Joe Reverman's 500 rushing yards against Tiffin and Saginaw Valley State got the attention of the Northwood University football team. But then, Chance Stewart then went to work.
Stewart, a redshirt-freshman quarterback for Hillsdale College's football team, threw for 202 of his 277 yards through the air in the first half of a 28-14 Charger win over the Timberwolves in Midland Saturday afternoon. The win, Hillsdale's third in a row, improves the team to 4-6 overall and 4-5 in the GLIAC.
Northwood's defense came out stacked close to the line of scrimmage, keying on the Charger running game, which had been outstanding the past two games. Stewart and the coaching staff adjusted accordingly, and it was two freshmen teaming up on the game's first big play.
Stewart connected with true freshman wide receiver Trey Brock on a 75-yard touchdown strike to open the scoring, at the 5:24 mark of the second quarter. The play was not only great execution by two Charger rookies, but also recognition by the coaching staff of Northwood's defensive alignment, which left one-on-one coverage to the edge receivers early in the game.
The offensive line, who had done such a great job of run blocking for Reverman recently, was up to the task of pass protection, allowing just one sack against a big and talented Timberwolves defensive line.
Stewart combined not only big yardage, but a terrific completion percentage. He finished the game 16-for-21 for 277 yards and 2 touchdowns and no interceptions. He averaged more than 17 yards per completion in the win.
Brock caught just two passes, but they were good for a career-high 112 yards. Sophomore Brian Newman caught four passes for 25 yards while senior John Haley stepped up with 4 receptions for 50 yards. Eight different players caught passes from Stewart.
Despite the defensive attention, Reverman notched his third straight 100-plus yard rushing game anyway, toting the pigskin 24 times for 112 yards and 2 touchdowns. He scored on runs of 6 and 1 yard in the third quarter when Hillsdale pulled out to a 28-0 lead.
Defensively, Hillsdale put forth another superb effort. Although the Timberwolves scored early in the fourth quarter, the unit can be proud of its shutout streak, which lasted 119 minutes, 29 seconds, dating back to the Tiffin game on Oct. 24. Hillsdale picked off three passes and got two key fourth-down stops when the game was in doubt.
Sophomore defensive back Will Jones had the best game of his young career, recording 10 solo tackles to go along with an end zone interception that ended one of Northwood's best drives of the first half.
Sophomore Spencer Nehls also had 10 tackles, while Scotty Penola and Kyle Johnson had 7 stops each. Todd Frickey and Jay Rose intercepted passes, and Drew Mallery picked up a sack.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE: For the third game in a row, Hillsdale held a big edge in time of possession (33-26)…Hillsdale averaged 7 more yards per completion than Northwood…This was Hillsdale's sixth straight win over Northwood…The Timberwolves ran 26 more plays, but had just 7 more total yards than the Chargers...This was the Timberwolves' first home loss of the season.
UP NEXT: The Chargers will seek their fourth straight win on Senior Day next Saturday, hosting Wayne State at noon.
PHOTO CREDIT: Sarah Klopfer