CI Week 11 Highlights

At the FBS level in Week 11, Baylor and Defensive Coordinator/ILB Ron Roberts (@CoachRonRoberts) suffocated #4 Oklahoma's offense in a 27-14 win for the Bears, forcing the Sooners into their lowest scoring performance since 2014 and marking Baylor's first win over a top 10 team since 2015. Also at the FBS level, Texas Tech DL Coach Paul Randolph (@CoachPRandolph) and Offensive Analyst/QB Matt Clark (@Coach_MattClark) overcame a turbulent couple of weeks to earn bowl eligibility by knocking off Iowa State, 41-38, on a last-second, 62-yard field goal. Also earning bowl eligibility with a sixth win in Week 11 was Oregon State DB Coach Blue Adams (@CoachAdamsOSU). At the Division II level, the playoff bracket was announced yesterday and the Coaches Inc. Family is well represented, led by Nebraska-Kearney Head Coach Josh Lynn (@CoachJoshLynn), who guided the Lopers to a 9-2 record in the regular season. Four assistants will also be competing for the DII crown, including: Ferris State Asst. Head Coach/QB Brian Rock (@Coach_Rock), Colorado School of Mines Defensive Coordinator/LB Brandon Moore (@madbacker56), Bowie State Defensive Coordinator Antone' Sewell (@CoachSewell_BSU), and Shepherd Special Teams Coor./DB Luke Wright (@CoachLukeWright)! Keep reading for more highlights from Week 11.

One of the first play calls in United States military history was "One if by Land, Two if by Sea." For the greater part of the last century, the offensive philosophy of Army football has simply been "One - By Land." These days, however, the Black Knights are opening things up in a way that West Point legends Glenn Davis and Doc Blanchard, aka "Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside," would have never imagined. Two weeks ago against Wake Forest, Army passers completed 10-of-13 passes for 179 yards and three touchdowns. The trend continued last week versus Air Force, as quarterbacks Christian Anderson and Tyhier Tyler combined to complete eight passes for 214 yards and a score. Against Bucknell, the Black Knights jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter and had little need to unleash their airborne attack, but still managed to find paydirt via the pass for the third consecutive game when QB Jabari Laws found RB Ay'Jaun Marshall for a 22-yard pitch-and-catch to increase the lead to 42-0. For the season, Army has racked up 886 passing yards and nine touchdowns to rank first in the nation in Passing Efficiency and Passing YPA. Of course, the Black Knights' bread and butter remains the ground attack and that was no different against the Bison as the hosts churned out 428 rushing yards. In total, 18 different players carried the ball for the Knights and nine players scored in a truly collective effort. In nine games this year, Army has averaged over 300 rushing yards per game, good for second nationally. Defensively, the Black Knights held the Bison to just 39 rushing yards and forced two turnovers. Army's special teams also had a solid outing as Tyrell Robinson returned three punts for 85 yards and three different kickers converted extra points. Congratulations to Co-Defensive Coor./Safeties Coach Shiel Wood (@ShielWood), Special Teams Coordinator Sean Saturnio (@CoachSaturnio), TE Coach Matt Drinkall (@DrinkallCoach) and OL Coach Saga Tuitele (@CoachTuitele) on the sixth win and bowl eligibility! Wood is in his second season at Army after spending 2019 as the special teams coordinator and inside linebackers coach at Georgia State. He spent the 2018 season as the safeties coach at Georgia Tech and previously served as defensive coordinator at Wofford where he helped the Terriers win a conference title and reach the FCS Quarterfinals on two occasions. Saturnio is in his eighth season in West Point and fourth as special teams coordinator. He has also worked with the team's tight ends and fullbacks over a stretch that has seen the Black Knights win four Commander-in-Chief's trophies, reach four bowl games and post two 10+ win seasons. He previously coached tight ends at Georgia Southern and also has head coaching experience at the high school level in Hawai'i. Drinkall is in his second season as tight ends coach after spending the 2019 campaign as an offensive analyst. He spent the previous five seasons as the head coach at Kansas Wesleyan, where he guided the Coyotes to a 13-1 record in 2018 and an appearance in the NAIA semifinals. Tuitele returned to West Point in 2020 after previously coaching the Black Knights' offensive line from 2007-08. No stranger to high powered rushing attacks, Tuitele led the top ranked rushing offense in the FCS as the offensive coordinator at Cal Poly from 2013-15 and also worked with the top ranked rushing offense in the FBS as the offensive line coach at New Mexico in 2016.

In the 1990s, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls reeled off two three-peats, winning titles from 1991-93 and again from 1996-98. As the Bulls dynasty was winding down, Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera were beginning their own three-peat, leading the New York Yankees to World Series crowns from 1998-00. These days, the Monmouth Hawks have their own chance at a three-peat after rolling to 16 consecutive wins against Big South competition. Winners of the Big South title in 2019 and 2020, the Hawks will square off against fellow conference unbeaten, Kennesaw State, next week after cruising to a 44-7 win over Robert Morris on Saturday. Perhaps looking ahead to the game at Kennesaw, the Hawks found themselves in an early 7-0 hole against the Colonials. But order was quickly restored on the first play of Monmouth's second possession when RB Jaden Shirden took the handoff from QB Tony Muskett and raced 75 yards for a touchdown to knot the game at 7-7. From there, the rout was on. Muskett finished with four passing touchdowns and 232 passing yards while Shirden led the Hawks with 156 yards on the ground. RB Owen Wright also had a strong game on the ground for the hosts, racking up 98 rushing yards. As a team, the Hawks set a new season-high with 508 yards of offense. Congratulations and good luck next week to Monmouth Special Teams Coor./RB Sam Dorsett (@CoachSamDorsett) and Passing Game Coor./QB T.J. DiMuzio (@CoachTJD)! Dorsett is in his ninth year with the Hawks after stints as the running backs coach at St. Francis and Robert Morris. During his time in West Long Branch, he has mentored three all-conference running backs. As a player, Dorsett was an All-American and finished his career as Robert Morris' all-time leading rusher. DiMuzio is in his eighth year at Monmouth and mentored three First Team All-Big South wide receivers before transitioning to quarterbacks in 2019. This past spring, he helped guide Muskett to a Freshman All-American selection. DiMuzio previously served as the assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at Widener and also boasts experience at Bowling Green, Hofstra and Delaware.

On Senior Day, Albany senior RB Karl Mofor produced one of the best performances of his career, tying a career-high with three rushing touchdowns on 24 carries for 90 yards to lead the Great Danes to a 41-14 win over Morgan State. Mofor's first score of the day came on a four-yard rush midway through the first quarter to put Albany up 7-0. On Morgan State's ensuing possession, the Danes punt return unit swallowed up the Morgan State punter in the backfield to set the offense up in prime position for another score. They did just that a few plays later when Albany QB Jeff Undercuffler hit TE Ian Renninger for a four-yard score to double the lead. The Danes took a 34-0 lead into halftime before calling the dogs off, allowing backups to see out the 27-point win. For the game, Undercuffler completed 17-of-31 passes for 328 yards and two touchdowns. Defensively, Albany was led by DE Jared Verse, who finished with four tackles, two sacks and three quarterback hits. Congratulations to Albany Special Teams Coor./RB Damian Mincey (@Coach_Mince54) and Defensive Assistant Chris Calabrese (@Coach_Calabrese) on the win! Mincey is in his fourth season in Albany and second coordinating special teams after working exclusively with the running backs from 2018-19. He has coached Mofor to a pair of All-CAA selections as well as one All-American honor. Mincey previously served as the defensive coordinator at Pace University and also possesses six years of experience at UMass where he wore multiple hats, working with linebackers, tight ends and special teams. With the Minutemen, he helped the program reach the FCS National Championship Game in 2006. Calabrese arrived at Albany this year after a three-year stint as the head coach at ASA College in Brooklyn. In 2019, he led ASA to a #15 ranking in the final NJCAA poll. Calabrese is an AFCA 35 Under 35 alum after his selection to the prestigious club in 2020.

After being one of the founding members of the North Coast Athletic Conference in 1984, Allegheny College is set to leave the NCAC and rejoin the Presidents' Athletic Conference in July 2022. Head Coach Rich Nagy (@ACCoachNagy) ensured the Gators would head out in style as they rallied from an 18-point deficit in the second half to claim a 42-38 win over Oberlin. Playing in the snow of western Pennsylvania, Oberlin raced out to a 21-3 first-half lead. The Gators would cut the lead to 21-10 thanks to a 32-yard touchdown pass from QB Jack Johnson to RB Tre Worship, but the Yeomen quickly responded to go back up 28-10 in the third quarter. Undeterred, Johnson threw four more touchdown passes over the game's final 25 minutes to spearhead the rally. For the game, Johnson threw for a total of 277 yards and five touchdowns while Worship paced the run game, gaining 53 yards and scoring a crucial touchdown in the fourth quarter to give the Gators their first lead at 36-35. Defensively, DL Maxwell Hammond and DB Score Perkins tied for the team-high with nine tackles apiece. Hammond also registered two pivotal sacks on Oberlin's final possession to put an exclamation mark on the victory. Congratulations to Nagy on the comeback win! This season marked Nagy's third year at the helm for the Gators, following a six-year stint as the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Old Dominion where he helped the Monarchs win the first bowl game in program history. He previously coordinated defenses at Western Michigan, Hofstra, Murray State, Maine and Fordham.

Last week, in what was perhaps the biggest game in program history, Culver-Stockton was dealt a terrible stroke of bad luck when starting QB Jase Orndorff went down with an early injury and the offense scuffled en route to a 9-6 loss to perennial national power and #3 in the nation, Grand View University. While that loss snuffed out any chance the Wildcats had to win the division and earn a spot in the NAIA playoffs, Head Coach Tom Sallay's (@CoachSallayCSC) squad bounced back with a win on Saturday that came with a decent consolation prize - the best season in program history! Still without the services of Orndoff, the Wildcats rode another superb performance from their defense to close the season with a 10-3 win over Peru State. C-SC's opening possession ended in a punt, but Peru State fumbled the punt to put the Wildcat offense back in business. After a couple runs by RB Jordan Grant and QB Cody Thorne, Grant capped the drive with a two-yard touchdown rush to put the Wildcats up 7-0. That touchdown proved to be all the C-SC defense would need. The Wildcat defense forced four turnovers, stopped the Bobcats on four fourth down attempts and allowed only 89 passing yards. Individually, LB Dalton Huffman led C-SC with eight tackles, including two tackles-for-loss, to finish his career as the program's all-time leader with 395 tackles. With the win, the Wildcats cap an 8-3 season, which is the most wins in the 112-year history of the program and their #22 national ranking marks the first-ever top 25 finish. Congratulations to Sallay on the win and the historic season! This season was Sallay's fifth at the helm for the Wildcats. In 2019, he was named the AFCA-NAIA Region 3 Co-Coach of the Year. He previously spent 11 seasons at St. Francis, including the final two as defensive coordinator.

From 2016-19, Alcorn State was king of the SWAC, rolling to four East Division crowns and back-to-back conference championships. Consecutive losses at Southern and Bethune-Cookman over the past two weeks have complicated the Braves' quest to add a fifth straight division title, but the goal remains in play after a resilient win over first-place Prairie View. Alcorn fell behind 9-7 in the second quarter but was aided by a 24-0 scoring run to take control of the game on Senior Day. After a field goal from Noah Kiani put the Braves back up 10-9, Alcorn's special teams units came up with a big play to help stretch the lead. With Prairie View punting from deep in its own end, Alcorn's Tavarious Griffin blocked the punt to set the offense up in prime scoring position. Four plays later, RB Stadford Anderson punched it in for a score from two yards out to increase the lead to 17-9. From there QB Felix Harper led the charge, accounting for a 12-yard touchdown pass and a 10-yard scoring run. On the day, the senior signal caller completed 18-of-28 passes for 263 yards and three total touchdowns. Prairie View threatened to retake the lead on its final drive, but LB Jayden Barfield forced and recovered a fumble in the red zone with 18 seconds remaining to preserve the 31-29 win for the hosts. Congratulations to Alcorn State Special Teams Coordinator Lane Powell (@CoachLanePowell) and QB Coach Quinn Gray, Sr. (@CoachQGray) on the win! Powell is in the fourth year of his second stint with the Braves. Before the Braves' current run of SWAC dominance, he was previously part of the Alcorn staff that won the 2014 SWAC Championship and HBCU National Championship. In over 20 years of coaching, Powell has coached at Alabama State, McNeese State and Austin Peay among others. In total, he has worked with 16 All-Americans, 11 players of the year and has been a part of 15 championship winning staffs. Gray arrived at Alcorn in 2020 after a three-year stint as the head coach at Lincoln H.S. in Tallahassee, FL. He previously served as the assistant head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Florida A&M from 2011-14. As a player, Gray finished his career at FAMU as the program's all-time leader in passing yards, completions and passing touchdowns. He went on to enjoy a seven-year playing career in the NFL and won World Bowl XI with the Frankfurt Galaxy in 2003.

It's not how you start, it's how you finish that matters. After Dixie State posted a very respectable 2-3 record last spring in its first competition as an FCS member, the sledding has been tougher this fall for the Trailblazers. The team has come close but entered Saturday night without a win after facing six opponents ranked in the FCS Top 25 in its first nine games. Against former RMAC foe Fort Lewis, Dixie State finally got off the schneid, dominating the Skyhawks in a 62-21 blowout win. The 62 points marked a new program high for the Trailblazers, who jumped out to a 14-0 lead and entered the halftime break with the game well in hand at 49-7. RB Drew Kannely-Robles rushed for 158 yards and set a new program record with four rushing touchdowns to pace the DSU offense. Defensively, the Trailblazers recorded three interceptions and three sacks. DL Livingston Paogofie was a force to be reckoned with up front, logging two quarterback hits and his first career interception. Paogofie snared his pick at the FLC 28-yardline and rumbled 22 yards before finally being tripped up. Two plays later, Kannely-Robles gained the final six yards for his fourth touchdown to put DSU up 56-7 and all but seal the deal. Congratulations to Dixie State DL Coach Loni Fangupo (@LoniFangupo) on the win and Paogofie's big game! Fangupo is in his third season at Dixie State and in 2019 he mentored a Trailblazer pass rush unit that set a new program record with 40 sacks. He previously coached the defensive line at Snow College and also served as a student intern at his alma mater, BYU. As a player, Fangupo spent three years in the NFL with stints in Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Seattle and Houston.

For the first time since 2017, Colorado Mesa won eight games in a season after a late field goal from Lucas Diaz lifted the Mavericks to a three-point win over South Dakota Mines. Unfortunately, an 8-2 mark wasn't good enough to make the 28-team Division II playoff field, but there is still much to celebrate in Grand Junction. Against the Hardrockers, the Mavericks jumped out to a 10-0 lead after Diaz converted an early field goal and QB Karst Hunter connected with WR Dwight Blakey on a 77-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter. Despite not scoring again until Diaz's fourth quarter field goal, CMU piled up 397 yards of offense and 17 first downs to keep its defense fresh throughout the game. In addition to Blakey's highlight reel touchdown, WR Lionell McConnell provided a consistent threat for the Maverick passing attack, keeping the chains moving with eight catches for 108 yards in the winning effort. Congratulations to CMU Co-Offensive Coordinator/OL Mike Barela (@Coach_Barela) on the win and great season! While the CMU offense wasn't necessarily firing on all cylinders on Saturday, it was a very successful campaign overall. In his first season as co-offensive coordinator, Barela helped direct a unit that finished third in the RMAC with over 33 points per game. Barela's promotion followed two seasons as the program's tight ends coach and one as offensive line coach. He arrived at CMU following a three-year stint at Incarnate Word, where he worked on both sides of the ball including serving as the team's run game coordinator and tight ends coach in 2017. At UIW, he worked with First Team All-Southland Conference selection TE Cole Wick, who went on to play for the Lions and 49ers. Barela previously served on staffs at North Texas, Texas State and Sam Houston State.

One more CI coach will be in action tonight when the Rams travel to Santa Clara to face the 49ers on Monday Night Football. Good luck to Los Angeles Asst. Head Coach/RB Thomas Brown (@iamthomasbrown)!