Augustana finishes 4-6 and in fifth place in the CCIW in Coach Steve Bell's first season; record-breaking Sam Frasco named CCIW Offensive Player of the Year
 

The 2015 football season was the first for Head Coach Steve Bell at Augustana. Bell took over the Vikings in January after a very successful 15-year stint as the head man at Monmouth College in Monmouth, Illinois. Augustana finished the year with an overall record of 4-6 and a 3-4 mark in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin, good for fifth place. Quarterback Sam Frasco (Prospect HS, Mt. Prospect, Ill.) had a tremendous senior season, breaking a pair of school records and becoming the first Viking since 2001 to earn CCIW Offensive Player of the Year honors.
 
In addition to his conference honors, Frasco also earned third team All-North Region recognition from D3football.com. He set school records for total offense in a game (585) and season (2,997) and fell just 74 yards short of Ken Anderson's career record of 6,680 yards. Frasco's 1,172 rushing yards this season were eighth-most in school history and his 1,825 passing yards rank third all-time. He was second in the nation with an average of 7.92 yards per carry and ranked among the nation's top 25 in five other categories. He finished his career as Augustana's third-leading passer (3,971 yards), eighth-leading rusher (2,635) and sixth-leading scorer (216 points).
 
Joining Frasco on the All-CCIW team were seniors Brandon Stiers (Deer Creek Mackinaw HS, Mackinaw, Ill.), Frank Kalble (Hersey HS, Arlington Heights, Ill.) and Sean Fitzgerald (Providence Catholic HS, Manhattan, Ill.), juniors Jack Asquini (Buffalo Grove HS, Arlington Heights, Ill.) and Tommy Wilson (St. Charles East HS, St. Charles, Ill.) and sophomore Jeremy Collier (St. Thomas Aquinas HS, Overland Park, Kan.). All but Frasco were second team selections. In addition, Stiers was selected to represent Team Stars & Stripes in the Tazon de Estrellas (Bowl of Stars) in Baja, Mexico on December 19.
 
Augustana rolled up 522 yards of total offense as the Vikings defeated Mount St. Joseph 42-39 at Lindberg Stadium on September 5 in Bell's debut. Frasco and junior Brandon Price (Providence Catholic HS, Plainfield, Ill.) both eclipsed 100 yards rushing in the contest.
 
Frasco set single-game school records for total offense each of the next two weeks in losses to Albion (60-49) at home and Loras (56-52) on the road. 419 of his school-record 585 total yards at Loras came in the first half, including 262 of his 312 rushing yards—the second-highest total in school history.
 
The Augustana defense forced six turnovers and came up with two huge fourth-down stops deep in its own territory in a 9-3 win over Elmhurst in the team's CCIW opener at Lindberg Stadium. An upset bid at 7th-ranked Wheaton on October 10 came up short. A Wheaton goal line stand early in the fourth quarter prevented the Vikings from getting within three points and the hosts then put together a 99-yard touchdown drive to ice the game.
 
The team suffered consecutive losses at home to Illinois Wesleyan (21-7) and Carthage (39-27) before going on the road and handling North Park 45-7. Frasco tied a school record with five rushing touchdowns and passed David Lee as the school single-season record holder for total offense. Freshman Ryan Pitra (Geneseo HS, Geneseo, Ill.) added 113 rushing yards to Frasco's 189.
 
After a 27-10 home loss to 16th-ranked North Central, the Vikings closed out the season with a 42-10 win at Millikin. Frasco completed 13 of 16 passes for 197 yards and four touchdowns against the Big Blue and Pitra rushed for 170 yards.
 
Fitzgerald and junior Danny Lattner (Fenwick HS, Riverside, Ill.) formed an effective receiving combo for Frasco this season. They finished with 51 and 45 catches, respectively—the second and fifth highest single season totals in school history—and Fitzgerald's 96 career grabs rank fourth all-time at Augustana. Fitzgerald's receptions went for 481 yards and seven touchdowns, while Lattner led the Vikings with 672 receiving yards and scored five times.
 
Price augmented Frasco's running with 416 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Pitra added 327 yards on the ground, including 304 on 60 carries in the last three weeks of the season.
 
Defensively, Asquini led the way with 108 tackles. The Vikings middle linebacker led the CCIW with an average of 11.3 stops per game. Kalble had 81 tackles from his strong safety spot. His average of 9.1 per game ranked fourth in the conference. Stiers led Augustana with 12½ tackles for loss and four sacks. Despite little playing time before the third week, freshman linebacker Cassin Wolfe (Bettendorf HS, Bettendorf, Iowa) tied for third on the team with 66 tackles.
 
Cornerbacks Daniel Watson (Peoria HS, Peoria, Ill.) and Travon Aldridge (Rock Island HS, Rock Island, Ill.) both had big years for the CCIW's top pass defense. Watson was in on a total of 66 tackles and shared the team lead of 38 solo stops with Kalble. Watson's four interceptions were a team high also. Aldridge led the CCIW and ranked 10th in the nation in passes defended. He also led the conference in interceptions and kickoff returns. He finished the year with 29 tackles, three interceptions and a team-high 13 pass breakups.
 
Collier and sophomore Jacob Stytz (Minooka HS, Channahon, Ill.) handled the kicking duties for Bell. Collier was the CCIW's second-leading punter at 37.9 yards per kick and averaged 38.0 overall. Stytz was perfect on 40 point after attempts, including 20 of 20 in CCIW play, which led the league. He also converted five of nine field goal attempts with a long of 42 yards.
 
 
2015 CCIW STANDINGS

School	CCIW	Overall
Wheaton	7-0	11-1
North Central	6-1	7-3
Illinois Wesleyan	4-3	7-3
Carthage	4-3	5-5
AUGUSTANA	3-4	4-6
North Park	2-5	3-7
Elmhurst	1-6	4-6
Millikin	1-6	2-8

           
2015 AUGUSTANA FOOTBALL SUPERLATIVES 
 
INDIVIDUAL AWARD WINNERS 
CCIW OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR – Sam Frasco, QB
CCIW ALL-CONFERENCE SELECTIONS – First team: Sam Frasco, QB; Second team: Jack Asquini, LB; Frank Kalble, DB; Brandon Stiers, DE; Sean Fitzgerald, WR; Tommy Wilson, OL; Jeremy Collier, P
D3FOOTBALL.COM ALL-NORTH REGION – Sam Frasco, QB (3rd team)
CCIW PLAYERS OF THE WEEK – 09/08/15, 09/21/15, 11/02/15 – Sam Frasco, QB (Offense); 10/05/15 – Frank Kalble (Defense).
TAZON DE ESTRELLAS (Bowl of the Stars) – Brandon Stiers (Team Stars 'n' Stripes Defensive MVP)
NFF HAMPSHIRE HONOR SOCIETY – Sean Fitzgerald
CCIW ACADEMIC ALL-CONFERENCE – Travon Aldridge, Michael Daniels, Sean Fitzgerald, Ryan Hennessy, Nathaniel Magiera, Ryan McCarthy, Thomas McSorley, Austin Nice, Danny Oliger, Ryan Pitra, Joshua Symbal.

SCHOOL RECORDS
SINGLE-GAME TOTAL OFFENSE  – 585, Sam Frasco (09/19/15 vs. Loras)
SINGLE-SEASON TOTAL OFFENSE – 2,997, Sam Frasco
 
ADDITIONS TO AUGUSTANA'S TOP TEN LISTS
CAREER RUSHING YARDS – 2,635 (Sam Frasco – 8th)
CAREER PASSING YARDS – 3,971 (Sam Frasco – 3rd)
CAREER PASS RECEPTIONS – 96 (Sean Fitzgerald – 4th)
CAREER SCORING – 216 (Sam Frasco – 6th)
SINGLE SEASON RUSHING YARDS – 1,172 (Sam Frasco – 8th)
SINGLE SEASON PASSING YARDS – 1,825 (Sam Frasco – 3rd)
SINGLE SEASON PASS RECEPTIONS – 51 (Sean Fitzgerald – 2nd); 45 (Danny Lattner – 5th)
SINGLE SEASON SCORING – 108 (Sam Frasco – 4th-T)
 
NCAA STATISTICAL RANKINGS INDIVIDUAL – TOP 25
RUSHING YARDS PER CARRY – Sam Frasco – 2nd, 7.92
PASSES DEFENDED PER GAME – Travon Aldridge – 10th, 1.8 per game
POINTS RESPONSIBLE FOR PER GAME – Sam Frasco – 12th, 21.0
POINTS RESPONSIBLE FOR – Sam Frasco – 15th, 210
RUSHING TOUCHDOWNS – Sam Frasco – 15th, 18
SCORING – Sam Frasco – 19th, 10.8 points per game
TOTAL OFFENSE – Sam Frasco – 23rd, 299.7 yards per game
 
CCIW STATISTICAL LEADERS – TEAM 
PASS DEFENSE – 142.3 yards per game
TURNOVER MARGIN – +1.14 per game
PASS EFFICIENCY DEFENSE – 90.3
PAT KICKING – 1.000 (20-20)
 
CCIW STATISTICAL TOP FIVE – INDIVIDUAL 
RUSHING – Sam Frasco, 3rd @ 85.3 yards per game
TOTAL OFFENSE – Sam Frasco, 2nd @ 227.9 yards per game
RECEPTIONS PER GAME – Sean Fitzgerald, 3rd-T @ 4.43; Danny Lattner, 5th @ 4.33
RECEIVING YARDS PER GAME – Danny Lattner, 3rd @ 66.2
ALL-PURPOSE YARDS – Sam Frasco, 4th @ 92.7 yards per game
INTERCEPTIONS – Travon Aldridge, 1st-T @ 0.50 per game; Daniel Watson, 3rd-T @ 0.43 per game
PASS EFFICIENCY – Sam Frasco, 5th @ 128.6
KICKOFF RETURN AVERAGE – Travon Aldridge, 1st @ 17.5
PUNTING – Jeremy Collier, 2nd @ 37.9
SCORING – Sam Frasco, 3rd @ 6.9 points per game
SCORING (KICKING) – Jacob Stytz, 4th @ 4.6 points per game
FIELD GOALS – Jacob Stytz, 4th-T @ 0.57 per game
PAT KICKING – Jacob Stytz, 1st @ 1.000 (20-20)
TACKLES – Jack Asquini, 1st @ 11.3 per game; Frank Kalble, 4th-T @ 9.1 per game
FUMBLES FORCED – Daniel Watson, 1st-T @ 0.29 per game
PASSES DEFENDED – Travon Aldridge, 1st @ 1.83 per game
 
TEAM AWARDS 
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER – Sam Frasco
MOST VALUABLE OFFENSIVE PLAYER – Sean Fitzgerald
MOST VALUABLE DEFENSIVE PLAYER – Frank Kalble
MOST VALUABLE SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER – Jacob Stytz
JERRY FRECK AWARD – Josh Symbal
OFFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR – Ryan Pitra, Ryan Hennessy
DEFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR – Cassin Wolfe
COACHES' AWARD – Justin Pope, Tommy Wilson, Jesse Gruneisen, Danny Giffels