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SNS sports mobileWittenberg vs. Wabash will 'be a dogfight'
It hasn't been easy for the Tigers to avoid thinking about this year's game with the Little Giants.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
SPRINGFIELD — Brad McKinley heard chatter in the locker room about Wabash (Ind.) all offseason. The Little Giants may have even been mentioned by the Wittenberg players in conversations before this week, but if so, McKinley said the players kept that on the down low, so as not to anger coaches who live by the "one game at a time" motto.
"If I told you we weren't talking about it and looking forward to it, I'd be lying to you," said McKinley, a sophomore linebacker. "It's Wabash. It's our big rival."
The Tigers (5-1, 3-0 North Coast Athletic Conference) can talk all they want about Wabash this week. The Little Giants come to Springfield for a 1 p.m. game Saturday, Oct. 18.
Wabash brings with it impressive credentials: a 5-0 record, a No. 6 national ranking in Division III and the nation's top scoring offense (46 points per game).
The Little Giants have also won at least a share of three straight NCAC titles. Wabash and Wittenberg shared the title in 2006, but Wabash has won three outright titles since Wittenberg's last outright title in 2001.
"They're the big dogs," McKinley said, "and everyone wants to be the big dog."
McKinley experienced the Wittenberg-Wabash game last season for the first time. On his way to NCAC newcomer of the year honors, McKinley forced a fumble as Wabash tried to run out the clock with 1 minute, 17 seconds left. That gave the Tigers one more chance to score, but they lost 24-17.
The last three games in the series have been decided by seven points or less.
"I feel going into this game, it's going to be a dogfight," McKinley said. "They're a great team, as usual. Wabash always has a lot of good athletes, a lot of good players. They're solid. I feel we have a good shot, too. ... It's just going to come down to who wants it more."
McKinley, a Hilliard Davidson graduate, had a team-high 120 tackles in 2007, and he is just a bit behind that pace this year with a team-high 53 tackles despite missing most of the preseason with a pulled hamstring.
McKinley had a season-high 15 tackles in Saturday's 44-13 victory over Earlham (Ind.).
"He's finally starting to see things again," Wittenberg coach Joe Fincham said. "You're talking about a guy who played in the first game and had only practiced five times. ... Ask Peyton Manning how important practice is — much less a 19-year-old sophomore. He needed it, and he's playing much better now because of it."
Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0351 or djablonski@coxohio.com.
