For Immediate Release
eureka, illinois
September 5, 2009
Eureka Topples Knox in Barth’s Debut, 28-13
EUREKA, Ill. – Eureka College senior quarterback Nick Lindsey (Homer, Ill./Heritage H.S.) threw for 297 yards and had a hand in each of Eureka’s four touchdowns, driving the Red Devils to a 28-13 win over Knox, Saturday afternoon in front of a standing room-only crowd at McKinzie Field. The victory, Eureka’s first season-opening win since 2004, marked first-year head coach Kurt Barth’s first collegiate coaching victory.
The Red Devils (1-0) wasted no time offensively, jumping to a 7-0 lead on the game’s first possession. After a pair of incomplete passes and a three-yard rush from senior running back Chris Wakid (Danvers, Ill./Eureka H.S.) placed EC in a fourth down situation at the Knox 26-yard line, Lindsey connected with senior wide receiver Drew Whightsil (Vandailia, Ill./Vandailia H.S.) for a 26-yard touchdown pass down the middle of the field.
Knox (0-1) responded quickly, driving the ball all the way to the Eureka 23-yard line on its first possession before back-to-back incomplete passes from Knox quarterback Bill Meyer resulted in a turnover on downs. The Red Devils needed just four more plays to stretch their lead to two possessions when Lindsey tossed his second touchdown pass of the quarter on a 72-yard touchdown completion to sophomore Wes Schmidgall (Eureka, Ill./Eureka H.S.). The Prairie Fire threatened again on its ensuing possession, but Eureka junior defensive back Rosney Beverly (Los Angeles, Calif./Normal West H.S.) recovered a Knox fumble at the Eureka 11-yard line to end the threat.
The score remained 14-0 in favor of the hosts for the remainder of the first half. Eureka squandered a solid scoring opportunity late in the second quarter when the hold on a potential 40-yard field goal attempt by freshman Travis Huber (Morton, Ill./Morton H.S.) was bobbled.
Trailing by two scores, Knox responded quickly with a 13-play, 88-yard scoring drive to open the second half, capped by a 31-yard touchdown pass from Meyer to Brent Newman with 8:55 remaining in the third quarter. After trading punts midway through the third quarter, Lindsey threw his third touchdown pass of the day with a 15-yard strike to sophomore Alex Hess (Washington, Ill./Washington H.S.) to give the Red Devils a 21-7 lead.
Facing its second two-score deficit of the day, Knox got a solid kickoff return from Dan Kizior to the Eureka 43-yard line and needed only two running plays to score its second touchdown of the day. Brent Newman reversed field on a run to the right side, easily making his way to the end zone for a 30-yard score. Sam Frank’s extra point attempt hit the upright, keeping the score at 21-13.
The Red Devils threatened on the ensuing possession, driving the ball all the way to the Knox 19-yard line, but Lindsey’s completion to Wakid on 4th-and-9 was well short of a first down. Two possessions later, Lindsey put the game out of reach with a one-yard plunge to cap a four-play, 47-yard drive with a little over two minutes remaining.
Lindsey finished the day 14-for-25 for 297 yards, his biggest day through the air since a 363-yard effort against Principia on Oct. 18, 2008. He added 51 yards rushing on 16 carries. Wakid carried the ball 17 times for 56 yards. Schmidgall made the most of his three catches for a game-high 124 yards receiving, while Whightsil added 52 yards through the air on just two catches. The Red Devils finished the day with 407 yards of total offense.
The Eureka defense was solid throughout the game and especially in the fourth quarter, as Knox was able to advance the ball into Eureka territory only one time on its four possessions during the frame. Senior defensive back Cody Troutman (Normal, Ill./Normal Community) intercepted to Knox pass attempts in the fourth quarter, including Knox’s final push with 0:17 left. Beverly added an interception on Knox’s second-to-last possession.
Senior linebacker Matt Knake (Freeburg, Ill./Freeburg H.S.) turned in a game-high 14 tackles, including nine solo stops. Wes Robinson (Normal, Ill./Normal Community H.S.) and Mike Mosely (Lubbock, Texas/Monterey H.S.) were next with six tackles each.
Knox finished the contest with 225 rushing yards on 48 attempts. Nine different players ran the ball for the Prairie Fire, led by Newman’s 69 yards on nine carries. Meyer was 10-for-23 for 137 yards and a touchdown, but was picked off three times in the fourth quarter.
The victory is the first for Eureka in a season-opener since a 27-21 double-overtime win over Rockford to start the 2004 season. The Red Devils will take their 1-0 record on the road next Saturday, visiting Concordia (Ill.) for 1 p.m. start in River Forest, Ill. Eureka handed the Cougars a 28-8 loss in Eureka last September.
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For More Information Contact:
Bryan Moore
Sports Information Director
Eureka College
300 E. College Avenue
Eureka, Illinois 61530
309-467-6456
bmoore@eureka.edu
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