Millersville ran into a buzz-saw West Chester Golden Rams team that, coming into the week, hit the national rankings at #20. The final score, 48-3. The game was as sloppy as the weather. Torrential rain pounded Chryst Field, making turnovers abundant, and easy plays turn into adventures.
Nonetheless, Millersville mustered 121 total yards of offense. That number proved to be deceiving due to seven yards net rushing. 59 gained, 52 lost. Some sacks forced by the West Chester defense were quite costly in that regard. In fact, QB Connor Casey ended up with 41 yards for a loss.
Coming into the game, everyone knew star RB Rondell White would be an enormous factor not only due to his skill, but due to the weather as well. Rain kept the ball on the ground throughout so much so that WC attempted 63 running plays for a total of 456 yards. It ended up as a school record. Eight different players rushed the ball in Saturday's contest.
White ended the game with 34 carries, 227 yards, and three touchdowns.
The PSAC is chock full of immensely talented backs. West Chester's White, Mercyhurst's Brandon Brown-Dukes, Bloomsburg's Franklin Quiteh, and one player who graduated last year, Shippensburg's Mike Frenette, to name a few. All of them can break the game open, meaning defense against the run might as well be the largest point of emphasis to stay in games.
Truly the only disparity defensively is against the run. Other teams have not fared well defensively against Millersville's multivariate wide receiving core that will be good for time to come.
What continues to be positive is the body language and the exuberance that comes with this season. The game was all but over in the third quarter, but the response after big defensive stops and doing things the right way meant a ton towards turning this ship around.
There are good things happening this season, even in the shroud of being outscored 144-26. In talking with players and coaches, they aren't worried. In fact, their excitement and unwavering commitment is more than apparent. One quote from head coach Greg Breitbach said a lot after this loss.
"We're going to continue to find things that we can build on and then be man enough to look in the mirror and see what we didn't do right and fix it," he told Lancaster Online.
Last year's losses may have been ho-hum, but this year's losses have purpose. They are measuring stick games. In a sense, "this is where we are in comparison to a parity-ridden PSAC." It is not an easy conference by any stretch of the imagination. Three teams are in the top 20 in the entire nation, and Millersville will have played all three of them in the span of four weeks.
Millersville's next opponent, Shippensburg, was in the conversation at #7 before being wiped off the list due to two losses. Don't count them out of the national ranking conversation.
Punter Evan Stahl started full-time kicking duties last week against Mercyhurst and he had a sensational night booting the ball away in such horrific conditions on Saturday. Stahl averaged 46.2 yards per punt, and his longest was an absolute gem totaling 69 yards. It didn't challenge Jeff Lawson's inhuman 81 yard punt, but it was sure close.
Ville vs. Ship starts at noon on Saturday. Watch the journey continue from Chryst Field at Biemesderfer Stadium, or listen along with yours truly at www.millersvilleathletics.com/msbn
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