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Evan McVay Posts Career Numbers in Win Over Ohio Northern
Jose Figueroa
Evan McVay Shines in Win Against Ohio Northern
14
Ohio Northern ONU 1-5 , 1-4
44
Winner John Carroll JCU 5-1 , 5-0
Ohio Northern ONU
1-5 , 1-4
14
Final
44
John Carroll JCU
5-1 , 5-0
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
ONU Ohio Northern 0 7 7 0 14
JCU John Carroll 13 14 7 10 44

Game Recap: Football | | Joe Ginley '16, SID

McVay and Sullivan Have Strong Performances in Blue Streaks' Home Win Over ONU

UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS – Rainy conditions did not spoil the day for John Carroll Football on Saturday at Don Shula Stadium.

The Blue Streaks spread the love on offense, with three different rushers and three different receivers finding paydirt. And on defense, John Carroll dominated up front, limiting Ohio Northern's attack. 

John Carroll rolled past the Polar Bears at home, 44-14, advancing to 5-1 on the campaign.

"The mindset was that Ohio Northern is a formidable opponent and very capable – a big, strong football team that's well-coached," said Head Coach Jeff Behrman '95. "The mindset was that we're capable and formidable, as well. We wanted to make sure we controlled the controllables. Obviously the weather wasn't ideal, but the guys answered the task and got it done."

JCU remains unbeaten in Ohio Athletic Conference play with the victory, remaining tied atop the league standings with a 5-0 mark. 

The Blue Streaks got the ball first and marched down the field with a trademark physical drive. Evan McVay diced up the ONU defense with strong runs. On the 11th play of the drive, Jon Tomcufcik lined up in the Wildcat for a second straight week and bullied it in from 5 yards out for the first score. The extra point was missed, so the lead stood at 6-0 JCU. 

Ohio Northern gained some traction on offense on the visitors' first drive of the game. But then penalties pushed ONU into a third and long, and then a punt that pinned JCU at its own 5-yard line. 

That didn't matter to the Blue Streaks, as the ground game continued to grind. Mason Sullivan dashed 84 yards to flip the field all the way to the ONU 2-yard line. Two plays later, Evan McVay pushed it in for a touchdown, and this time, Yanni Volas converted the PAT. 

The Polar Bears again managed to get something going on offense, but on a key 4th and 2, ONU opted for a pitch play and Chris Golson made the stop at the JCU 31-yard line for a loss of five and a turnover on downs. On the first play of JCU's ensuing drive, Dorian Facen Jr. came open deep across the middle. Joe Collins hit him for a 62-yard gain all the way to the 2-yard line. On the next play, Quincy Newsom dashed to paydirt and Volas converted the PAT for a 20-0 lead at the 13:16 mark of the second quarter.

A nice bounce went JCU's way next. After ONU got nearly to midfield, the visitors were forced to punt. The Polar Bears fumbled the snap and gave the ball back to JCU at the ONU 30-yard line. Four plays later, Facen hauled in a 17-yard TD pass in the right side of the end zone, making it a four-score game at 27-0.

Following another ONU punt, the Blue Streaks drove down the field, but a penalty negated a successful 4th down conversion. The Polar Bears blocked the 38-yard field goal, and then got into the red zone for the first time. Ohio Northern got it done, with a 3-yard TD pass with 42 seconds left to slim the gap to 27-7 heading into halftime.

With the rain continuing to spit, the Polar Bears got the ball first out of halftime. Ohio Northern plodded down the gridiron on a 13-play, 70-yard drive. A flag on JCU extended the drive, which ended in a 14-yard touchdown pass, trimming the JCU lead to 27-14.

John Carroll authored a quick, authoritative response. In a 5-play jaunt, the Blue Streaks pushed the lead up back to 20 points. A 41-yard Evan McVay gash play set up JCU in the red zone. On the next play, Tyler Mintz hauled in a screen pass and dashed 11 yards to paydirt, aided by Matt Wrather and Joe Torok blocks. 

Ohio Northern had a quick three-and-out, but JCU couldn't take advantage, as a field goal fell incomplete. ONU failed to respond, with another three-and-out. John Carroll got backed up, but a Torok screen bailed out JCU on 2nd and 17 with a 19-yard reception. JCU stood clearly ahead after the third quarter, 34-14.

Early on in the fourth quarter, Brennan Fugh made one of the top plays of the year. On 4th and 9 from the ONU 31-yard line, Joe Collins turned to his star wideout. Fugh ran a fly route down the far side into the end zone and highpointed the ball over an ONU defender. The highlight play extended the lead to 41-14 after a Volas PAT. 

Following an unsuccessful ONU drive, the Blue Streaks killed lots of clock with a strong run game. Volas capped off a 15-play, 68-yard drive that lasted 9:25 of clock. The score held at 44-14 for the final score. 

John Carroll outgained Ohio Northern overall, 526-176, including 269-92 on the ground. Mason Sullivan and Evan McVay each surpassed 100 rushing yards, marking the first time since last year's season finale that two Blue Streaks hit the century mark on the ground. Sullivan reached a career high.

"It's always great to have multiple tailbacks you trust and believe in," said Behrman. "Those guys were able to carry the load. They'll be the first to tell you that if it weren't for the offensive line and the tight ends making the holes, they wouldn't have the success they have. Our wide receivers finished blocks today in the run game, so it was a complete offensive effort."

Through the air, the Blue Streaks proved to be quite efficient. Joe Collins completed 15-of-21 passes for 257 yards and three touchdowns. Collins echoed the sentiments on the ground game. 

"It was a great gameplan put into place by the coaches," said Collins. It was a team effort all around. The offensive line and receivers blocked well, and our running backs ran the ball well. When we had to throw it, the receivers made nice plays, too. It was a great effort all the way around.

"It was a big win," Collins continued. "Last week, we got off to a good start and a big lead but let it slip a little bit, so we wanted to address that this week. We did the same thing, we got out to a good start, and did a nice job finishing, so I think that was the biggest thing this week."

Behrman was proud of Collins and the pass game, which displayed efficiency in the tough conditions.

"Joe is even-keeled. He's never too high and never too low. That's what we preach to our guys, especially our quarterbacks, to make sure they turn the page from play to play," said Behrman. "He's doing a good job of managing us, especially in the weather we had today. Also, he's been really accurate and puts the ball in places where his guys can get it."

John Carroll's defense played excellently, including limiting ONU to just 84 yards through the air. Ohio Northern managed just 3.14 yards per play. Jahiem Peake led the charge with 10 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 1 sack. Chris Golson and Tyler Thimons each tabbed 5 tackles. Thomas Faron also enjoyed a nice day with 4 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss. 

"We wanted to set the tone defensively," said Peake. "We've yet to play a complete game. Every week, we're building. Today, we knew with the rainy weather that Ohio Northern would look to establish the run game. Our front seven stood strong and refused to allow them to get the run game going." 

John Carroll will return to action next Saturday, traveling to Capital for another OAC contest. 
 
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