WILMINGTON, Ohio - The Wilmington College football team churned out 388 rushing yards in a high-scoring 63-43 victory over the College of Wooster at Williams Stadium on Saturday afternoon. That rushing total is the highest for the program in a single game in at least a decade.
"Anytime you win in week one, it's a good thing because you're still trying to figure out who you are as a team," Head Coach Corey Fillipovich said. "We learned a lot about ourselves today, and I think Wooster did the same."
The Quaker defense came up with a stop on the first possession, and the offense responded with an 11-play, 59-yard drive capped by a Lathan Jones 15-yard touchdown reception from Derek Larimer. WC elected to go for two, and converted as Larimer scampered in. Three-and-outs from both teams followed and the Fighting Scots utilized the big play to score points. Chanden Lee connected with Brazos Gadler for a 40-yard reception on third down, and two plays later, the game was tied.
The visitors looked to get off the field on the ensuing possession as a holding penalty put the hosts behind the chains, but on 3rd-and-16, Larimer fit a ball in to Jones just before safety charged. Jones, who averaged over 25 yards per reception a season ago, took care the rest, outrunning the Scots' secondary for a 73-yard touchdown.
After a couple of "normal" drives, the game began to swing with some momentum-shifting plays. Wooster appeared to turn the ball over near midfield as Jarvis Mims Jr. was stripped by Nathan Nemeth, but the ball fortuitously bounced into the hands of the only Scot in the vascinity. The Quaker defense stood tall as the Scots crossed midfield, but a perfect punt from Lake Barrett rolled out of bounds inside the host's one yard line. Rushes from WC's two-headed backfield of Nehemiah Jenkins and Ben Hobbs moved the chains, but Hobbs fumbled, and WC was not afforded the bounce of the football it needed to maintain possession. Two plays later, the game was tied once again, this time at 15-15.
Freshman returner Najee Dade setup Wilmington in good field position, and Offensive Coordinator Hayden Thomas wasted no time in getting Hobbs back the ball. The senior, seemingly with a burst in his step, busted out runs of 19 and 17 yards respectively to setup a short Kaleb Easley touchdown rush on 3rd-and-goal from a yard out.
Wooster's next drive started fortuitously as Lincoln Washington forced a fumble, which was recovered by the Scots. Not to be deterred, Washington got his hands on the football again four plays later, and this time, the Quakers recovered. A three-and-out followed, but Washington once again got in the backfield with a quarterback hurrying. Yet another fumble, this one forced by Noah Perry and recovered by Na'Zere Neal, setup another Larimer-to-Jones touchdown connection.
"Lincoln [Washington] is special kid," Fillipovich said. "He played on third downs for us last year as a really good technical pass rusher. This year, he gained some weight, got stronger and is now an every-down defensive lineman."
Up 29-15, the hosts added one more touchdown before halftime, setup by a 67-yard scamper from Jenkins. Though the Scots connected on a couple of long touchdowns as well as a kickoff return for a touchdown, the result was never in really in doubt. Why? The experience of the offensive line opening up holes for Jenkins and Hobbs as well as the experience in the linebacking core and secondary.
"Some of our defensive guys have started over 30 games for us," said Fillipovich. "That leadership and experience is a safety net for me as a head coach. I know they aren't going to get frazzled no matter what an opponent throws at us."
Wilmington outgained Wooster 587-369 including a 388-40 advantage on the ground. Jenkins and Hobbs combined for 54 carries, 344 yards and three touchdowns with Jenkins leading the way at 6.9 yards per carry. Larimer completed 12-of-21 passes for 168 yards and five touchdowns, three of which were to Jones. The Sidney, Ohio, native finished eight five catches for 145 yards. Additionally, the Quakers ran 35 more plays and held the ball for over 38 minutes.
"Part of our goal as a program is to become a lineman drive football team," Fillipovich said. "That's a big part of how you win in this league - running the ball and stopping the run. It's good to see some of those older guys on the offensive line take over a game. Our H-backs and tight ends did a great job blocking as well."
Lee finished 20-of-30 for 329 yards and four touchdown for Wooster, but threw three interceptions and was sacked twice.
Defensively, Quentin Davis finished with nine tackles and a pass breakup while Jake Sheriff, Nemeth and Xzerious Stinnett had interceptions. Washington and Perry both had 2.5 tackles for loss. The Scots' defensive unit was led by Braydon Hudson with 10 tackles.
Wilmington (1-0) opens Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) play at Baldwin Wallace University next week.