Tuesday, November 2, 2021

The old adage says that the best offense is a good defense. No one told that to Central Washington or Western Oregon.

The two teams rolled to big wins in the conference’s final games in October. Central Washington had its way with a first-year program from Lincoln (Calif.), dispatching the Oaklanders with a record 92-0 win.

Western Oregon, meanwhile, finished with 409 yards of total offense en route to a 42-3 win over Simon Fraser in the Wolves’ final GNAC game of the season.

The Central Washington win was one for the ages. The 92 points set a GNAC single-game record, surpassing the 83 points scored by Azusa Pacific against SFU in 2017, and are the most points scored by an NCAA football team this season.

The Wildcats broke the GNAC single-game record with 13 touchdowns, surpassing the previous record of 11 set on four occasions. They also broke a record with 12 offensive touchdowns, surpassing the previous record of 10 set five times.

Despite all of the scoring, only one individual record was tied. Junior kicker Patrick Hegarty tied the conference record with 10 extra points made. The effort earned Hegarty his fourth GNAC Special Teams Player of the Week award of the season. He is now 40 for 40 on PAT opportunities this year.

Central Washington finished with 435 yards of total offense, led by 128 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries by senior running back Davine Tullis.

Western Oregon also put its rushing game on full display, led by Omari Land. The junior running back was named the GNAC Offensive Player of the Week after carrying the ball 20 times for 133 yards and a touchdown. Despite depending on the ground game for much of the game, four of WOU’s touchdowns were passing scores.

Junior defensive back Machiah Lee was named the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week after he finished with six tackles with five solo tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack.

Central Washington and Western Oregon now turn to non-conference play. The Wildcats will travel to Western New Mexico on Saturday before returning home to close the regular season on November 13 against Simon Fraser.

The Wolves face non-conference opponents for their final two games of the season. They play at Chadron State on Saturday before closing against Lincoln (Calif.) on November 13. Simon Fraser is idle this week.

THIS WEEK'S GNAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSIVE
Omari Land, Western Oregon
RB • 5-11 • Junior • Oakland, Calif.

Land carried 20 times for 133 yards and a touchdown in Western Oregon’s 42-3 victory over Simon Fraser. He averaged 6.7 per rushing attempt to lead a 286-yard rushing afternoon for the Wolves.

Also Nominated: Davine Tullis (Central Washington).

DEFENSIVE
Machiah Lee, Western Oregon
DB • 5-11 • Junior • Spanaway, Wash.

Lee led the Western Oregon defense with six tackles, including five solo tackles, a sack and two tackles for loss for 11 yards in Western Oregon’s 42-3 win over Simon Fraser.

Also Nominated: Griffin Barrett (Simon Fraser).

SPECIAL TEAMS
Patrick Hegarty, Central Washington
P/K • 6-4 • Junior • Ferndale, Wash.

Hegarty tied the GNAC single-game record with 10 extra points made in Central Washington’s 92-0 rout of Lincoln (Calif.). He tied a record held by three other players, most recently Western Oregon’s Adrian Saltana against Simon Fraser on October 7, 2017. Hegarty is now 40 for 40 on point-after attempts this season.

Also Nominated: Robert Meadors (Simon Fraser), Joey Sinclair (Western Oregon).

CENTRAL WASHINGTON
LAST WEEK: Oct. 30: Beat Lincoln (Calif.), 92-0
THIS WEEK: Nov. 6: at Western New Mexico, Noon (MDT)

• Central Washington set three GNAC single-game scoring records and racked up 435 yards of total offense in a 92-0 non-conference rout of first-year Lincoln (Calif.) on Saturday.

• The 92 points are the most scored by an NCAA football team this season and surpassed the former GNAC record of 83 points by Azusa Pacific against Simon Fraser on September 23, 2017. The Wildcats also set a record with 13 touchdowns, bettering the previous record of 11 set on four occasions, and 12 offensive touchdowns to better the previous record of 10 set on five occasions.

• Junior kicker Patrick Hegarty was named the GNAC Special Teams Player of the Week for the fourth time this season. He tied the GNAC single-game record with 10 point-after attempts made, which he now shares with three others. Hegarty is now 40 for 40 on PATs this season. Hegarty ranks 17th in Division II with a .750 field goal percentage and 20th with 1.12 field goals per game.

• The Wildcats finished with 300 rushing yards and scored six of their touchdowns on the ground. Senior running back Davine Tullis led the way with a career-high 128 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries, averaging 14.2 yards per carry. The effort moved Tullis into sixth in the GNAC with 18.5 rushing yards per game.

• Sophomore quarterback JJ Lemming completed 4 of 8 passes for 67 yards and three touchdowns, rushed twice for 29 yards and two more touchdowns and also caught a 22-yard touchdown pass. All six touchdowns came in the first half of the game. Lemming ranks third in the GNAC with 122.3 passing yards per game. Sophomore quarterback Zach Matlock completed both passes he threw for 46 yards and two touchdowns while senior wide receiver JoJo Hillel completed one pass for 22 yards and a touchdown.

•Senior wide receiver Tony Archie led the receiving corps with two catches for 46 yards and two touchdowns in the first half. Archie ranks fifth in the GNAC with 41 receiving yards per game.

• The Central Washington defense limited the Oaklanders to 38 yards of total offense. Senior linebacker Donte Hamilton finished with six tackles, including four solo tackles, a tackle for loss, a sack and an interception. Junior linebacker Brett Accimus also had six tackles with two solo tackles, a tackle for loss, a sack and a forced fumble. Hamilton is third in the GNAC with 61 tackles and 12 tackles for loss. He is 23rd in Division II with 1.5 tackles for loss per game and 24th with 1.2 passes defended per game.

• Central Washington leads the GNAC with 43.1 points per game, 385 total offense yards per game, 183.9 rushing yards per game and 201.1 passing yards per game. The Wildcats rank second in Division II in turnover margin (1.18), third in fumbles lost (2), fourth in turnovers gained (25), sixth in scoring offense and passes intercepted (14), eighth in team pass efficiency defense (95.38) and ninth in fumbles recovered (11).

• Central Washington remained at No. 3 in the latest Super Region 4 Rankings, which will help determine advancement to the Division II playoffs.

• Central Washington will play its final road game of the regular season on Saturday, traveling to Western New Mexico.

SIMON FRASER
LAST WEEK: Oct. 30: Lost at Western Oregon, 42-3
THIS WEEK: Idle
 
• Simon Fraser was held to 97 yards of total offense and entered the red zone just once in a 42-3 loss at Western Oregon on Saturday.

• Simon Fraser’s one trip into the red zone proved successful with a 28-yard field goal by sophomore kicker Kristie Elliott with 4:21 left in the second quarter. Elliott is now 3 for 5 on field-goal attempts this season.

• The majority of SFU’s net offense came on 95 passing yards. Sophomore quarterback Justin Sieber completed 8 of 19 passes for 68 yards while sophomore Brandon Niksich completed 3 of 11 passes for 27 yards. Sieber leads the GNAC with 196.3 passing yards and 194 total offense yards per game.

• Junior wide receiver Robert Meadors was the primary target for the quarterbacks, making three catches for 36 yards. Meadors also had seven kick returns for 123 yards, averaging 17.6 yards per return. Meadors leads the GNAC in kick returns with an average of 19 yards per return.

• Junior running back Somto Anyadike was SFU’s top rusher once again, carrying seven times for 24 yards. Anyadike is fifth in the GNAC with 21.6 rushing yards per game.

• Senior linebacker Griffin Barrett led SFU defensively with 13 tackles, which included nine solo tackles. Junior defensive back Kolby Buljevic and junior linebacker Justice Kremler each had seven tackles, with Buljevic adding a tackle for loss. Barrett leads the GNAC with 87 tackles. He is ranked second in Division II with 12.4 tackles per game and third with 6.7 solo tackles per game.

• Simon Fraser is averaging 233.6 total offense yards and 193.7 passing yards per game. The team is second in Division II for fewest penalty yards (261), fifth in fewest penalty yards per game (37.29), 10th in fewest penalties (38) and 28th in red zone defense (.694).

• Simon Fraser is idle this week. The team will wrap up the 2021 season on Saturday, November 13 at Central Washington.

WESTERN OREGON
LAST WEEK: Oct. 30: Beat Simon Fraser, 42-3
THIS WEEK: Nov. 6: at Chadron State, Noon (MDT)
 
• Western Oregon finished with 409 yards of total offense to close out its GNAC season with a 42-3 victory on Saturday over Simon Fraser at McArthur Field.

• The Wolves finished with 286 rushing yards. Junior running back Omari Land was named the GNAC Offensive Player of the Week after he carried the ball 20 times for 133 yards and a second-quarter touchdown. Land leads the GNAC with 100.8 rushing yards and 110.1 all-purpose yards per game. Land is 21st in Division II in rushing yards per game and is 19th with nine rushing touchdowns.

• Freshman running back Dominique Loggins rushed 14 times for 83 yards while freshman quarterback Gannon Winker rushed four times for 44 yards and a touchdown.

• Junior quarterback Ryan Worthley completed 7 of 10 passes for 71 yards and three touchdowns as three quarterbacks threw passes in the game. Freshman Wyatt Harsh completed all three passes he threw for 32 yards while Winker completed two passes for 20 yards and a touchdown. Worthley is second in the GNAC with 183.8 passing yards and 184 total offense yards per game. He is 27th in Division II with a .629 completion percentage.

• Junior wide receiver Thomas Wright led seven WOU receivers with three catches for 40 yards and two touchdowns. Wright is second in the GNAC with 47.2 receiving yards per game.

• Junior defensive back Machiah Lee was named the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week after finishing with six tackles, including five solo tackles, two tackles for loss for 11 yards and a sack. Lee enters the week with 34 tackles on the season.

• Junior defensive backs Ryan Minniti and Joey Sinclair and junior linebacker Jaylin Parnell each finished with five tackles with Sinclair making the Wolves’ one interception of the game. Sinclair is third in the GNAC with three interceptions this season. Parnell is fourth in the GNAC with 60 tackles and second with 11 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles.

• Western Oregon is second in the GNAC with 356.1 total offense yards, 160.5 rushing yards and 195.6 passing yards per game. The Wolves are 26th in Division II with a .627 completion percentage.

• Western Oregon faces two non-conference opponents to close out the 2021 season. The Wolves play at Chadron State on Saturday.