Schroeder had 2 TFL. Jake King Soph LB had an interception and Mike Bonynge Soph. DB recovered a fumble.

Sr. RB Bryan Virnig

The announced crowd was 1,688  this was the smallest crowd at Clemens Stadium since 1992. As Johnnie fans we may not think twice about having the stands full for every home game and at many away games around the conference the SJU fans outnumber the home crowd. When you think about it, in blizzard conditions to attract a crowd of 1,688, most teams in Division III and many  teams in Division II  would be thrilled to have attendance like this in ideal weather conditions.

This brings the 2010 season to a close, the first time that the Johnnie haven’t made it to the postseason since 2004. The 3rd place finish in the MIAC was the lowest finish since 1997. For the seniors, we all know this is not how you envisioned the end of your playing career at SJU but sometime soon you will look back on your time with this group of guys and remember this is one of the best times of your life. Now we welcome you to the real world where you are spectators instead of participants and every time you come back to SJU you will remember the best times of your life were spent in Collegeville and played out on the fields around the MIAC and a special place that is called The Natural Bowl at Clemens Stadium in Collegeville,Minnesota.

*Photos appear courtesy of gojohnnies.com

The Pipe P.A. Announcer (who apparently could not even get a gig announcing games at Gallaudet University) calmly states for all to hear “its 4th and a mile for the Johnnies”. I look back at the press box and some Piper fan (yea there were like 75 of them there, it must have been Homecoming or something) said, “Hey, show some sportsmanship- you guys are already winning by a ton.”

Seriously, could you see Timmo being so one sided in his PA announcing of Johnnie games? No way, we do not roll that way at the 56321. Because with the way we take care of other teams the announcements would sound more like, “Wow, that actually is a 1st down for the Pipers here in the 3rd quarter, and the Johnnies are up by 50!” This is a glaring example of just how sub-standard, or should I say miles away, the Hamline Football Program is.

Now consider this. There is a Hamline player, (again a very loose use of the word) who actually posts comments (useless ones at that) on Twitter about how good the team is and how he is going to light up other teams. Again, you have got to be kidding me here. I mean this player does not have stellar stats in 2010; rather he has NO stats. So maybe discretion is the better part of valor here, huh? Coaching is not strictly reserved to on field actives here in the MIAC; maybe a coach over at Hamline should take this boy aside and teach him about being a man and avoiding the whole “look at me” generational attitude that is prevalent in this day and age.

Well maybe this week this player will get onto the turf of the Natural Bowl and then he can be introduced to Johnnies such as: Killer, Bone Crusher and the Mad Stork (Grill #90)! Then let’s see what he posts on his Twitter Account. Probably something like “ooh I did NOT see that coming”!

Johnnie Nation- what we have in this week’s opponent is a team, and a program that is a Mile away from dignity and quality. They have not only embarrassed themselves, but they have embarrassed the MIAC and all of the Piper faithful who have gone before them. So why don’t we keep the trend going and embarrass them yet again on the scoreboard! (Take a look at say the last 10 years of Johnnie Piper final scores; it appears we were playing a 6th grade girls’ powder puff team))

Hard to believe but it is the final game of the 2010 season. Let’s all get up to the greatest place on the planet one last time to enjoy the tailgate (as well Tom and Carol’s chili) and then root the Johnnies onto their 7th victory.

Afterwards be sure to find a few of our fellow Johnnies and thank them for their fine efforts both on and off the Field

And to the seniors, I say, “While we are sorry to see you go, we warmly welcome you to a Nation that is Unrivaled, the Johnnie Nation!”

One last time here in 2010……Johnnie Up and let’s pound those Piper pukes! (Wait, is that Cold Play wafting out of their Locker Room ?)

This season of course a new team will be representing the MIAC as it’s newly crowned champion.  It took a late game comeback by this nationally 4th ranked team and a Johnnie missed extra point in overtime to alter the SJU postseason playoff tradition. 

Currently standing at a season record of 6 – 3, we’ll settle for a final road trip to Collegeville this Saturday to watch the Hamine Pipers close out another miserable season.  Expect an interesting game from the Johnnies as their year comes to an end versus an MIAC opponent who has yet to win a conference game.  Sound familiar?

To celebrate this 100th season of Johnnie Football and coach John Gagliardi’s 478th victory, arrive in Collegeville Saturday morning and shuffle your way to the Science Center parking lot for some of Carol Arth’s chili and Mike Fahey’s famous fistungfestivities.  Wait a second, shouldn’t that be Stiftungsfestivities?  Our lips are already blue from the anticpated 30 degree temps and Harry Burns’ secret Blue Curacao concoctions.

Bring something to share.  Anybody can come.

JohnnieUpEverybody!

Piper Offense:  The Pipers are led by QB Adam Meyer #3 who has thrown for just over a 50% completion percentage with 9 TDs and 12 INTs this season.  Freshman RB Zach Cornish #37 is the Pipers main threat in the backfield with 504 yards and 6 TDs.  Senior WRs Alex House and Tim Queck have nearly identical statistics with 519 yards receiving and 4 & 3 TDs respectively.  Hamline runs a pro style offense that is capable of big plays but also must have excellent protection from its offensive line or there will be turnovers abound.

Johnnie Offense:  Senior QB Joe Boyle had a terrific day last week against the Oles passing for 329 yards and 3 TDs in the blowout win.  He was named MIAC Offensive Player of the Week for his performance.  The Johnnies have been able to get all 4 RBs involved in the game and have been able to find open receivers when teams decide to blitz to create pressure on the QB.

Piper Defense:  The Pipers have been decimated all season by opposing offenses.  They are simply overmatched and Saturday should be no exception.  WLB Justin Bain #29 leads the team with 10 tackles for loss.  FS J-M Vandenberg #31 and S Brady Lorenzen #5 are the other key contributors to the Piper defense.

Johnnie Defense:  Senior DT Kyle Schroeder #97 has been double & triple teamed all season following his All-American campaign last fall.  Despite the extra attention from offensive lines he has been a stalwart and spent a lot of time in opposing backfields.  The extra attention has allowed his teammates along the defensive line and the linebacking group to get free & make more plays.  It is a classic case of the statistics not telling the whole story.

Piper Special Teams:  John Broback is the Pipers Kicker and Punter.  He is 6 of 7 in FGs and a perfect 22 of 22 in PATs.  Broback’s punt average is 37.4 yards with 7 landing inside the 20 yard line and 2 blocked kicks.  Speedsters Alex House and Tim Queck handle the punt & kick return responsibilities.

Johnnie Special Teams:  Jimmie Mattson was a perfect 6 for 6 on PATs last week at St. Olaf and P Scott Ramey has really been booming his punts in the 2nd half of the season.  This game should not come down to special teams.  A few big punt returns could set up short fields and quick scores for the Johnnies allowing the 3rd, 4th, 5th string players to get some game experience for next season.

By all objective and subjective measures this game should be an overwhelming blowout.  The Johnnies come into the game with the #1 ranking in total offense in the MIAC and #2 ranking in the all important scoring offense behind St. Thomas.  The Pipers have been systematically dismantled all season by some pretty average football teams.  A trip to Collegeville in November is not a recipe for success.

St. John’s 52 – Hamline 10

Bring on the Tommies. Been a long time since there’s been a Johnnie/Tommie game with so much at stake.

Photos by Jeff Sowden (Johnnie Dad) and Vic Murphy (Faunch).

Click HERE to view full screen images as a slide show.
(Look for “slideshow” in the upper right area of the page.)

The Johnnies won the coin toss and elected to defer their choice until the second half. The Pipers elected to receive and the Johnnies chose to defend the north goal, with the north wind gusting through out the day, this was a decision that proved to be most productive.

The Johnnie defense forced a 3-and-out after the opening kick off and with the Pipers punting into the wind, the Johnnies took advantage of a short field. On their very first offensive play of the ball game, Jakob Reding took a hand off down the left side 45 yards to pay dirt in the south end zone and following a successful PAT by Russell Gliadon the score was 7-0 in favor of SJU.

After  the Johnnie defense forced another 3 -and-out the Johnnie offense took a bit more time to score by stringing together an 11 play drive which was capped off by a 1-yard TD run by Stephen Johnson followed by the Gliadon PAT bringing the score 14-0 in favor of the Johnnies.

Following the kick off, the Johnnie defense struck again as David Burns forced and recovered a fumble to give the Johnnie offense yet another short field. Joe Boyle took advantage of the momentum and tossed a scoring pass to Andrew Rotschafer. The one armed grab by Rotschafer has to be one for the highlight reel 2009 as he snared the ball with his left hand and then cradled it against his body while retaining possession as he landed on the end zone turf. After the Russell Gliadon PAT the score was SJU 21-0 over Hamline. This ended the scoring for the 1st quarter.

The Pipers were to score their only touchdown of the day as they blocked a Russell Gliadon  punt early in the 2nd quarter as the Johnnies were now operating into a persistent north wind.

The Johnnies did answer by running 8 consecutive plays covering 48 yards, being capped off by a 3 yard Kellen Blazer touchdown run. The PAT by Gliadon was not successful making the score SJU 27-Hamline 7.

The Johnnies would score one more time prior to intermission on another short field opportunity set up the the Johnnie special team unit as Dan Franta blocked a Hamline punt. Joe Boyle scored just as time expired in the 1st half, followed up by the PAT from Gliadon making the halftime score SJU 34 -Hamline 7.

The Johnnies elected to take the wind at their back to begin the 2nd half  but were unable to score in the 3rd quarter. The Johnnie defense set up the final score of the day as linebacker Billy Lawrence intercepted a pass and returned it to the 1-yard line. The following play Jimmy Loonan scored on a 1-yard run followed by the PAT from Gliadon to make the final score SJU 41 Hamline 7.

Offensively the Johnnies were led by Joe Boyle who was 8 for 16 for 85 yards and 1 touchdown passing through the air. Boyle also ran for a touchdown.

The ground game was led by Jakob Reding who had 8 attempts for 78 yards and a touchdown. Kellen Blaser had 13 attempts for 76 yards and a touchdown.

Andrew Rotschafer was the main target through the air finishing the game with 3 catches for 58 yards and a touchdown.

The defense played like they had something to prove after some sub-par performances,by SJU standards, in earlier games and they were very successful in that regard.

The team was led statistically by Evan Cobb who had 9 tackles, an interception and a sack.  John Stanton had 5 tackles and a sack. Kyle Schroeder had 4 tackles and a sack. Dan Franta had 4 tackles, a blocked punt and 1/2  sack. David Burns had 3 tackles a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Other Johnnies contributing to this statistical masterpiece were Billy Lawrence with an interception as well as Ryan Wimmer,Phil Orzechowski, Jack Daggett, Luke Sweeter and Jeff Bohlman all contributing to the sack total and Nate Anderson also recovering a fumble.

The Johnnies took this opportunity to rest some players that had nagging injuries as well as getting some valuable game experience for some younger players. This was a good win with some teachable moments for the younger kids as well as the more experience players. The team will savor this victory over the weekend, but come Monday they will review film of the game and then press “erase”. Next week brings another opponent who also has an undefeated record and a national ranking along with revenge for a game last year that was played in St. Paul. It has been many years since a Johnnie-Tommie game has had conference title along with national ranking implications associated with it, but Johnnie fans know one thing that doesn’t seem to change over the years which is Tommies will be Tommies….take that for what it’s worth!

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