Dubuque, Iowa -- The American Rivers Conference football schedule worked itself out perfectly. The two 6-1 teams met this afternoon at Chalmers Stadium on the campus of the University of Dubuque. The Wartburg Knights, defending conference champions, came to town in the hopes of carrying the conference trophy back to Waverly. And they did so on the strength of a strong third-quarter surge to win, 47-28, and earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Football Championship. The Knights will find out their opponent tomorrow evening when the selections are announced.
Wartburg quarterback
Matt Sacia, the 2017 Offensive MVP in the conference, passed for 341 yards on 25-of-35 efficiency with three touchdowns. He was intercepted once. WR
Kolin Schulte proved to be Sacia's favorite target, catching eight passes for 124 yards. One of the duo's most crucial and spectacular moments came after the teams traded three-and-outs in the third quarter. Dubuque had a 21-20 lead at the time and was looking to get the ball back when on third-and-10 from the Wartburg 34-yard line Sacia threw a high ball over the middle that Schulte climbed the ladder to pull down. The 14-yard gain spurred a drive that ended in
Mason Carter's 3-yard TD run that put the Knights ahead and shifted momentum, even though Wartburg's 2-point try was denied. The score was 26-21 at that point.
Another Dubuque three-and-out gave the Knights the ball at their own 34. Sacia had two 17-yard completions on another touchdown drive, one to Schulte and another to
Will Hasken. Carter did the rest, carrying on three of the next four plays and walking untouched into the end zone on a second-down play from inside the 1-yard line. Wartburg went "Philly Special" on the 2-point try as
Brandon Childs took a pitch from Sacia on an end-around and then threw to
Lee Bonifus for the conversion and a 34-21 lead.
Dubuque got its legs back in the fourth quarter when a Wartburg fumble put the Spartans in business at the 50-yard line. UD quarterback
Sean Duffy went to work and eventually found WR
Kody Riemer for a 16-yard TD pass that narrowed the deficit to 34-28. It was Riemer's fourth touchdown of the day. Wartburg came right back on the next drive and, aided by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, marched to the UD 39-yard line. The big play of the drive came next when Sacia found Bonifus on a 25-yard pass play. The Spartans had the chance they were seeking on a first-down fumble at the UD 2-yard line, but Wartburg came up with the ball. Sacia then rolled out to his right and connected with Childs for a touchdown that gave Wartburg some breathing room. Another failed 2-point attempt made it 40-28.
On the second play of the next drive, Duffy was intercepted by
Cedric Dobbins near midfield and the pretty much sealed Dubuque's fate. Sacia threw his final TD pass of the day with just 56 seconds left on the clock. He rolled right and Bonifus escaped to the left side of the formation where the pitch-and-catch was an easy 11-yard TD play.
Riemer's three first-half TDs were beauties to Riemer. The first from 38 yards out made it 10-7, Wartburg. The second from 22 yards out gave UD a 14-13 lead. The third, a 21-yard play, put the Spartans ahead by a 21-13 margin. Another big moment in the game was Wartburg's drive after Riemer's third TD catch. It took only 1:50 for Sacia to hook up with Childs on a 39-yard TD pass.
Kain Eagle, who hit on two field goals of 27 yards earlier in the half, made the PAT and Wartburg trailed by just one point at the break.
Duffy was 16-of-22 passing for 193 yards and four TDs. Riemer caught eight passes for 140 yards and the four scores. Neither team rushed the ball all that effectively, though Carter did wind up with 88 carries on 28 attempts and three TDs.
Dwayne Allen, Jr. was the Spartans' leading rusher with just 34 yards on 15 carries. Defensively, UD linebacker
Chad Marsh had 15 tackles (six solos) and 1.5 tackles for loss (-5 yards).
Marshon Crowder had two sacks of Sacia for a loss of 23 yards. Linebacker
Jake Kloft made a team-high 10 tackles for the Knights; he had 2.5 tackles for loss (-7 yards). Linebacker
Dillon Rademaker had two sacks for a loss of 16 yards. Dobbins and
Dane Steidler had interceptions for Wartburg.
Blaze Barista had UD's only interception.
Today's championship is the 16th in the storied history of Wartburg football. The Knights have won six of the last 11 conference titles. Head coach
Rick Willis's team made a nice run in the Division III tournament last fall, winning two games before bowing out in the quarterfinals. Thirty-two teams advance to the national tournament.
