Box ScoreFINAL SCORE: Muhlenberg 30, The College of New Jersey 13
Muhlenberg College (1-0 Overall) vs. The College of New Jersey (0-1)
September 2, 2005; Lions’ Stadium; Ewing, NJ
Ewing, NJ…Ranked No. 19 in Division III, Muhlenberg College opened the 2005 football season with a 30-13 road win over The College of New Jersey on Friday night in Lions’ Stadium. The match-up was the first for the two programs in the series history. Muhlenberg’s football team is coming off a year in which led all of college football in total defense, picked up right where it left off, allowing only 73 total yards in a 30-13 season-opening win over the Lions. The opening night loss for TCNJ was the first since the 2000 season after they fell to SUNY Cortland.
The Mules held the Lions, a 7-2 team last year, to minus-24 yards rushing and forced six turnovers.
The only points scored by TCNJ came off two special teams miscues, a blocked punt returned for a touchdown and a short TD pass after a bad snap on a punt attempt.
Offensively, Muhlenberg got three field goals from sophomore kicker Jordon Grube (New Tripoli, PA/Northwestern Lehigh) and touchdown passes from three different players: senior quarterback Tom Kelleher (Basking Ridge, NJ/Ridge) and sophomore Matt Johnson (Mountville, PA/Lancaster Catholic), who alternated at quarterback, and sophomore running back Ross Tanner (Montville, NJ/Montville).
TCNJ scored first on a blocked punt, which junior running back Cory Schoonover (Toms River, NJ/Manchester) returned 38 yards to put the Lions on the board first with 11:40 left in the first stanza.
With the Mules trailing 6-3 early in the second quarter and facing fourth-and-goal at the 1, Tanner took a handoff, stopped short of the line and chest-passed the ball to junior tight end Derek DiMattina (Northport, NY/Northport). It was the third time the Mules ran the trick play, and it has worked for a touchdown all three times.
Muhlenberg took a 16-6 lead into the half, and extended it after senior end Will Corbin (Berlin, NJ/Edgewood Regional) stripped TCNJ quarterback , sophomore Jeff Struble (Toms River, NJ/Manchester Township) on a sneak. Johnson capped the nine-play, 49-yard drive with a 5-yard scoring strike to senior Kyle Douglass (Wyncote, PA/Cheltenham).
The Lions closed back to within 10 by scoring their second touchdown with 19 seconds left in the third quarter, but the Mules dominated the fourth, holding the ball for 10:26. Tanner scored the clinching touchdown when he took a fourth-down screen pass from Kelleher and rambled 32 yards into the end zone.
Muhlenberg dominated time of possession (40:41-19:19) and total yards (336-73).
Muhlenberg’s senior linebacker Dan McCall (Northfield, NJ/Mainland Regional) led the defense with eight tackles, including three sacks, moving into within one-half of the school record for career sacks. He forced two fumbles and recovered one. TCNJ’s sophomore linebacker Travis Boff (Scotch Plains, NJ/Scotch Plains-Fanwood) exploded for the Lions with a career-best effort as well with 18 stops, including a sack.
Douglass led the Mules in rushing (48 yards on three carries) and receiving (four catches for 31 yards). Kelleher and Johnson combined to throw for 232 yards. NJ’s Struble finished the night with a 11-22 effort in the air with one interception and 97 passing yards, but was hit for five sacks in the loss.
TCNJ’s Schoonover finished with eight carries and a net of just 14 yards, while adding four catches for 38 yards to lead the Lions’ offense.
TCNJ will host SUNY Cortland on September 10 in the first NJAC contest of the 2005 season for both clubs, while Muhlenberg College will host Union College on September 17 in 7 p.m. non-conference match-up.