As of Saturday, it would appear that the Saint Xavier Cougar football team has been eliminated from participation in the 2013 NAIA Football Championship Series.
The Cougars, ranked No. 14 before Saturday’s contest, fumbled a school-record 7 times in their 65-30 loss to No. 13-ranked Saint Ambrose University.
It was always going to be a big game for both teams. Whichever team lost was likely to be eliminated from NAIA playoff contention. Head coach Mike Feminis had missed the close matchups with Saint Ambrose.
“When we were in the [MSFA Midwest] division my first seven years, they were our biggest rival. We had very, very similar success at the time,” said Feminis of Saint Ambrose. “Seven of the nine games we played came down to the last minute or the last play of the game… That was one thing I missed when we went to the [Mideast].”
And it looked to be the type of close game that Feminis missed even as late as the third quarter. Despite four first-half Cougar fumbles, they entered the second half down just 28-14.
Following a 39-yard opening kickoff return by junior Nick DeBenedetti, the Cougars drove down the field and into field goal range. An eight-yard loss on the play immediately prior to the field goal try made it a 50-yard attempt for senior placekicker Spencer Nolen. Nolen, kicking into the wind, came up short.
The Fighting Bees’ offense, led by quarterback Eric Williamson, drove down the field on the Cougars’ defense and scored on their first offensive series. Feminis knew coming into the game that Williamson was a special talent, the likes of which he had recently coached.
“Their quarterback is probably as good as we’ve seen all year. He reminds me a little bit of [former SXU quarterback and 2012 Rawlings-NAIA Football Player of the Year] Jimmy Coy,” said Feminis. “He’s bigger than Jimmy and he doesn’t have the flat-out speed that Jimmy had. But he has a great knack for, if a play breaks down, to take off and run and make significant yardage out of it.”
Feminis was not being hyperbolic. Williamson ended the game 42-of-59 on pass attempts for 355 yards, six touchdowns and two interceptions. A duel threat, he also led the Bees in rushing with 92 yards on 15 carries.
During much of the first half, the Cougar defense could not seem to get off the field. No sooner would the SXU offense take the field than they would give the ball back to the Fighting Bees. This allowed the Bees to jump out to a 28-0 lead with 10:00 remaining in the second quarter.
This was when the Cougar offense came alive. And great special teams play sparked the awakening. DeBenedetti took the kickoff 50 yards to the Saint Ambrose 40-yard line to set up the Cougars’ first scoring drive.
Redshirt freshman quarterback John Rhode, playing in his first game since he suffered a separated shoulder against Grand View University, finished the game 19-of-36 for 214 yards and two touchdowns.
Rhode completed a 23-yard pass to freshman receiver Ryan Carroll and a face mask penalty against the Saint Ambrose at the end of the play got the Cougars to Fighting Bees’ 11-yard line.
On third-and-five from the six-yard line, sophomore Austin Feeney ran along back line of the end zone and got open enough to catch the touchdown pass from Rhode.
Late in the second quarter, with the Cougars down 28-7, they found some more offensive success. And again, the success seemed to be sparked by another great special teams play.
An illegal shift penalty wiped out a punt by Saint Ambrose that would have started the Cougars’ drive off inside their own 10-yard line. The Cougars came after the re-punt, and Carroll blocked the kick and recovered it at the Saint Ambrose 23-yard line. That is where Saint Xavier took over with 1:19 remaining in the first half.
Senior running back Nick Pesek was, like Rhode, playing for the first time since an ankle injury he sustained in the Grand View game. He finished the game with 52 yards on 16 carries and two touchdowns.
Pesek had two carries when the Cougars got to the five-yard line, the second of which went for a one-yard score and cut the deficit in half at 28-14 at the end of the second quarter.
On the next drive, for the second time, Carroll got to the ball before punter Matt Klingler could get it away. Saint Ambrose recovered the block, resulting in a turnover-on-downs at the Bees’ 19-yard line.
Pesek continued his strong comeback from injury with an eight-yard touchdown off the right edge of the line of scrimmage that put the Cougars, down 28-21, in a position to compete.
The prospects for a comeback diminished quickly, however. Saint Ambrose drove all the way down to the Cougars’ three-yard line before a penalty forced them to settle for a field goal that put them up 31-21.
After a fumble by junior tailback Khary Ferguson, the Fighting Bees quickly went up 38-21. Rhode fumbled on the next offensive possession, leading to another Bees’ touchdown and a 45-21 lead.
Sophomore free safety Dan Fitzgerald opened the fourth quarter with an interception of Williamson, and the Cougar offense responded with a touchdown from Rhode to DeBenedetti. Unable to add the two-point conversion, the Cougars were down 45-27.
Williamson got the ball back and immediately threw another interception, this one to senior strong safety Jacob Ghinazzi. It took maximum effort, as Ghinazzi had to lay out parallel to the ground in order come up with the pick.
It was Ghinazzi’s 15th of his career, tying him for the most in school history with SXU Hall of Famer John Miller (1999-2002) and Mike Wilkinson (2004-07).
The offense could not pick up a touchdown from the turnover and instead had to settle for a 27-yard Nolen field goal and a 45-30 score. It would be all Saint Ambrose the rest of the way.
To make matters worse, Rhode would leave the game in the fourth quarter and not be able to return. He suffered two separate injuries, one to a foot and one to the ankle on the other leg, according to a source close to the team.
If there is any hope for the 2013 Cougars to make the playoffs, they will need to win the final two regular season games in convincing fashion. Even then, their chances are slim to none.
Up next is the final home game of the season. Trinity International University will visit on Saturday for Saint Xavier’s Senior Day. Kickoff will take place at 1 p.m. at Bruce R. Deaton Memorial Field.
Tim Carroll
Senior Sports Editor