The Anderson University football team lost to Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference foe Bluffton University 17-12 on Saturday at Saltzman Stadium in Bluffton, Ohio.

Trailing 17-6 midway through the fourth quarter, AU scored a touchdown to cut the lead to 17-12 with 5:20 left.

Nate Moser intercepted a pass on the next Bluffton possession, giving the Ravens the ball at the Beavers’ 33 with just under three minutes left. AU drove to the 25 before falling short on a fourth down play to end the game.

Nick Sharp led the Ravens with 241 yards passing and a touchdown, completing 28-of-46 passes.

Joe Davidson led the receivers with nine catches for 76 yards, including a 15-yard TD catch. D.J. Johnson had seven catches for 46 yards and Adam Mandeville added three receptions for 14 yards.

Torrance McCollum led the ground game with 48 yards on 15 caries and added six receptions for 101 yards. HCAC second leading rusher Marcus Spann missed the game due to violating team rules.

Bluffton finished with a 314-291 advantage in total yards, including 257-50 on the ground. The Beavers rushed the ball 60 times in their 74 plays.

AU’s first touchdown came on an 89-yard kickoff return by J.T. Bouwman late in the first half. The return was the fourth longest in school history. Hyman Smith holds the record with a 96-yard return.

Tyler Ganus led the defense with 12 tackles and Moser added 11 tackles. Kaleb Donahue added nine tackles and Akeem Hill chipped in with eight stops. Jason Samuels (pictured above) and Zack Farley both had two sacks.

AU (1-5, 1-3 HCAC) hosts Defiance on Saturday for Homecoming. Kickoff is set for Macholtz Stadium at 1:30 p.m.

The Anderson University football team lost to Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference rival Hanover College 37-14 on Saturday at L.S. Ayres Field in Hanover.

Marcus Spann led the Ravens with 108 rushing yards on 22 carries, including a 31-yard TD run. It was the eighth career 100-yard rushing game for the sophomore.

Nick Sharp finished the game 24-of-40 passing for 208 yards and a touchdown. Joe Davidson was the top receiver with seven catches for 100 yards, including a 9-yard score.

D.J. Johnson had four catches for 29 yards and Spann added three receptions for 16 yards.

Hanover finished with a 610-321 advantage in total yards, including 293-113 on the ground.

Kaleb Donahue and Tyler Ganus led the defense with 14 tackles each. Todd Taylor added 11 tackles and Zack Farley chipped in with eight stops.

AU (1-4, 1-2 HCAC) has a bye week before traveling to HCAC foe Bluffton University on Oct. 15 at 1:30 p.m.

Anderson University’s Marcus Spann and Leonard Wells have been named the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, on Monday.

Spann led the Ravens offense in a 48-14 win over Earlham Saturday, rushing for a career-high 173 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries. Spann scored on a pair of one-yard touchdown runs in the first quarter and has a HCAC-best four touchdowns and 422 yards rushing this season.

Wells had six tackles with three tackles for loss, two sacks, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.  The senior also picked up a Quaker fumble and returned it 45-yards for an Anderson touchdown early in the fourth quarter to complete the scoring for AU.  The Ravens defense forced a school-record nine turnovers in the victory over Earlham.

Anderson (1-3, 1-1 HCAC) will travel south to Hanover Saturday for a 1:30 p.m. kickoff.

The Anderson University football team defeated Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference foe Earlham College 48-14 on Saturday night at Macholtz Stadium.

Marcus Spann led the Ravens with a career-high 173 yards on 27 carries, including a pair of 1-yard touchdown runs in the first quarter. Torrance McCollum added 29 yards on the ground as the Ravens outgained the Quakers 202-46 on the ground.

“Marcus had another fine rushing game and we really controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball,” said AU coach Jeff Judge. “In his first 10 career games, Marcus has seven 100-yard rushing games.”

Nick Sharp completed 21-of-28 passes for 193 yards and three touchdowns. Joe Davidson was his top target, catching seven passes for 53 yards, including an 11-yard TD reception. Walter Wheeler had five catches for 53 yards and a touchdown and Shane Peacock added four receptions for 38 yards and a score.

AU finished with 395 total yards compared to just 166 for Earlham. AU also forced a school record nine turnovers, including five interceptions. Tyler Ganus returned an interception 41 yards for a touchdown and Leonard Wells added a 45-yard fumble recovery for another score (Pictured).

“Our defense was outstanding all night,” said Judge. “To get two defensive scores tells you how well we played on that side of the ball. And anytime you can get a school record on the defensive side of the ball that’s impressive.”

The defense also racked up six sacks on the night, including two by Wells, who also had, three tackles-for-loss and a forced fumble on the first drive of the game. Abe Ridlen led the defense with seven tackles and Zack Farley added six stops.

Ganus, Herman Pollard, Mike Burel, Kaleb Donahue and Jared Millikan all had interceptions and Pollard, Burel and Westley Smith had fumble recoveries.

AU (1-3, 1-1 HCAC) travels to Hanover next Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

Anderson University linebacker Todd Taylor has been named one of six Beyond Sports College Network Div. III Defensive Players of the Week on Tuesday.

The senior had 18 tackles, two sacks and a tackle-for-loss, including seven solo stops, in the Ravens 35-12 loss to Mt. St. Joseph on Saturday night. Taylor ranks third in the conference in total tackles this season.

AU (0-3, 0-1 HCAC) hosts Earlham on Saturday at Macholtz Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

The Anderson University football team lost to Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference foe Mt. St. Joseph 35-12 in the conference opener on Saturday night at Macholtz Stadium.

Nick Sharp led the offense with 285 yards passing and a pair of touchdowns, completing 34-of-58 passes. Sharp also led the ground game with 21 yards on six carries. Matt Cook was the top receiver with a career-high nine catches for 74 yards and a touchdown.

Shane Peacock had seven receptions for 45 yards and a touchdown and Joe Davidson added five catches for 68 yards. Walter Wheeler chipped in with five catches for 47 yards.

AU outgained Mt. St. Joseph 338-334 in the game, including 294-199 through the air. However, the Lions had a 135-44 edge in rushing and Marcus Spann saw his consecutive 100-yard rushing games streak snapped at six. The sophomore had just 12 yards on 11 carries.

After trailing 21-0 at the half, the Ravens outplayed the Lions in the second half finishing with a 213-91 advantage in total offense. Both Mt. St. Joseph touchdowns in the final 30 minutes came on kickoff returns of 91 and 82 yards.

“It’s tough to win when you turn the ball over five times,” said AU coach Jeff Judge. “Give our kids a lot of credit though. We didn’t quit at halftime and came out and played pretty well defensively in the second half.”

Todd Taylor led the defense with a career-high 18 tackles and two sacks. Tyler Ganus had 10 tackles and Akeem Hill added nine stops. Leonard Wells and Zack Farley chipped in with eight tackles apiece.

AU (0-3, 0-1 HCAC) hosts Earlham next Saturday night at Macholtz Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

The football game between Anderson and Mt. St. Joseph will be carried live on Saturday night from Macholtz Stadium at 7 p.m. (CST).

The video and audio stream of the contest can be heard on Stretch Internet.

The Anderson University football team lost to Dubuque University 67-20 on Saturday night in Dubuque, Iowa.

Marcus Spann led the Ravens with 84 yards rushing on 20 carries, including a 3-yard touchdown run. The sophomore added a team-high three receptions for 51 yards.

Nick Sharp completed 14-of-38 passes for 256 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. Shane Peacock caught both touchdown passes from 75 and 78 yards and finished with two catches for 153 yards.

Torrance McCollum had three catches for 26 yards and Dev Thompson added two receptions for 13 yards.

Dubuque finished with a 588-359 advantage in total offense, including 441-259 through the air. AU forced the Spartans into four turnovers in the first half.

Todd Taylor led the defense with 12 tackles and Kaleb Donahue had nine stops. Jared Millikan and Herman Pollard added interceptions for the Ravens.

AU (0-2) hosts Mt. St. Joseph next Saturday at Macholtz Stadium in the home opener. The game will be carried live on Stretch Internet at 7 p.m.

The Anderson University football team lost the Wagon Wheel game to arch-rival Taylor University 28-6 on Thursday night in the season-opener for both teams in Upland.

Marcus Spann led the Ravens with with 133 yards rushing on 21 carries, including the lone score of the game for the visitors on a 15-yard run. Spann also added four receptions for 20 yards. It was the fifth time int he last six games that Spann has surpassed the 100-yard mark.

“Marcus had another great game running the ball,” said AU coach Jeff Judge.

Quarterback Nick Sharp finished the game 23-of-49 passing for 158 yards. Dev Thompson led the receiving corps with eight catches for 59 yards. Joe Davidson had five receptions for 48 yards and Shane Peacock added two catches for 16 yards.

Taylor finished with 290 total yards compared to 268 for Anderson, but the Ravens had a 110-56 advantage on the ground. The Ravens also didn’t have a turnover while forcing the Trojans into two miscues.

“Overall our defense played well and kept us in the game,” said Judge. “We only gave up one first down in the third quarter and just over 100 total yards in the second half. They really just had the one big play in the first half.”

That play resulted in the first touchdown of the game as Chris Stutzman took a screen pass, broke three tackles and turned it into a 68-yard touchdown reception to give the Trojans a 7-0 lead. Taylor added another touchdown in the first quarter and led 14-0 at the break.

Spann’s touchdown early in the fourth quarter cut the deficit to 14-6 and capped a 12-play, 68-yard drive that took over four minutes. Taylor responded with its own 12-play, 72-yard drive to push the lead back to two touchdowns.

“We just couldn’t get a stop after we had cut the lead to one score,” said Judge. “It was a hot night to play football and I’m proud of the way our team battled in the first game of the season.”

Freshmen Zack Farley and Akeem Hill led the defense with eight tackles each and Todd Taylor and Herman Pollard added seven stops each. Kaleb Donahue and Jeremy Martin chipped in with five tackles apiece.

AU (0-1) travels to Dubuque, Iowa, next Saturday night at 6 p.m. (CST).

To some the wagon wheel symbolizes the Wild West and the battles that ensued in American folklore, but for the Anderson University Ravens football team it indicates the beginning of the battles on the football field.

Thursday marks the beginning of the season for the Ravens and the Wagon Wheel game against the Taylor University Trojans kicks it off as they travel north to Upland. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. and can be heard on Stretch Internet.

Anderson University is coming off a 3-7 season, but optimism abounds as the team heads into the season opener.

“I think that the way that we played in the last game of the year against Manchester gave our kids a lot of understanding that they could do some things that probably most people thought they couldn’t do,” said Ravens head coach Jeff Judge. “I think that helped them with their confidence in the off season, and then the off season kind of built into this season.  That win was a big win for our football program.”

In the season finale last year, the two teams were playing for the Bronze Ball and the outcome was nothing short of miraculous.

Manchester held a 28-3 advantage at the half and was cruising to victory before a second-half stunner saw the Ravens outscore their arch rival 34-6 and walk away with the Bronze Ball trophy and thrilling 37-34 victory.

“Pretty optimistic,” said Judge of the 2011 season.  “Pretty optimistic group of kids, and I think they understand if they do things right they can be a very good football team and we can compete. I believe that and I believe we can compete and I believe we can compete for a conference title, but we have to go out there on Thursday night and then the rest of them on Saturdays and figure that out.”

Judge is going to rely on his seniors to help carry his team through the season.  Offensively he points out that receivers Joe Davidson and Shane Peacock along with quarterback Nick Sharp and lineman Adam Rue have asserted themselves and their leadership throughout the summer camp.

From a defensive standpoint, they are being led by Little All-American and All-Conference standout Jared Millikan, who led the nation in interceptions with 11 and interception returns for touchdowns with three.

He also had 10 pass breakups and 34 tackles at his cornerback position.

Judge also credits the defensive play of Kaleb Donahue at safety and fellow senior Todd Taylor at the linebacker position for guiding his defense.  He named junior Jeremy Martin as the other leader from his defensive end position.

Running back Marcus Spann led the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference by more than 300-yards, before going down with an injury in the sixth game of the season. Torrance McCollum stepped in and did an admirable job by going for 159-yards on 20 carries in the Bronze Ball game.

McCollum said that he and Spann have been labeled Thunder (McCollum) and Lightning (Spann), and they proved that as they combined to rush for 887 yards and six touchdowns on the season.

McCollum said that he is “shooting for the stars” in regards to his individual goals. He said he would like to win the rushing title and break a couple school records, but more than anything he is optimistic that his team will be much improved.

“I’m very optimistic about it this year,” said McCollum.  “I really believe that we’re going to do a lot better than last year just based off of a lot more togetherness than last year.  There’s a lot more people who actually stayed and didn’t transfer to another school.

“As far as being able to communicate on the field and be connecting with all cylinders, I think we’ll do all  right,” he said.

Story by The Herald Bulletin