The Johnnies traveled to Arden Hills on Saturday to face conference rival Bethel hoping to put an end to the back-to-back losses at the hands of the Bethel Royals during the 2006 and 2007 seasons. Bethel has been spiraling out of control with losses to Carleton and Concordia thus far in the 2008 MIAC schedule. The result for the Johnnies was a heartbreaking 14-9 loss.
The game was played under sunny skies with temperatures in the mid 60’s and a slight breeze blowing, a picture perfect day to be a Johnnie Football fan.
Bethel jumped out to a 7-0 lead midway through the 1st Qtr. as their Freshman QB Josh Aakre scored on a three yard run.
The Johnnies missed a golden opportunity shortly after the Bethel touchdown on an 8-play 59-yard drive after being denied the end zone 4 times inside the Bethel 5-yard line. On this short yardage situation the Johnnies showed a new offensive set-up by inserting several defensive linemen and linebackers into the SJU backfield. This similar personnel substitution was used in the 2006 NCAA play-off at the University of Wisconsin Whitewater and did not work in that situation either.
SJU finally got onto the scoreboard with a 29-yard FG by Russ Gliadon with just shy of 3-minutes remaining in the first half.
Bethel took their opening drive of the second half and turned out a 16-paly 66-yard drive that ate up 7:09 of clock time. This made the score 14-3 in favor of the Royals.
The Johnnies final score of the game came at 9:29 of the 4th Qtr. as they took advantage of a Bethel miscue. As Bethel was in punt formation, their long-snapper sailed the ball over the head of their punter who then covered up the ball on the Bethel 3-yard line. Two plays later SJU QB Jordan Hansel scored on a 1-yard QB sneak. On the 2-point conversion attempt, Hansel mishandled the snap and the score remained 14-9.
The Johnnies had the ball in the final minute of the game with Brian Busack being stopped at the 2-yard line as time expired.
Jordan Hansel played the entire game at QB for the Johnnies going 28 of 53 for 256 yards. Hansel threw two interceptions and no touchdowns.
Jeff Schnobrich, Kellen Blaser and Billy Ryan who combined for 110 yards on the ground for the Johnnies shared the running game.
Ben Vanderhyden led all receivers on the day with 10 catches for 149 yards.
The Johnnies out gained the Royals 359-164 but were just 2 for 5 in red-zone opportunities for the day.
The Johnnie defense was again a team effort. Jimmy Sharpe and Nick Kotsmith led the defense in tackles with 9 each followed by Ethan Eid, Ryan Wimmer and Noel Meyer who each recorded 8 tackles.
Frustration turned to disappointment for Johnnie players and fans as an opportunity to end a losing streak to a conference rival was not seized. More importantly the race for the MIAC championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA Play-Off has all but slipped from the grasp of the Johnnies. Too many unlikely scenarios have to play out for the Johnnies to capture another MIAC crown and the promised land of the NCAA race for the “Walnut and Bronze”.
