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John Carroll University Athletics

home of the Blue Streaks
Kenneth Rawls hauls in a pass vs. MTU on 9-21-24
Doug Beigie
31
John Carroll JCU 0-2 , 0-1
37
Winner Mount Union MTU 2-0 , 1-0
John Carroll JCU
0-2 , 0-1
31
Final
37
Mount Union MTU
2-0 , 1-0
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
JCU John Carroll 7 14 0 10 31
MTU Mount Union 7 12 6 12 37

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

#25 Blue Streaks Fall Just Short at #4 Mount Union

ALLIANCE – One last time, John Carroll and Mount Union met today on the gridiron as Ohio Athletic Conference rivals.

For the sixth time in the last eight meetings at Kehres Stadium, the #25 Blue Streaks and #4 Purple Raiders played a dramatic, one-score game that came down to the final minute. 

But it was not meant to be today for John Carroll.

Big plays and penalties curtailed the cause for the Blue Streaks, as the Men of Carroll fell just short in a 37-31 thriller in Alliance.

From the get-go, John Carroll showed no trepidation despite facing off against a higher ranked foe and coming off of a road loss at another highly ranked opponent. The pass game especially looked great, with Nick Semptimphelter looking every bit of the seasoned field general, spreading the love to eight different wideouts. John Carroll also checked off the box of scoring touchdowns in the red zone, going 4-for-4 in that category.

But three 50+ yard touchdown runs by Mount Union and nine penalties called against JCU (compared to just two on the Raiders) ultimately made the difference. 

The game opened with a positive sentiment, as Tyler Mintz hauled in a 10-yard pass. The drive stalled there, so a punt gave the Purple Raiders the ball back. The hosts marched 75 yards for the score and an early 7-0 lead.

But the Blue Streaks soon stole possession of the momentum. On the second play of JCU's second drive, Mintz dashed 63 yards on a screen play, set up by blocks by Matt Wrather and Luke Gibbons. Three plays later, Evan McVay found plenty of room in the right side of the end zone, and Semptimphelter tossed it to him for a 5-yard score. 

JCU quickly got the ball back, forcing a Mount Union three-and-out. Kenny Grobolsek forced the punt by dashing past the left edge of the MTU line for a third-down sack. On the ensuing drive, Nemo Jenkins heated up. The first carry for the transfer from Wilmington proved to be a first down, and then Jenkins took a flat pass for eight yards. Soon after, Montgomery grabbed a 14-yard reception to get the visitors into enemy territory. On the first play after the quarter break, Montgomery ran a beautiful route and Semptimphelter hit him perfectly for a 14-7 lead. 

The momentum remained firmly with JCU, as the Men of Carroll made a big defensive play. On a short Mount Union pass, Lamar Thomas jarred the ball loose from the Purple Raider wideout, and Garrett Sparks leaped in for his first career fumble recovery. 

But penalties soon became a theme, with the referees calling repeated penalties against the visitors, hindering the next couple JCU offensive drives.

In the meantime, the Purple Raiders snuck ahead. Tyler Echeverry found space around the left edge for a 65-yard gain to get the hosts within one. A bit of trickery by Mount Union on the extra point failed, so JCU clung to a 14-13 advantage. Later in the quarter, the Purple Raiders snuck ahead on a 38-yard field goal. 

The Blue Streaks found their footing on offense in response. Mintz started things off with a 22-yard reception. A few plays later on 3rd and 12, Kenneth Rawls fooled the linebacker on a delay route, finding plenty of green in front of him. The grad transfer tight end galloped 40 yards all the way to the Mount Union 25-yard line. A couple passes to Evan McVay set up a short JCU TD pass. Semptimphelter found an absolutely wide open Rawls for a 6-yard scoring strike. 

With JCU leading Mount Union at half for the first time since 2016, the John Carroll faithful in Alliance had high hopes. The hosts provided a quick punch out of the halftime break, as Echeverry dashed 51 yards up the middle to steal the lead back. The two-point conversion was unsuccessful, so the score remained 25-21. 

Quincy Newsom then took center stage, gaining 22 yards on three carries at the start of JCU's second drive of the half. And a few plays later on 2nd and 19, Newsom dashed 21 yards to get JCU out of trouble. Later in the drive, JCU faced a key 4th and 2 from the Mount Union 26-yard line, and Dorian Facen Jr. stepped up to the moment, hauling in a slant route for 10 yards and a big first down. 

Similarly to the second quarter, the start of the fourth quarter found JCU threatening to score, and they did. Jack Cardaman ran a drag route from the right side of the field all the way to the left corner of the end zone for a 6-yard TD. After Colin Schuler's extra point, JCU stood in front, 28-25.

From there, the Purple Raiders dominated much of the fourth quarter. Noah Beaudrie turned on the burners on a 53-yard scramble for a TD. When JCU's next two drives stalled, the Purple Raiders took advantage. With 4:56 left, Echeverry dashed 21 yards down the middle for a score to make it a two-possession lead, the first for either team. 

The Blue & Gold did not quit. Semptimphelter ushered John Carroll down the field on a drive that ended in a 42-yard Colin Schuler field goal. That narrowed the gap to 37-31.

But the comeback attempts went no further, as an unsuccessful onside kick and a Mount Union first down ended the game. 

Nick Semptimphelter finished an excellent 31-of-41 for 325 yards and 4 touchdowns. Tyler Mintz led the receivers with 7 catches for 123 yards, both career bests. JCU managed just 77 yards on the ground, but did have some pop plays on the ground.

Meanwhile, Mount Union's 268 rushing yards made the difference (169 of those coming on three plays). JCU did limit the Raiders to 214 passing yards. Tyler Thimons topped the defense with 9 tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss. JCU did win the turnover battle, 1-0. 

Next Up
The Blue Streaks will at last make their home debut next week, hosting Heidelberg on Saturday, September 28 at 1:30 pm for First Responder Day. 
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