When the result of a game has so many implications such as, potential MIAC Championship, national rankings, and the play-off picture then the 2009 version of Johnnie-Tommie game did not disappoint. I’m writing this from the perspective of a Johnnie football fan,if you are a Tommie player or Tommie backer then the result may have disappointed you. The history and legend of this classic small college rivalry goes back to the first meeting in St. Paul on November 28,1901, which was the first in a long line of Johnnie football victories over the Tommies by the score of 16-6.
The Tommies came into the 2009 version of this rivalry game leading the MIAC in points scored at 44 per game, total offense at 466.8 per game,rushing offense at 259.2 per game which featured the MIAC leading running back in Ben Wartman who had 668 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground. Also on the offensive side of the ball the Tommies had the luxury of the best wide receiver and top punt returner in the league with Fritz Waldvogel. This was before the Tommies faced the Johnnie defense. The Tommies could only garner up 239 yards of total offense and the celebrated Mr. Wartman was held to 80 yards rushing and no touchdowns on 24 carries. The very talented Mr. Waldvogel was limited to 4 receptions for 24 yards and no touchdowns and on punt returns he was able to return 2 punts for a total of 16 yards.
The game saw no scoring in the 1st quarter as both teams were able to move the ball, yet would stall out offensively before being forced to punt. The first scoring of the game was the continuation of a 6 play 69 yard drive that had started in the 1st quarter and was capped off on a 5-yards pass from Joe Boyle to Kellen Blaser who caught the ball in the right flat and stretched out to break the plane of the goal line of the south end-zone at the 12:37 point of the 2nd quarter. The Russell Gliadon PAT made the score 7-0 in favor of the Johnnies.
As the 1st half was winding down, the Tommies positioned themselves to attempt a field goal, but the kick by Brady Beeson would sail wide left as Beeson kicked to the north goal post. Looking into a sea of red and hearing thousands of cheering fans may have had some physiological effect on Beeson, or maybe not. For those of you with a long memory of Johnnie football, Beeson had been a Johnnie football player for three seasons before transferring to St. Thomas for this, his senior year. Beeson has been excellent for the Tommies so far this season, earning MIAC Player of the Week honors twice this season, but the sights and sounds of Clemens Stadium from the opposite sideline may have been just enough to break his concentration for just one kick. Halftime score SJU 7 UST 0.
The Johnnies would get onto the scoreboard again in the 3rd quarter as Jakob Reding finished an 11 play-39 yard drive on a 1 yard run with 2:20 remaining in the quarter. The Gliadon PAT made the score 14-0 with the Johnnies looking to win in a comfortable fashion. Not so fast, games with a team the caliber of the Tommies or the Bethel Royals are not won or lost until the final seconds have ticked off the clock and so would be a very eventful and exciting 4th quarter and overtime period in this 2009 version of the Johnnie-Tommie game.
The Tommies would score twice in the 4th quarter on punting team miscues for the Johnnies. The first was an 11-yard shanked punt off the side of Russell Gliadon’s foot which gave the Tommies a short field and the Tommie offense took just 1 play to cut the score to 14-7 in favor of the Johnnies. Later in the 4th quarter near mid-field, the Johnnies had a fake punt go terribly wrong. The original call by the coaching staff was to short snap the ball to the up back, as the Tommies defensive alignment was not conducive to a running play to pick up the 1st down, the coaches sent a signal from the sideline to call off the fake, instead to punt the ball deep. There was only one small problem, not everyone on the punt team received the signal and the ball was short snapped and ended up bouncing all the way to the Johnnie 17 yard line. With 2 seconds on the clock the Tommies scored again and the PAT from Tommie kicker Beeson was perfect, bringing the score to 14-14 and an overtime period.
The Johnnies won the toss in overtime and elected to go on defense first. College overtime is not sudden death as it is in the NFL, each team gets the ball at the 25 yard line and by electing to play defense first, the Johnnies would know what they had to do offensively based on the results of the Johnnie defense.
The Johnnie defense held tough in the overtime period by forcing the Tommies to settle for a field goal, setting up the drama that would unfold as the Johnnies took the field on offense. As the offensive line was able to create running lanes for the backs through out the game, why change anything in the overtime period? After three consecutive running plays to Jackob Reding, Kellen Blaser took a pitch on the left side and ran and dove 8 yards for the score, again to the south end-zone. The official on the play was dwarfed by players on the field, so the 12,903 in the stands and surrounding the field had a delayed reaction before the official call of TOUCHDOWN was announced.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Johnnies were led by QB Joe Boyle who was 9 of 21 passing for 78 yards and 1 touchdown. Rushing leaders were Jakob Reding with 32 carries for 124 yards and a TD, Kellen Blaser had 15 attempts for 74 yards and the overtime game winning TD. Receiving the ball for the Johnnies were Reding, Ben Vanderheyden, Josh Overman and Blaser who also had the 5 yard TD to open the scoring.
Defensively the Johnnies were led by Ryan Wimmer and Dominic Haik with 7 tackles each. Bobby Klint had 6 tackles, John Stanton had 6 tackles and an interception. Alex Powell had an interception and Kevin Wenner added a fumble recovery. The entire defense played well to holding the big stars for the St. Thomas offense well under their season averages.
After an emotional win in this fashion over a team like St. Thomas, the Johnnies know from years of experience that there are three very important MIAC games to play and unless they win those, their post season fate is out of their control. Going into the stretch run of the MIAC season, it appears even with bumps and bruises to key players the Johnnies are playing their best football. Being able to control the clock with a ground game will go a long way to determining how far this team can go as the weather turns cold and the winds of autumn turn to winter in the Johnnie football season.