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Augustana College Athletics

Augustana-Mount St. Joseph Preview

Vikings host College of Mount St. Joseph in inaugural Austin E. Knowlton Kickoff Classic

9/5/2013 9:22:00 AM

hartweg msj preview

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. Saturday, September 7 marks the opening of the Austin E. Knowlton Outdoor Athletic Complex and Charles D. Lindberg Stadium at Augustana. The Vikings host the College of Mount St. Joseph Lions of Cincinnati, Ohio in the inaugural "Austin E. Knowlton Kickoff Classic."
 
Augustana returns 42 letter winners and 13 starters from last year's 5-5 club. The Vikings won four of their last five contests and finished in fourth place in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin with a 4-3 record. Leading the returnees are reigning CCIW Defensive Player of the Year Erik Westerberg (York HS, Elmhurst, Ill.) and last year's team Offensive MVP Eric Chandler (Cary-Grove HS, Cary, Ill.). Westerberg enters his senior season having led the conference in tackles each of the last two years and Chandler, also a senior, led the Vikings in rushing a year ago with 718 yards and an average of 6.2 yards per carry.
 
Sophomore Sam Frasco (Prospect HS, Mt. Prospect, Ill.) takes over at quarterback for the graduated Nick Welch and will benefit from a veteran receiving corps which includes seniors Nick Krantz (Moline HS, Moline, Ill.) and Kyle Snow (Wheaton-Warrenville HS, Wheaton, Ill.). Snow led the Vikings with 27 catches for 302 yards and two touchdowns last year, while Krantz had 18 catches for a team-high 329 yards despite missing nearly four full games due to injury. Snow joined Chandler as a second team All-CCIW selection. Senior center Eric Dratnol (Kaneland HS, Montgomery, Ill.) and junior guard Anthony Roome (Geneseo HS, Geneseo, Ill.) return as starters on the offensive line.
 
In addition to Westerberg, defensive returnees include junior defensive end Sean McIntyre (Genoa-Kingston HS, Genoa, Ill.), a second team all-conference selection last year. Other standouts returning for Coach Rob Cushman on defense include junior defensive back Bo Goshorn (Romeoville HS, Romeoville, Ill.) and senior nose tackle Carl Hartweg (Illini West HS, Carthage, Ill.).
 
"So much positive came out of last season when finished so strongly," said Cushman. "It sent a message to our team that has carried over into the off-season. We knew that we were close and I think our team showed some great resiliency to continue to work and progress each week. When things started to click for us you could just see it in the way we played."
 
A trip to France this summer, where the Vikings beat the French national team 20-13, and the opening of Lindberg Stadium add to the mounting excitement around the Augustana program.
 
"There is certainly a lot of enthusiasm at this point," said Cushman. "The trip to France was a great experience and we came away with a nice victory. The opening of Lindberg Stadium will be a tremendous boost to our program."
 
Saturday's opponent, Mount St. Joseph, is coming off a 4-6 campaign in 2012. The Lions went 3-5 in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference. 14th-year head coach Rod Huber will be looking to replace All-American running back James Clay, who led the nation with 2,124 rushing yards in 2012. Clay averaged 6.9 yards per carry and scored 23 touchdowns.
 
Huber is hoping junior quarterback Caleb Watkins, a transfer from Indiana State, will help ease the loss of Clay. Senior Cody Meade, who averaged 4.7 yards per attempt on limited carries last year, is the Lions' top returning running back. Leading receiver John Peters is back as well. Peters caught just 11 passes in 2012, but four went for touchdowns.
 
On defense, Mount St. Joseph is led by senior linebacker Garrett Breiner, who led the team in tackles a year ago with 78. Junior linebacker Konnor Blevins, who was second with 63 stops, returns as well. Other returnees include sophomore defensive tackle Tim Bowman, who led the Lions with 8.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks and senior strong safety Tyler Elrod, who had a team-high three interceptions.
 
 
2013 AUGUSTANA VIKINGS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE/RESULTS


DATE OPPONENT SITE SCORE/TIME
September 7 Mount St. Joseph HOME 6:15 p.m.
September 14 Central (Family Weekend) HOME 6:00 p.m.
September 21 Loras Dubuque, Iowa 1:00 p.m.
October 5 *Wheaton Wheaton 1:00 p.m.
October 12 *Elmhurst (Homecoming) HOME 1:00 p.m.
October 19 *Millikin Decatur, Illinois 1:00 p.m.
October 26 *North Park HOME 6:00 p.m.
November 2 *Carthage Kenosha, Wisconsin 1:00 p.m.
November 9 *Illinois Wesleyan HOME 1:00 p.m.
November 16 *North Central Naperville, Ill. 1:00 p.m.

* - College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin game
 
 
2012 CCIW STANDINGS

School CCIW Overall
Elmhurst 6-1 10-2
Wheaton 6-1 8-2
North Central 6-1 9-3
AUGUSTANA 4-3 5-5
Illinois Wesleyan 3-4 6-4
Millikin 2-5 5-5
Carthage 1-6 3-7
North Park 0-7 1-9

 
           
THIS WEEK'S GAMES   
September 5
Loras at Elmhurst, 7:00 p.m.
 
September 7
Mount St. Joseph at AUGUSTANA, 6:15 p.m.
Greenville at Millikin, 1:00 p.m.
Illinois Wesleyan at Aurora, 1:00 p.m.
Hope at North Park, 6:00 p.m.
Wheaton at Benedictine, 7:00 p.m.
 
 
HEAD COACH ROB CUSHMAN
Rob Cushman is in his third season as the head coach of the Augustana football program. He has spent the 2008-10 seasons serving as the Viking defensive coordinator. His coaching career began at Cal State-Chico in 1979. His first head coaching position was at Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, Oregon, where he spent five seasons before being named the first head coach at Feather River College in Quincy, California in 2002. He led the fledgling program to a 34-21 (.618) record in five seasons, reaching a post-season bowl game each year. He served as special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach at Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York in 2007, prior to coming to Augustana.

CUSHMAN'S RECORD AS HEAD COACH

                                                OVERALL                               CONFERENCE


YEAR WON LOSS PCT WON LOSS PCT SCHOOL
1997 4 6 .400 Eastern Oregon
1998 6 4 .600 Eastern Oregon
1999 5 5 .500 Eastern Oregon
2000 2 8 .200 Eastern Oregon
2001 1 8 .111 Eastern Oregon
Eastern Oregon Totals 18 31 .367
2002 6 5 .545 Feather River
2003 9 2 .818 Feather River
2004 6 5 .545 Feather River
2005 7 4 .636 Feather River
2006 6 5 .545 Feather River
Feather River Totals 34 21 .618
College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin
2011 2 8 .200 2 5 .286 Augustana
2012 5 5 .500 4 3 .571 Augustana
Augustana Totals 7 13 .350 6 8 .429
CAREER 59 65 .476

ROB CUSHMAN BY THE NUMBERS: Here is a closer look at Rob Cushman's record at Augustana College.

OVERALL CCIW
YR W L PCT W L PCT FINISH SEP OCT NOV H A
2011 2 8 .200 2 5 .286 0-3 2-3 0-2 2-4 0-4
2012 5 5 .500 4 3 .571 1-3 3-1 1-1 3-2 2-3
CAREER 7 13 .350 6 8 .429 1-6 5-4 1-3 5-6 2-7

  

CUSHMAN AGAINST THE OPPOSITION

TEAM GAMES W L FIRST MEETING LAST MEETING
Adrian 1 0 1 2011 – L (14-17)
Carthage 2 2 0 2011 – W (19-13) 2012 – W (38-13)
Central 2 0 2 2011 – L (23-31) 2012 – L (10-17)
Dubuque 2 0 2 2011 – L (13-18) 2012 – L (21-39)
Elmhurst 2 0 2 2011 – L (27-28) 2012 – L (27-31)
Illinois Wesleyan 2 1 1 2011 – L (12-34) 2012 – W (22-7)
Loras 1 1 0 2012 – W (34-10)
Millikin 2 1 1 2011 – L (27-30) 2012 – W (24-14)
North Central 2 0 2 2011 – L (3-24) 2012 – L (6-37)
North Park 2 2 0 2011 – W (27-24) 2012 – W (35-14)
Wheaton 2 0 2 2011 – L (7-36) 2012 – L (7-49)

 
 
2013 AUGUSTANA FOOTBALL TWO DEEP
 
Prior to Mount St. Joseph game on 09/07/13

POS NO NAME HT WT YR HOMETOWN/HIGH SCHOOL
OFFENSE
WR 88 Nick Krantz 6-1 200 Sr Moline, Illinois/HS
9 Eric Josupait 6-0 180 Jr Aurora, Illinois/Waubonsie Valley
WR 87 Kyle Frake 6-0 205 Jr Clifton, Illinois/Central
6 Torre Harrell 6-1 165 Jr Bloomington, Ill./HS
TE 86 Robert French 6-2 217 So Elgin, Illinois/St. Edward Central Catholic
45 Zach Peruski 5-11 225 Fr Plano, Illinois/HS
OT 67 Eric Link 6-2 255 Sr Aledo, Ill./Sherrard
68 Ryan McCarthy 6-2 220 Fr Wheaton, Illinois/Wheaton Warrenville South
OG 78 Greg Ferguson 6-2 280 Jr Plainfield, Ill./South
63 Trace Wingo 6-2 280 Sr Crystal Lake, Ill./South
OC 62 Eric Dratnol 6-1 230 Sr Montgomery, Ill./Kaneland
75 Dan Gregg 6-2 250 Sr Prospect Heights, Ill./Hersey
OG 56 Anthony Roome 6-1 255 Jr Geneseo, Ill./Geneseo
64 Matt Zimmerman 6-3 250 Fr New Boston, Illinois/Mercer County
OT 65 Jon Losen 6-1 270 Jr Morton, Illinois/HS
77 Nick Stone 6-0 265 Jr LaGrange, Illinois/Lyons Township
SLOT 13 Kyle Snow 5-7 170 Sr Wheaton, Illinois/Wheaton Warrenville South
18 Sean Fitzgerald 5-10 158 So Manhattan, Illinois/Providence Catholic
QB 2 Sam Frasco 5-11 175 So Mt. Prospect, Ill./Prospect
12 Chris Salazar 6-0 205 So Plainfield, Illinois/Providence Catholic
RB 29 Eric Chandler 5-9 210 Sr Cary, Ill./Cary-Grove
27 Mike McLean 5-11 205 Sr Villa Park, Illinois/Willowbrook
RB 1 Brandon Price 5-5 175 Fr Plainfield, Illinois/Providence Catholic
34 Benjamin Hodges 5-8 195 Jr Elburn, Illinois/St. Charles North
DEFENSE
LB 60 Thomas Enke 6-1 225 Jr Omaha, Neb./Millard West
55 James Stratton 6-1 230 Sr Sherrard, Ill./HS
DE 57 Sean McIntyre 6-2 255 Jr Genoa, Ill./Genoa-Kingston
90 Brandon Stiers 6-1 225 So Mackinaw, Ill./Deer Creek Mackinaw
NT 99 Carl Hartweg 6-3 275 Sr Carthage, Ill./Illini West
54 Will Hass 6-3 272 Sr Algonquin, Ill./Marian Central Catholic
DE 43 Ryan Coleman 6-3 245 Sr Carol Stream, Ill./Wheaton North
48 Sean Mulholland 6-3 250 Sr Clinton, Iowa/HS
LB 39 Dylan Smith 5-11 214 Sr Yorkville, Ill./Aurora Central Catholic
46 Luke Kowalczyk 6-0 210 Jr La Salle, Ill./La Salle-Peru
MLB 41 Erik Westerberg 6-3 215 Sr Elmhurst, Ill./York
52 Jack Asquini 5-9 205 Fr Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove
SS 31 Bo Goshorn 6-2 195 Jr Romeoville, Ill./HS
4 Shane Powe 6-1 210 So Bloomington, Ill./Bloomington Central Catholic
DB 7 Sean Walker 5-10 190 Sr Annawan, Ill./HS
8 Matt Roche 6-1 190 Fr Moline, Ill./HS
DB 17 Ben Fornek 5-11 185 Jr Batavia, Ill./HS
30 Justin Gruca 5-8 190 Sr Wilmington, Ill/HS
DB 3 Connor Griffin 5-10 185 Fr Chicago, Ill./Mount Carmel
5 Caleb Nickels 5-10 185 Jr Northridge, Calif./Sierra Canyon
DB 16 John Bastian 6-1 185 Fr Rio Rancho, N.M./V. Sue Cleveland
21 Frank Kalble 6-0 190 So Arlington heights, Ill./Hersey
SPECIAL TEAMS
KICKER 37 Conner Murray 5-11 185 Jr Morrison, Colo./Conifer
36 Jeremy Lensing 5-11 194 So Manhattan, Ill./Peotone
PUNTER 37 Conner Murray 5-11 185 Jr Morrison, Colo./Conifer
19 Robert Martin 6-1 230 Fr Houston, Texas/Strake Jesuit
PUNT RETURN 13 Kyle Snow 5-7 170 Sr Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton-Warrenville South
7 Sean Walker 5-10 190 Sr Annawan, Ill./HS
KICK RETURN 8 Matt Roche 6-1 190 Fr Moline, Ill./HS
88 Nick Krantz 6-1 200 Sr Moline, Ill./HS
SNAPPER 43 Ryan Coleman 6-3 245 Sr Carol Stream, Ill./Wheaton North
HOLDER 9 Eric Josupait 6-0 180 Jr Aurora, Ill./Waubonsie Valley

 

 
2013 MOUNT ST. JOSEPH FOOTBALL TWO DEEP

POS NO NAME HT WT YR HOMETOWN/HIGH SCHOOL
OFFENSE
QB 14 Caleb Watkins 6-3 195 Jr. Middletown, OH (Middletown)
3 Joe Pfiester 6-0 180 So. Cincinnati, OH (LaSalle)
RB 13 Cody Meade 5-11 220 Sr. Paintsville, KY (Pike County Central)
29 Judge Love 5-10 215 Jr. Louisville, KY (Ballard)
HB 9 Dave Fulcher 5-10 200 Fr. Cincinnati, OH (Mason)
5 Denzell Norvell 5-8 195 Fr. Dayton, OH (Thurgood Marshall)
T 76 Jon Niehaus 6-2 260 Fr. Cincinnati, OH (Colerain)
57 Colan Beare 6-1 250 Fr. Cincinnati, OH (Oak Hills)
G 74 Mark Tuttle 6-2 275 So. Cincinnati, OH (Hamilton)
65 David Brausch 6-0 255 Jr. Batavia, OH (Batavia)
C 66 Brandon Keller 6-3 295 Jr. Flowery Branch, GA (Flowery Branch)
62 Brandon Chapman 6-1 300 Sr. Hendersonville, TN (Hendersonville)
G 73 Robbie Parker 6-1 285 Fr. Cincinnati, OH (Hamilton)
70 Andrew Wilson 6-2 260 Sr. Monticello, IN (Twin Lakes)
T 60 Shain Abney 6-3 265 Sr. Louisville, KY (St. Francis Desales)
67 Tyler Breh 6-2 275 Sr. Trenton, OH (Edgewood)
TE 8 Trey McPhail 6-3 235 Sr. Nashville, TN (Father Ryan)
2 Matt Hans 6-0 235 Sr. Louisville, KY (Holy Cross)
WR 4 John Peters 6-8 230 Jr. West Chester, OH (Lakota West)
19 Nick Kaminsky 6-2 195 Sr. Hamilton, OH (Fairfield)
WR 6 Leonard Riston 5-10 185 Jr. Cincinnati, OH (Withrow)
25 Eric Love 6-0 195 So. West Jefferson, OH (West Jefferson)
DEFENSE
DE 52 Adam Bigelow 6-2 245 Sr. Cincinnati, OH (Anderson)
94 Jonathan Campbell 6-2 215 Fr. Cincinnati, OH (La Salle)
DT 99 Tim Bowman 6-3 260 So. Liberty Township, OH (Lakota East)
55 Matt Gatherwright 6-2 265 Jr. Cincinnati, OH (Elder)
NG 95 Russell Turner 6-0 265 Sr. Fairfield, OH (Fairfield)
97 Joe Meade 6-2 265 Jr. Paintsville, KY (Pike County Central)
DE 92 Darius Gilbert 6-4 275 Jr. Hamilton, OH (Hamilton)
49 Juan Gomez 5-10 220 Jr. John's Creek, GA (Chatahoochee)
ILB 42 Konnor Blevins 6-2 240 Jr. Cincinnati, OH (Lakota West)
31 Zach Dickman 6-2 225 Fr. Coldwater, OH (Coldwater)
ILB 54 Garrett Breiner 6-1 220 Sr. Louisville, KY (Male)
4 Andre Jones 6-2 215 Fr. Lexington, KY (Dunbar)
OLB 51 Brent McCleery 6-0 220 Jr. Mooresville, IN (Monrovia)
35 Mikyle Washington 6-1 215 Fr. Cincinnati, OH (Colerain)
CB 12 Marvin Draper 5-10 180 So. Columbus, OH (Whetstone)
22 Aaron Abbott 6-0 185 Fr. Kettering, OH (Fairmont)
SS 10 Tyler Elrod 6-3 225 Sr. Harrison, OH (Harrison)
35 Mikyle Washington 6-1 215 Fr. Cincinnati, OH (Colerain)
FS 28 Josh Frakes 5-10 215 So. Columbus, OH (Hamilton Township)
24 Samuel Fowler 5-10 195 Sr. Cincinnati, OH (Northwest)
CB 1 Ralph Allen 5-10 185 Sr. Trotwood, OH (Trotwood-Madison)
20 Lonnie Dixon 5-10 180 Fr. Cincinnati, OH (Elder)
SPECIAL TEAMS
K 32 Shane Kelly 6-1 200 So. Cincinnati, OH (Turpin)
7 Greg Tabar 6-1 190 Sr. Cincinnati, OH (Colerain)
P 7 Greg Tabar 6-1 190 Sr. Cincinnati, OH (Colerain)
32 Shane Kelly 6-1 200 So. Cincinnati, OH (Turpin)
LS 2 Matt Hans 6-0 235 Sr. Louisville, KY (Holy Cross)
42 Konnor Blevins 6-2 240 Jr. Cincinnati, OH (Lakota West)
Ret 6 Leonard Riston 5-10 185 Jr. Cincinnati, OH (Withrow)
9 Dave Fulcher 5-10 200 Fr. Cincinnati, OH (Mason)
Ret 80 James Winchester 5-8 170 Fr. Trotwood, OH (Trotwood-Madison)
5 Denzell Norvell 5-8 195 Fr. Dayton, OH (Thurgood Marshall)

 

 
2012 AUGUSTANA VIKINGS STATISTICAL HIGHLIGHTS

CATEGORY NUMBER OPPONENT DATE
Individual Offense
Most Points 18 – Eric Chandler North Park 10/20/12
Most Points Kicking 10 – Brady Rogers Loras 09/15/12
Most Touchdowns 3 – Eric Chandler North Park 10/20/12
Most Extra Points 5 – Brady Rogers Twice
Most Yards Total Offense 338 – Nick Welch Loras 09/15/12
Most Yards Rushing 203 – Eric Chandler North Park 10/20/12
Most Rushing Attempts 17 – Eric Chandler North Park 10/20/12
Most Yards Passing 347 – Nick Welch Loras 09/15/12
Most Pass Attempts 28 – Nick Welch Illinois Wesleyan 11/03/12
Most Pass Completions 19 – Nick Welch Millikin 10/13/12
Most Yards Receiving 170 – Nick Krantz Loras 09/15/12
Most Pass Receptions 8 – Kyle Snow Illinois Wesleyan 11/03/12
Team Offense
Most Points 38 Carthage 10/27/12
Most Touchdowns 5 Twice
Most Total Yards 483 Loras 09/15/12
Most Yards Rushing 302 North Park 10/20/12
Most Yards Passing 347 Loras 09/15/12
Most Passing Attempts 29 Illinois Wesleyan 11/03/12
Most Completions 20 Millikin 10/13/12
Most First Downs Total 19 Loras 09/15/12
Most First Downs Rushing 13 Elmhurst 10/06/12
Most First Downs Passing 13 Loras 09/15/12
Most First Downs Penalty 4 Dubuque 09/01/12
Most Rushes 50 Carthage 10/27/12
Most Plays 74 Millikin 10/13/12
Individual Defense
Most Total Tackles 18 – Erik Westerberg Twice
Most Solo Tackles 12 – Erik Westerberg Carthage 10/27/12
Most Assisted Tackles 16 – Erik Westerberg North Park 10/20/12
Most Interceptions 1 – 11 times
Most Fumble Recoveries 1 – 7 times
Most Quarterback Sacks 2 – 3 times
Most Tackles for Loss 2.5 – Twice
Team Defense
Fewest Points 7 Illinois Wesleyan 11/03/12
Fewest Plays 59 Illinois Wesleyan 11/03/12
Fewest Rushing Attempts 27 Carthage 10/27/12
Fewest Total Yards 241 North Central 11/10/12
Fewest Rushing Yards 53 Carthage 10/27/12
Fewest Passing Yards 88 North Park 10/20/12
Fewest Pass Completions 7 North Park 10/20/12
Most Interceptions 3 Carthage 10/27/12
Most Fumble Recoveries 3 Carthage 10/27/12
Fewest Total First Downs 14 Millikin 10/13/12
Fewest Rushing First Downs 3 Carthage 10/27/12
Fewest Passing First Downs 4 North Park 10/20/12
Fewest Penalty First Downs 0 Twice

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