Hopes are high as the Whitworth College Pirates open the 2005 football season this Saturday, hosting the University of Redlands in the Pine Bowl. Kick off is scheduled for 12:30 pm. It is the first time since 2002 that the Pirates will be playing a season-opener at home. Whitworth and Redlands are opening against each other for the second straight year. Whitworth is coming off of a 7-2 season in which the Pirates finished 3-2 and in third place in the Northwest Conference. The Bucs are ranked as high as 22nd in the USA Today Sports Weekly Division III preseason poll. Redlands finished 4-5 last season, tying for third in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletics Conference with a 3-3 mark, the first time the Bulldogs didn't win a championship since 2001.
The Pirates: Whitworth heads into 2005 with confidence. The Pirates return seven starters on each side of the ball, as well as preseason All-American place kicker Cameron Collings (Sr., PK/P, Spokane, Wash. - Mead). Many observers pegged the Bucs as the last team left out of the 2004 28 team playoff field, and Whitworth hopes to make another run at the post season in 2005. Offensively, 2004 was a record setting year for Whitworth and the Pirates will be experienced in several key positions in 2005. Quarterback Joel Clark (Jr., Spokane, Wash. - Mt. Spokane) returns for his third season as a starter. Clark completed 60.3% of his passes for 2,289 yards and 18 touchdowns last fall, with only five interceptions. He directed an offense that set records for most points per game (40.7) and most yards per game (465.0) last fall. Zach Henningsen (RS Jr., Hillsboro, Ore. - Glencoe) is more than capable as a back up and could see a series or two in several of the Pirate games. Kyle Snell (Sr., Issaquah, Wash. - Univ. of Arizona) and Mathew Johnson (Sr., Olympia, Wash. - Olympia) return as two of the three starting wide receivers. Snell caught 41 passes for 590 yards and six touchdowns last fall. Johnson was second on the team in yards per catch (17.2) and caught a pair of touchdowns. Nick Kuntz (RS Jr., Boise, Idaho - Eagle) has moved from the defensive backfield to take over at the third starting receiver spot. Michael Allan (RS Jr., Bellevue, Wash. - Interlake) had a breakout year at tight end in 2004, earning First Team All-NWC honors after catching 29 passes for 409 yards and five scores.
Running back returns the two-headed monster of Kyle Havercroft (RS So., Rathdrum, Idaho - Lakeland HS) and Chris Ahsing (RS So., Ewa Beach, Hawaii - Campbell HS). The pair combined for 1,019 yards and 18 touchdowns last season. There will be three new starters on the offensive line, but none of those new starters will be inexperienced. Chris Stewart (Sr., QT, Spokane, Wash. - North Central) and Clark Pauls (Sr., SG, Davenport, Wash. - Davenport) are returning starters. Jon Erlenmeyer (Jr., Moses Lake, Wash. - Moses Lake) takes over at center. Steve Honeyman (RS Jr., Kennewick, Wash. - Kamiakin) will take over at strong tackle, and Levi Wyman (RS So., Aiea, Hawaii) will move into the quick guard spot. The growing pains of 2004 on defense will see fruit as the experience of 2005. The defensive backfield and defensive line are deep and experienced. The new set of linebackers are talented and athletic. The Pirates plan to continue to force more turnovers than opponents (Whitworth was +13 in 2004), while cutting down on the yards and points allowed last year. Safeties Jay Tully (So., Spokane, Wash. - Mead) and Phil Entel (RS So., Clarkston, Wash. - Univ. of Idaho) will anchor the defensive backfield. Ryan Marshall (So., Salem, Ore. - Sprague) and Michael Johnston (So., The Dalles, Ore. - The Dalles) will start at corner back. Four players have been battling for the three starting linebacker positions, and the competition has been so good that the coaches are considering running some 3-4 defenses to take advantage of this group's skills. Casey Clifton (RS So., Spokane, Wash. - University) has all but locked up the middle linebacker spot. Returnees Nick Portrey (RS Jr., Ritzville, Wash. - Ritzville) and Greg Caster (RS So., Sherwood, Ore. - Sherwood) are currently slotted to start at the outside positions. But transfer Tyler Hall (Jr., Newport Beach, Calif. - Goldenwest) is forcing coaches to find a spot for him as well. Up front Whitworth will be strong and big. Justin Rundle (RS So., Spokane, Wash. - Mt. Spokane) will start at one end and continues to grow into his 6-6, 249 frame. Peter Clark (So., Spokane, Wash. - Mead) will start at the other end after earning extensive playing time as a true freshman in 2004. Austin Richard (Sr., Seattle, Wash. - Blanchet), an honorable mention All-NWC selection, returns to start at one tackle, while Dan Roberts (RS So., Grand Coulee, Wash. - Lake Roosevelt) is back to start at the other. For the fourth straight season Cameron Collings will handle the place kicking and punting duties. He was named First Team All-NWC as a place kicker last season after making seven of nine field goal attempts and 45/48 PATs. His 53 yard effort against Eastern Oregon and his 48 yard boot against PLU were the difference in Pirate victories. He also averaged 33.8 yards per punt last fall. NWC Poll: Whitworth finished fourth in the NWC preseason coaches poll with 20 points, one behind PLU. Defending champion Linfield finished first with all six first place votes. Link to NWC Football Coaches Poll.
The Opponents: The University of Redlands had an uncharacteristic year in 2004, finishing 4-5 overall and 3-3 in the SCIAC. The Bulldogs had won conference titles the previous two seasons and nine under current coach Mike Maynard. On offense Redlands will retool with several new starters. Senior Nick Brown, who started eight games last season after All-SCIAC QB Brian Sapp went down with injury, returns to start at QB. Brown completed 58% of his passes for 1,105 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions last fall. He is also Redlands' leading returning rusher. The Bulldogs must replace the outstanding contribution of Les Simon, who graduated after running for 1,000+ yards and 17 touchdowns in 2004. Jon Gerhart, a transfer from Merced College, is slated to take over Simon's spot. Senior Charles Coleman was the leading pass receiver last year after he caught 42 passes for 539 and five touchdowns. Like Whitworth, Redlands is hoping to do better on defense in 2005. The Bulldogs allowed nearly 475 yards per game in 2004 and 33.6 points per contest. Senior Nick Steele returns to start at middle linebacker after leading the team in tackles last fall. The Series: The series is tied 1-1 after last year's game. The two squads have never played in Spokane because after Redlands won the first-ever meeting 20-7 in 2000, the teams were scheduled to meet again in Spokane the following season, but the game was postponed due to the events of September 11, 2001. The game was rescheduled for the week following the regular season, but Whitworth won a share of the NWC title with a 7-1 record and was selected to participate in the NCAA playoffs. Last Year: Whitworth produced one of the greatest offensive performances of the John Tully era, outscoring Redlands 52-49. No John Tully team at Whitworth had scored more points in a single game (to that point). The Pirates scored on eight of 11 possessions, and one of those was the final possession of the game when they ran out the clock with three kneel down plays. Whitworth put up 29 first downs, converted eight of 14 third down attempts and both of their fourth down attempts. The Pirates had no turnovers and committed only two offensive penalties for a total of 10 yards. Joel Clark completed 74% of his passes (25 of 34) for a career high 323 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. He also ran for 37 yards on seven carries and scored a TD of his own. Kyle Snell caught seven passes for 94 yards. Michael Allan had five catches for 52 yards and one TD. Kyle Havercroft tied a Whitworth single-game record by scoring four touchdowns. He finished with 64 yards on 19 carries. Chris Ahsing ran for 104 yards on 13 carries. Coach Tully's Quotes: On preseason training camp: "I was very pleased with how the past two weeks went. Our defense is well ahead of where we were last season and our offense is coming around. We have solid personnelm at every spot and we are coming out of it fairly healthy. The guys' attitudes have been great and their work ethic was really pleasing to our staff." On Opening against Redlands: "They are annually a playoff caliber team and we would expect nothing less this year. They run a wide open offense that can challenge any defense and they are defensively very physical." The Coaches: John Tully is in his eleventh season as head coach of the Pirates. He has a 45-49 record at Whitworth. However, he led the Pirates to a 41-26 record over the past seven years and was named the 2001 NWC Coach of the Year. Tully is the second winningest coach in school history, trailing only Sam Adams (47-17-1 from 1958-64). Overall he is 76-71 in his 15th season as a head coach. Mike Maynard is 104-51-1 in his 18th year as head coach at Redlands. He has led the Bulldogs to nine SCIAC championships during his tenure as head coach. 2004 Statistics Other Division III Football Links: American Football Coaches Association |
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