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Sunday, October 04, 2009

College Football: UF zaps Chargers, 42-17
Interstate Court Plaza - Findlay - I-75 Exit #159
By BRIAN LESTER

STAFF WRITER

Even with pain rushing through his ankle, senior University of Findlay defensive lineman E.J. Whitlow refused to be a spectator.

Not on this Saturday against 24th-ranked Hillsdale.

Not in a game where the Oilers had a chance to take control of their destiny in a pivotal Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference encounter against the Chargers.

So he played right through the injury, limping at times, but never slowing down.

His gutsy effort, along with an offense that roared to life after a slow start, propelled UF (5-1, 4-1 GLIAC) to a convincing 42-17 win over HC (4-2, 3-2) on a chilly October afternoon at Donnell Stadium.

“The ankle hurt but I had to fight through it,” Whitlow said. “I had 10 other guys out there who were playing hard and I knew I had to do the same.”

UF is now in a three-way tie for second place in the GLIAC, sharing that spot with Northern Michigan (4-1, 4-1) and Wayne State (5-1, 5-1).

WSU knocked off Ashland 47-40 and NMU tripped No. 16 Saginaw Valley 23-20.

The importance of this victory runs deeper than another mark in the win column.

This was UF's first victory over a ranked team since 2002 when the Oilers shocked Indiana (Pa.) 37-34 in their season opener.

“It feels awesome,” Whitlow said. “For the first time in my career here, I'm on a good football team. We will celebrate tonight and then focus on next week. Our key to success is preparation.”

Whitlow played a vital role in pressuring Hillsdale quarterback Troy Weatherhead, who came into the game with 1,255 yards passing.

He hurried the junior signal- caller three times and led a defensive effort that limited a potent HC offense to three points in the final 41 minutes of the game.

Weatherhead finished 22-of-49 passing for 258 yards and the Chargers, who led 14-0 with 10:47 left in the second quarter, rolled up 404 yards.

“Great players make great coaches, and E.J. is a great coach on the field,” UF head coach Jon Wauford said. “He is a leader and he came out on the field and really made a statement.”

The Oilers struggled early on offense but roared to life in the second period when freshman running back Monterae Williams provided a heartbeat.

Williams burst through the line time and again, picking up yards on short gains. He eventually scored on a 2-yard run with 6:20 to play that trimmed HC's lead to 14-7.

Williams went one yard with 1:29 to play in the half to tie the game at 14-14.

Not only did Williams (34 carries, 138 yards) get rolling, but quarterback Andrew Beam injected life into the UF passing attack as well.

Beam looked every bit like a senior, going 21-of-28 passing for 312 yards and two TDs.

He picked apart the Chargers by throwing to six different receivers, including a 21-yard scoring strike to Dustin Zielaskiewicz that put UF in front 21-17.

His 12-yard TD pass to Steve Winner with 3:48 left in the third gave the Oilers a 28-17 lead.

UF finished with 550 total yards, in part because Beam was never sacked by a defensive line that registered seven sacks a week ago in a 38-19 win over 15th-ranked Ashland.

“My offensive line made a loud statement and gave me time to work,” Beam said. “We got into a rhythm where we were running and throwing the ball effectively. We proved today that we have a good offense.”

Zielaskiewicz made a case for the highlight of the day when he took the ball on a reverse and hit Mike Chambers for a 48-yard TD pass that brought the crowd to life and drove a dagger into the heart of the Chargers as the Oilers took a 35-17 advantage.

Zielaskiewicz is 4-for-4 on passes dating back to last season.

“Dustin never misses on that play,” Wauford said. “He makes that play all the time in practice. He is just a great football player.”



Hillsdale 7 10 0 0 -- 17

Findlay 0 14 14 14 -- 42

First Quarter

HC -- Panizzi 2 run (Petro kick)

Second Quarter

HC -- Patillo 6 pass from Weatherhead (Petro kick)

UF -- M. Williams 2 run (Stevens kick)

UF -- M. Williams 1 run (Stevens kick)

HC -- FG Petro 32

Third Quarter

UF -- Zielaskiewicz 21 pass from Beam (Stevens kick)

UF -- Winner 12 pass from Beam (Stevens kick)

Fourth Quarter

UF -- Chambers 48 pass from Zielaskiewicz (Stevens kick)

UF -- Jackson 20 run (Stevens kick)

Hillsdale Findlay

First Downs 22 26

Rushes-yards 30-124 39-190

Passing Yards 280 360

Comp-Att-Int 24-51-0 22-29-0

Punts-Avg. 7-36.0 5-42.6

Fumbles-Lost 1-1 1-1

Penalties-Yards 6-63 6-51

individual statistics

rushing -- Hillsdale, Panizzi 26-102, Spencer 2-11, Weatherhead 1-9, Otterbein 1-2. Findlay, M. Williams 34-138,Jackson 5-52.

passing -- Hillsdale, Weatherhead 22-49-0, 258; Otterbein 2-2-0, 22. Findlay, Beam 21-28-0, 312; Zielaskiewicz 1-1-0, 48.

receiving -- Hillsdale, Holmes 7-95, Patillo 6-79, Blanchard 5-50, Kegg 3-43, Panizzi 2-7, Terhune 1-6. Findlay, Zielaskiewicz 7-98, Chambers 6-127, D. Smith 4-55, Mora 3-56, Schefer 1-12, Winner 1-12.

Lester: 419-422-5151,

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1 Comment

Bob Downing wrote:
B2network
“ When watching Findlay football on B2 network please send someone every 10 minutes to kick the camera. The 1st half was all jerky and gave me a headache trying to watch the game.
(just kidding about kicking the camera, but it was frustrating)
Go Oilers............ ”
Monday, October 05, 2009 4:31:12 PM

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