Football Claims Share of IIAC Crown in 2015
Nov 7, 2015
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - The University of Dubuque #24-ranked football team secured a share of the 2015 Iowa Conference Championship on Saturday with a 37-21 victory at Coe College to improve to 7-2 overall and 6-0 in the IIAC. This is Head Coach Stan Zweifel's second IIAC title (2011, 2015) for the Spartans in his seven-year tenure.
The Spartans picked to finish fourth in the Iowa Conference 2015 Pre-season Coaches Poll, have successfully marched through the conference undefeated with a game left. UD faced two top-ranked teams in the country to begin the season and were left with disheartening losses, have since compiled seven straight victories which hasn't happened since 1979 for coach Don Birmingham.
Saturday, the Spartans led from the start after winning the coin toss and chose to receive. UD marched down the field on a nine play, 71 yard drive to take the lead 7-0 on a 30 yard touchdown grab by Dylan Schultz from back-up quarterback Conor Feckley. Starting quarterback Rio Johnson warmed up in pre-game, but appeared to be limping and Feckley would get his first career start for the Spartans. Feckley, a sophomore from Anchorage, Alaska, and would not skip a beat and stepped in to finish the day completing 17-31 attempts for 232 yards and three touchdowns. He shared his passes with seven different receivers with sophomore Najee Toomer leading all receivers with five catches for 96 yards and a 23 yard touchdown. Chris Bagley would snag a six yard touchdown catch in the middle of the endzone as part of three touchdown drives for UD in the second quarter to extend the Spartan lead to 30-6 at halftime.
The Kohawk defense held the Spartans to 185 yards on the ground. Maurece "Mo" Herrion eclipsed the 100 yard mark once again after 28 attempts and would end the afternoon with 109 yards with no yards lost and a touchdown. Dai-Von Vance-Jenkins rushed nine times for 63 yards which included a 23 yard touchdown run in the second quarter.
The Spartans defense would miss starting linebacker and captain Blaine Snitker who exited the game early with arm injury. The defensive core would step up and force the Kohawk quarterback into three interceptions and all three would finish in touchdowns for the Spartans. Oscar White would finish third in tackles with five, but his return of a blocked Coe extra point for a safety would quiet the crowd at Clark Field in the first quarter. Trevor Stauner led in tackles with 12 including one for a loss. Chad Sadowski would add nine tackles, but the three picks by the Spartans would be by Michael Joseph, Snitker, and Derek Schambow.
UD will host the Central College Dutch next week, November 14 on Chalmers Field on Senior Day. The Dutch (6-3 overall, 4-2 in IIAC) were tied at halftime 7-7, but rallied back to beat Buena Vista on Saturday by a 38-23 margin. Central pounded the ball on the ground racking up 321 yards on the ground and 193 yards passing.
