This was not the way that the West Chester seniors wanted to end their collegiate football careers. Playing in front of a raucous crowd at John A. Farrell Stadium, the No. 3 Golden Rams were defeated by the No. 6 Indiana University (PA) Crimson Hawks 45-35 in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Division II Football Championship.IUP was able to win a game that was a battle between two teams that played inconsistent in this affair. It seemed as if West Chester owned the first and third quarters, while IUP took control during the second and fourth quarters. Turnovers in this game for the Golden Rams doomed them throughout.
“You can’t make as many mistakes as we made in a playoff game and expect to win. Kickoff returns come back to haunt us again, turnovers, just too many mistakes,” head coach Bill Zwaan Sr. said of his teams play against IUP. “You can’t do that against good football teams in playoff time and that’s what happened and they took advantage of that.”
West Chester came out throwing as quarterback Bill Zwaan Jr. hit receiver Mike Washington on a 45-yard pitch and catch that put the Rams deep inside IUP territory. But the offense wasn’t able to sustain the drive as IUP linebacker James Carson picked off Zwaan. This marked the first interception of his career.
The defense came out strong. Safety Tyler Downes put a hit on Crimson Hawk running back Kareem Dutrieuille that forced him to fumble. Golden Ram linebacker Glen Walrath recovered the fumble to set up the Rams offense.
With great field position, West Chester went to the ground. Senior running back Osagie Osunde took the handoff off of a draw from Zwaan and scampered 29 yards to the end zone to put the home team on the board first.
The defense continued its strong play throughout the first quarter as sophomore linebacker Greg Smith sacked Crimson Hawk quarterback Andrew Krewatch to force the first of two consecutive three and outs by IUP.
The Golden Rams offense began to control the line of scrimmage as Osunde was able to rip off a couple of runs to set West Chester up inside the red-zone. Washington continued to impress as he caught an 11-yard touchdown from Zwaan just before the quarter expired. Zwaan was able to throw the ball across the field to Washington who was running away from the defender.
It seemed as if West Chester was going to run away with this game as they entered the second quarter up by two touchdowns. But after a 50-yard kickoff return by defensive back Akwasi Owusu-Ansah, IUP put their first points on the board. Krewatch hit junior receiver Ken Witter for a 23 yard touchdown. This would not be the last time that the two would hook up.
Zwaan would throw his second pick of the half as defensive back Corey Sample would step in front of the attended receiver and make the play for the Crimson Hawk defense.
It would then become the Krewatch to Witter show for IUP. The two would connect on a number of consecutive plays before the Crimson Hawk quarterback ran for an 11-yard score to tie the game at fourteen.
After the West Chester and IUP would exchange possessions, the Golden Rams were going to receive great field position after the defense held IUP, but WCU punt returner Kevin Garland would fumble a punt that was recovered by IUP backup fullback Steve Cooper.
The teams would go into the locker room tied at the half, which made IUP feel like they had a chance to win this game after the way they had started.
The second half started much of the same for West Chester, as did the first quarter. After the defense held IUP to a three and out, Zwaan and the offense came onto the field looking to regain control of the game. Complementing star receiver Washington all year was sophomore Steve Miller who caught a 45-yard touchdown pass from Zwaan. This marked the eleventh time this year that the Rams had a pass play go for 40 yards or more.
It seemed as the Golden Rams were building momentum as the fans were excited, but for the third time in four weeks, the special teams gave up a big play. Receiver Anthony Rodriguez took the ensuing kickoff and ran 79 yards for a touchdown. This also marked the fourth consecutive week that an opponent has had at least a 70-yard return against West Chester.
On IUP’s next offensive possession, sophomore nose tackle James Thorpe recorded his first career sack in route to the defense forcing the Crimson Hawk’s into yet another three and out.
West Chester again received great field position and, for the second time on the day, Osunde ran 31 yards for another touchdown run. In his final game as a Golden Ram, Osunde finished with a game high 117 yards rushing and two touchdowns. This was the thirteenth time in his career that he rushed for over 100 yards.
“The line did a good job the whole day. We just turned the ball over and we couldn’t get going. You can’t turn the ball over,” Osunde said of the running attack and the turnovers.
With a touchdown lead, West Chester went to the running game to take some time off the clock. But instead of grinding it out, Osunde fumbled the ball and James Carson made his second big play of the day as he recovered the ball for IUP.
IUP went for the jugular as Krewatch hit Mychal Skinner for 46 yards, and former Mansfield University running back Poohbear McNeal plowed through the defense for a two-yard touchdown run. Kicker Matt McNelis who entered the game 23-23 on PAT’s and 8-8 on field goal attempts would miss the extra point.
West Chester took a one-point lead into the fourth quarter and was driving to extend their lead. Zwaan was able to hit Washington for his second touchdown in the game, this time from 24 yards out to give the Golden Rams a 35-27 lead.
But the Crimson Hawks were not going to go away easily. On their next possession, Krewatch hooked up with Witter for a 30-yard completion, which included a personal foul penalty on senior Mike Mignogno. Witter finished with a game high 10 receptions, 135 yards, and a touchdown.
This put IUP in position to score again. Krewatch would role right, and throw across his body to Skinner who caught the touchdown from four yards out.
IUP’s defense would step up to the challenge and not allow the Golden Rams offense to sustain any type of momentum. When the Crimson Hawk’s got the ball back, they were looking to their senior tailback to help take the lead.
On the first play, McNeal cut back and scampered 35 yards to put IUP in prime position to score the go-ahead score. When it seemed the WCU defense would be able to get off the field, the mistakes came back to haunt them. On a 3rd and 9, linebacker Sam Scott made a break for the ball and knocked it away, but the referee threw a flag on the play as Scott was called for pass interference.
This gave IUP new life and they took advantage. A couple of plays later, McNeal would score his second touchdown of the day to give IUP the lead. Krewatch and Witter would hook up on the two-point conversion to give the Crimson Hawk’s the 42-35 lead.
West Chester’s offense came back onto the field looking to tie the game. But on the first play, junior linebacker Rob Plowman forced a fumble on Zwaan by sacking him. Senior defensive lineman Matt Scott recovered the fumble for IUP and that pretty much sealed the deal.
“Playoff game, can’t turn the ball over, you end up losing. It really killed us at the end. You can’t do that,” Zwaan Jr.
McNelis would convert his ninth field goal of the season to give the Crimson Hawks the 10-point lead. IUP will now head to West Virginia to face the #2 Shepherd University Rams.
Junior linebacker Terrence Jackson, who is the leader of the defense, intercepted Zwaan to end the game. Jackson finished with 15 total tackles and the interception. Krewatch finished 16-31 for 241 yards and two touchdowns. McNeal finished with 80 yards rushing to lead IUP.
While only
forcing one turnover, the Golden Rams turned the ball over six time, three through the air and three fumbles. Zwaan finished his last game under his father 14-27, 230 yards, three touchdowns, and three interceptions. Miller led the Golden Rams with 99 yards receiving.
Lateef Ferguson finished his West Chester career as the all-time leading tackler in school history with 414 total tackles. Zwaan finished with 6,298 yards passing and 62 touchdowns passes in his career at West Chester. Osunde finished with 3,846 yards rushing and 51 rushing touchdowns for his career.
“I’ve been here a long time. I’ve felt this one to many times. I’ve played with this group of seniors for a long time. Everything I’ve gotten is because of them, the coaches. Everything, accolades, everything, my personality, the way I am right now, is how these guys shaped me. It’s a bad way to end,” Osunde said of his final feelings in a purple and gold uniform.
“Tremendously heartbreaking loss for me with this group of seniors that came in with me five years ago. I’m heartsick that they’re done and it ended this way,” Zwaan Sr. said of his first recruiting class that played in their final game as a Golden Ram.
LJ Harrell is a second-year student majoring in business. He can be reached at LH639694@wcupa.edu