COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Following a hard-fought setback to No. 9 Wayne State last Saturday, Ohio Dominican's football team looks to bounce back with a contest against Michigan Tech at noon Saturday in Panther Field. The Huskies enter with a 3-1 mark, are receiving votes in the latest AFCA poll and are ranked No. 22 in the D2Football.com poll.
ODU took the Warriors down to the wire on Homecoming night before coming up just short, 31-24. The Panthers battled back three times from deficits to tie the score, including 17-17 in the third quarter. Wayne State tacked on a touchdown late in the third and scored another in the fourth to take a 31-17 lead. ODU scored with seven seconds left but could not come up with the onside kick for a final shot at the end zone.
Mike Noffsinger ran for 100 yards, becoming the first player in school history to reach the century mark in rushing in four straight contests. Jeremy Fudge ran for 64 yards and threw for 107, while Tyler Purcell finished with 69 yards receiving and 23 yards rushing. The Panther offense racked up 213 yards on the ground against a Warrior defense that had limited its opponents to just 60 yards rushing per game.
The defense was paced by Justin Bell and Jeff White, who both recorded 10 tackles. Bell forced one of Wayne State's three fumbles as well. Kevin Guthrie and Eli Kovach both had seven stops for the Panthers defense.
Michigan Tech bounced back from its own loss to Wayne State and defeated Indianapolis 28-16 last week. The Huskies limited Indy to just 18 yards rushing (0.8 per carry), while quarterback Tyler Scarlett completed 16-of-19 passes for 178 yards and two scores.
ALL OHIO DOMINICAN FOOTBALL GAMES LIVE ON THE RADIO AND INTERNETFans in Central Ohio can listen to Ohio Dominican football LIVE on the radio on 1580 AM (St. Gabriel Radio) and simulcast online everywhere at www.ohiodominicanpanthers.com. This week's broadcast starts at 11:30 a.m. with the Panther Countdown Pregame Show. Veteran broadcaster Todd Bell returns for his fourth year in the booth as the play-by-play announcer and is joined by former Buckeye A.J. Trapasso in the booth, while Dan Long handles the pregame and halftime shows. Live video is also provided FREE for all six home games this season.
THE SERIESMichigan Tech took the first all-time meeting between the two teams last by a 45-6 score last season. The Huskies outgained ODU 428-170 and forced two turnovers. Jeremy Fudge threw for 130 yards and a touchdown, Brandon Robinson had 59 yards receiving and Dan Grimsley had nine tackles to pace the Panthers. The Huskies did not punt in the game.
TOUGH SLEDDINGThe Panthers are in the midst of the hardest part of their schedule. Ferris State, Wayne State, Michigan Tech and Hillsdale are a combined 13-3 (.813 winning percentage), and all four opponents have either been ranked in the Top 25 or received votes this season.
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio Dominican's football team battled with ninth-ranked Wayne State but came up on the short end of a 31-24 decision in front of an overflow Homecoming crowd of 1,857 at Panther Field.
A 46-yard touchdown toss from freshman quarterback Mark Miller (Cincinnati, Ohio) to classmate Brandon Ojikutu (Cleveland, Ohio) with seven seconds left made it a seven point game, but the Panthers could not recover the onside kick as the Warriors held on for the win.
ODU fell to 2-2 (1-2 GLIAC), while Wayne State improved to 4-0 (3-0 GLIAC).
Senior running back Mike Noffsinger (West Branch, Mich.) had his fourth straight 100 yard rushing game to start the year, hitting that number on the nose on 22 carries, while senior quarterback Jeremy Fudge (Eaton, Ohio) ran for 64 yards and threw for 107 and a touchdown. The Panthers ran for 213 yards as a team against a Wayne State defense that had allowed just 60 yards rushing per game in its first three contests.
Sophomore Justin Bell (Groveport, Ohio) matched a career-high with 10 tackles and forced a fumble, and senior Jeff White (Gahanna, Ohio) also had 10 tackles to lead the Panther defense. ODU forced three fumbles and recovered two of them.
Wayne State took a 7-0 lead midway through the first, marching 95 yards in just seven plays for the first score. After a Panther punt, WSU threatened again but turned the ball over on downs at the Panther 30 yard line to close the first quarter.
ODU's offense, after being held to just 16 yards in the opening quarter, answered on its ensuing possession. The Panthers picked up three third-down conversions, including a 28-yard run by Fudge on third-and-two, to set up the team in scoring position. Two plays later, Fudge escaped the pocket, rolled left and lofted a pass into the back of the end zone and into the hands of senior wide out Tyler Purcell (Franklin, Ohio) for a touchdown.
Wayne State responded with a touchdown drive of its own to take a 14-7 lead with 5:16 to go before half, but again the Panther offense had an impressive drive. Noffsinger ran for 20 yards on third-and-two, and Fudge ran for 12 yards on a third-and-one to again bring ODU into the red zone, and Noffsinger plunged into the end zone from two yards out to even the score at 14 with 2:02 left. Wayne State, though, would tack on a field goal with three seconds to go before half to take a 17-14 lead into the break.
The Panthers responded quickly to tie it in the third quarter, though, as Fudge faked a handoff and found Purcell streaking down the left side for a 53-yard completion to set up a 31 yard field goal by Chris Vortkamp (Cincinnati, Ohio) to knot the score.
The Warriors responded with a touchdown on their next drive and tacked on another score early in the fourth to build their 31-17 advantage. ODU drove into Wayne State territory but turned the ball over on downs with 2:16 to go, but did it get back to have Miller hook up with Ojikutu for his first career touchdown.
Ohio Dominican remains at home next Saturday for a noon kickoff against Michigan Tech at Panther Field.
BIG RAPIDS, Mich. – The first road night game in school history was unkind to Ohio Dominican’s football team, which saw its two game winning streak to start the season snapped as the Panthers fell 35-13 at Ferris State in GLIAC action Saturday night.
The loss dropped ODU to 2-1 (1-1 GLIAC), while the Bulldogs improved to 2-1 (1-1 GLIAC).
Ohio Dominican was outgained 617-274 for the game, allowing 283 yards rushing and 334 passing. FSU ran 90 plays to ODU’s 51 as well.
Mike Noffsinger (West Branch, Mich.) led the Panthers with 123 yards rushing, his third consecutive 100-yard game to begin the season. Jeremy Fudge (Eaton, Ohio) completed 11-of-16 passes for 98 yards and a touchdown and also ran for a score.
A handful of Panthers had more than 10 tackles, led by Kevin Guthrie (Gahanna, Ohio) and Eisen Hardy (Pickerington, Ohio) with 12 apiece, and Justin Bell (Groveport, Ohio) and Ricardo Thompson (Cincinnati, Ohio) with 10 apiece. Mark Markakis (Steubenville, Ohio) had nine stops for the Panthers as well.
Ferris State took control early in the first quarter, taking advantage of ODU miscues. After the Panthers fumbled away the opening kickoff, Bell recorded his first career interception in the end zone to stop the Bulldogs initially. Another ODU fumble, though, resulted in a short field for FSU, and six plays later Skylar Stoker scored from 18 yards out to make it 6-0 Ferris State.
The Panther offense crossed into Bulldog territory on each of its next two possessions, reaching the 37 on the first and the FSU 27 on the second, but could not advance any further, punting on both possessions.
Ferris hit a big pass play on its ensuing drive, a 52-yard completion from Tom Schneider to Mike Ryan, and kicked a field goal to make 9-0 early in the second period. The Bulldogs put together two more scoring drives in the period, converting a key fourth down leading to a touchdown with 2:19 left in the quarter, then tacking on a field goal with one second left to build a 19-0 lead at the break.
FSU outgained the Panthers 326 yards to 104 in the opening half and ran 20 more offensive plays than ODU as well.
The Bulldogs kicked a field goal to start the third quarter and ODU broke a big play on the kickoff return, as Abraham Johnson (Cincinnati, Ohio) broke free on the near sideline and raced 55 yards to the Bulldog 37 before being pushed out. Noffsinger had a 17 yard run and the Panthers reached the one-yard line but could not punch it in, turning the ball over on downs.
Ferris kicked another field goal to make it 25-0 when the ODU offense finally cracked the scoring column. Fudge connected with Casey Williams (Nashport, Ohio) on a pair of first down passes, and Noffsinger ran around the left end, dancing his way to the FSU five-yard line before being brought down. Fudge kept it up the middle himself on the next play to make it 25-7 with 1:01 left in the period.
The Bulldogs built their lead to 35-7 in the fourth before ODU answered with one final scoring drive, moving 59 yards in six plays, capped off by a 15-yard catch and run by Tyler Purcell (Franklin, Ohio).
ODU returns home to host nationally ranked Wayne State at 7 p.m. Saturday in Panther Field. It is ODU’s Homecoming game, and the 2011 ODU Athletic Hall of Fame class will also be honored at halftime.
News Release By: Scott Miles, ODU SID
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- In its second season of play at the Division II level, Ohio Dominican's football team will try to extend its winning streak to three in a row as the Panthers travel to Big Rapids, Mich., for a 7 p.m. kickoff at Ferris State.
ODU has had just one 3-0 start to a season in program history, coming in 2007 when the Panthers won their first 12 contests en route to a berth in the NAIA National Quarterfinals.
Last week, the Panthers bounced back from an early turnover and Northwood touchdown to record a 44-30 road win over the Timberwolves. ODU raced out to a 37-14 lead early in the fourth quarter and held on for the victory. The Panthers outgained NU 354-100 through three quarters and had a 20-6 edge in first downs, running 64 plays to Northwood's 39 and converting 8-of-11 third downs. Overall, ODU finished with 271 yards rushing, the second best total in school history, and amassed 443 yards of offense.
Mike Noffsinger had 169 yards and four touchdowns on 30 carries and was named GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week. Dan Grimsley finished with six tackles (four for loss), Garrett Wilcox had a sack and a safety for the second consecutive week, and Tyler Purcell blocked a punt to set up an ODU touchdown. Chris Vortkamp averaged 54.5 yards on his two punts as well.
ALL OHIO DOMINICAN FOOTBALL GAMES LIVE ON THE RADIO AND INTERNETFans in Central Ohio can listen to Ohio Dominican football LIVE on the radio on 1580 AM (St. Gabriel Radio) and simulcast online everywhere at www.ohiodominicanpanthers.com. This week's broadcast starts at 6:30 p.m. with the Panther Countdown Pregame Show. Veteran broadcaster Todd Bell returns for his fourth year in the booth as the play-by-play announcer and is joined by former Buckeye A.J. Trapasso in the booth.
THE SERIESFerris State leads the all-time series 1-0 after holding on for a 34-28 victory at Panther Field in 2010. The Bulldogs led 28-6 in the third quarter before a pair of ODU rallies cut the deficit to six with 4:15 to go. ODU had a pair of chances to tie it after that point but could not capitalize on good field position. Jeff White and Kevin Guthrie both had 12 tackles to lead the Panther defense, Mike Noffsinger ran for 50 yards and Tyler Purcell and Tyler Maddox both had six catches.
DID YOU KNOW?
>> ODU registered its first win both in Michigan (1-2) and against a Michigan opponent (1-5) last week against Northwood.>> This is ODU's first road night game in school history. The Panthers are 1-2 in home games under the lights.>> ODU has outscored its opponents 44-14 in the second and third quarters this season.>> The campuses of ODU and Ferris State are 377 miles apart. This is the longest road trip of the season for the Panthers.
Game Notes by: Scott Miles, ODU SID
Photo Credit: Dan Poel/OhioSI.com
BAY CITY, Mich. – Senior running back Mike Noffsinger (West Branch, Mich.) was honored as the GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week after rushing for 169 yards and four touchdowns in ODU's 44-30 win over Northwood on Saturday.
Mike Noffsinger Post Game Interview
Noffsinger set a school record with his 30 rush attempts and his four touchdowns equaled a school mark. He scored from 42, 25, nine and four yards out to help lead ODU to 271 yards rushing as a team, the second-best total in school history. His 169 yards ranks as the fourth-best single-game rushing performance by a back and it was his eighth career 100-yard game.
The senior ranks second in the GLIAC with 286 yards rushing, just one yard behind the league leader, and he is averaging 5.4 yards per carry. His four touchdowns are tied for the most in the GLIAC this year and his 326 all-purpose yards ranks third in the league.
Noffsinger, ODU's all-time rushing yardage leader, also moved into second place on the school's touchdown list with his 17 rushing scores. He trails just Nathan Clark (2005-07), who had 21 rushing scores in his career.
Ohio Dominican, which is 2-0 for the fourth time in its eight year history of football, hits the road again on Saturday as the Panthers take on Ferris State (1-1, 0-1 GLIAC) for a 7 p.m. kickoff in Big Rapids, Mich.
Special Thanks To Scott Miles, Ohio Dominican SID
MIDLAND, Mich. – Behind a four touchdown effort from Mike Noffsinger and a dominant defensive performance early in the game, Ohio Dominican's football team scored a 44-30 win at Northwood Saturday in the GLIAC opener for both teams.
The Panthers improved to 2-0 on the season (1-0 GLIAC), while the Timberwolves fell to 1-1 (0-1).
Noffsinger set a school record with 30 rushing attempts, finishing with 169 yards, and tied the school record with his four touchdown carries. The Panthers ran for 271 yards as a team, the second most in school history.
ODU's defense limited Northwood to just 100 yards and one offensive touchdown through three quarters of play. Dan Grimsley had six tackles (four for loss) and Garrett Wilcox had two tackles for loss and a sack that resulted in a safety.
Overall, ODU finished with 443 yards of offense to 312 for Northwood, amassed 25 first downs and limited NU's "Woodbone" rushing attack to 124 yards and 3.4 yards per carry after the Timberwolves ran for 300 yards against the Panthers in last year's 28-12 NU victory.
After falling behind 7-0 less than four minutes into the game, Ohio Dominican took control of the first half with a smothering defensive effort and a balanced offensive attack. The Panthers racked up 293 yards of offense and had 17 first downs compared to 42 yards and two first downs for Northwood.
ODU answered the Timberwolves' initial score with an 11 play, 77 yard touchdown drive. ODU converted three third downs on the drive, which was capped off by a 32 yard toss from quarterback Jeremy Fudge to Tyler Maddox streaking down the near sideline.
The Panthers' ensuing drives were stopped by an interception and a turnover on downs, but the ODU defense forced a pair of three and outs. ODU started its next drive on its own 30 and marched down the field in seven plays, scoring on a 25 yard run by Noffsinger, who dodged in and out of traffic to find the end zone.
That put ODU in front 14-7 with 7:38 left in the second, but the lead was short lived as Northwood's Cameron Jackson took the kickoff back 91 yards for a score to even the contest at 14.
But again the Panther offense responded. Fudge connected with Tyler Purcell on a 20 yard gain on third and 13, and the duo hooked up again on another third down conversion to set up a touchdown plunge by Ronnel Spates from the two to make it 21-14 with 3:14 left before the break.
After a swap of punts, NU took over on its own 11 with 1:03 left, and Wilcox dragged down quarterback Aaron Shavers in the endzone for his second safety in as many weeks to make it 23-14 at half.
The Timberwolves took the opening kickoff of the second half and marched down the field, moving to the ODU 13 yard line. Eisen Hardy batted away a third down pass in the end zone, and the NU field goal attempt sailed wide to preserve ODU's lead.
Later in the frame, Purcell broke free on a Northwood punt and got his hands on it for ODU's second blocked kick of the season, putting ODU's offense on the field inside the . On the next play, Noffsinger burst through the line and scampered untouched nine yards into the endzone to make it 30-14 with 3:50 left in the third quarter.
A heavy dosage of Noffsinger on ODU's next drive resulted in his third touchdown of the day, a four yard run that gave the Panthers their biggest lead of the afternoon at 37-14 with 11:29 to go in the game.
Northwood responded with a 63 yard touchdown on their next drive, recovered the onside kick and kicked a field goal to cut ODU's lead to 37-23 with 2:37 left. But the Panthers snagged NU's next onside kick, and on the next play, Noffsinger ran around the left side to paydirt for a 42 yard touchdown that put ODU on top 44-23.
Northwood made one last surge, scoring a TD with 1:52 left, but Noffsinger salted the game away with three runs for a first down.
ODU finished with a 33:50-26:10 advantage in time of possession, and punter Chris Vortkamp averaged 54.5 yards on his punts.
Fudge finished 17-of-26 for 172 yards and a touchdown and ran for 49 yards, and Maddox had a team-high 70 yards. Purcell made five catches to go along with his blocked punt. Bylal Humphrey had 29 yards rushing in his first collegiate action and Spates finished with 27 yards on the ground.
Ohio Dominican makes another road trip to Michigan next week for a 7 p.m. kickoff at Ferris State.
Contact: Scott Miles
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- After a solid all-around performance in the season opening win against Saint Joseph's, Ohio Dominican's football team will look to carry that momentum forward as the Panthers begin conference play with a roadtrip to GLIAC North Division foe Northwood.
In ODU's 32-20 win over Saint Joseph's, the Panthers racked up 447 yards of offense, including 254 yards on the ground, the second-best total in school history. Senior Mike Noffsinger accounted for 117 of those yards and became the school's all-time rushing leader, surpassing Nathan Clark on the all-time list. Senior Jeremy Fudge threw for a career-high 193 yards and ran for 67, and senior Tyler Purcell had a 59 yard TD run.
The defense bent but did not break, despite allowing 337 yards passing. ODU limited the Pumas to just 72 yards rushing (2.8 per carry) and came up with a pair of interceptions. Junior Eisen Hardy had 11 stops and a pick and junior Jeff White had the other interception. In their first games as Panthers, senior Ricardo Thompson had 10 tackles and freshman Tyrone Patel made eight.
ODU excelled in all facets of special teams, led by senior Chris Vortkamp, who drilled three field goals, two PATs and averaged 52.5 on his four punts, matching his career long with a 67 yarder. Freshman Cody Culbertson blocked a punt, senior Brandon Robinson had a 28 yard punt return and ODU averaged 23 yards on its kick returns.
ALL OHIO DOMINICAN FOOTBALL GAMES LIVE ON THE RADIO AND INTERNETFans in Central Ohio can listen to Ohio Dominican football LIVE on the radio on 1580 AM (St. Gabriel Radio) and simulcast online everywhere at www.ohiodominicanpanthers.com. This week's broadcast starts at 11:30 a.m. with the Panther Countdown Pregame Show. Veteran broadcaster Todd Bell returns for his fourth year in the booth as the play-by-play announcer and is joined by former Buckeye A.J. Trapasso in the booth.
THE SERIESNorthwood leads the all-time series 1-0 after scoring a 28-12 win at Panther Field on Sept. 11, 2010. Mike Noffsinger ran for 154 yards and scored on a blocked punt, but ODU's offense could not find the end zone, turning the ball over in the red zone once and settling for two short field goals. ODU also had two punts blocked. Kevin Guthrie made 15 tackles to lead the defense, and Eisen Hardy had seven tackles and an interception.
VALUABLE VORTKAMPNo kicker in school history has made more field goals than Chris Vortkamp, who broke the record in 2010 and now has 21 career makes after drilling three in week one. It was the second-career three-field goal game for the senior, who tied his own school record that he shares with Mitch Croy.
Vortkamp also had a superlative week punting the football, leading Division II with an average of 52.5 yards on his four punts, including matching his career long with a 67 yard blast. His average was the fourth-best amongst all NCAA punters, regardless of division. Three of his four punts were longer than 50 yards, and the fourth was a 39 yarder downed at the SJC one yard line. Three punts went inside the 20, and he has now placed 14 of his 17 career punts inside the 20.
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Behind several stellar special teams plays and a balanced offensive attack, Ohio Dominican's football team downed Saint Joseph's (Ind.) College 32-20 in the season opener Saturday at Panther Field.
The Panthers racked up 447 yards of offense, including 254 rushing and 193 through the air, and Mike Noffsinger (West Branch, Mich.) ran for 61 of his 120 yards in the fourth quarter, setting the school's career rushing record. He broke Nathan Clark's mark of 1,567 yards and now has 1,592 in his career.
Senior punter/kicker Chris Vortkamp (Cincinnati, Ohio) authored a superlative performance, drilling three field goals and averaging 52.5 yards per punt. Three of his four punts went for longer than 50 yards, including a 67 yard boot, and the fourth punt was a 39 yarder downed at SJC one yard line.
Defensively, ODU limited the Pumas to just 72 yards on the ground (2.8 yards per rush), though Saint Joesph's did finish with 409 yards of offense. Junior Eisen Hardy (Pickerington, Ohio) had a team-high 11 tackles and a pick, senior linebacker Ricardo Thompson (Cincinnati, Ohio) had 10 tackles in his first action with the Panthers, and junior safety Jeff White (Gahanna, Ohio) had seven tackles and an interception as well.
"We did some things really well and our special teams was particularly outstanding," Bill Conley, head coach, said. "We won every phase of the special teams, be it coverage, returns, protection and blocking a punt. Vortkamp had one of the most phenomenal individual performances I've seen from a specialist."
ODU took the opening kickoff and moved 44 yards in seven plays. Senior quarterback Jeremy Fudge (Eaton, Ohio) rolled to his right and connected with senior Tyler Purcell (Franklin, Ohio) on a 27 yard gain, but the drive stalled and Vortkamp hit a 35 yard field goal to make it 3-0.
SJC answered though with a scoring drive on the ensuing possession, as the Pumas went 71 yards, capped off by a touchdown toss from Billy VandeMerkt to Alphonso Hines, the first of three TD passes for the Pumas on the afternoon.
ODU punted and the defense held on the ensuing possession, forcing an SJC punt. Three Panthers broke through the front line and redshirt freshman Cody Culbertson (Galloway, Ohio) got a hand on it, resulting in a three yard punt and setting up ODU deep in Puma territory. Vortkamp booted his second field goal to bring the Panthers to within a point at 7-6 with 3:50 left in the first quarter.
Saint Joseph's came up short on a 44 yard field goal attempt early in the second quarter, and both defenses settled in for the majority of the frame. ODU took over possession on its own eight with less than 5:30 to play and finally came alive. Fudge connected with Noffsinger for 13 yards on a third down pass, and a personal foul penalty on the end of the play took the Panthers to their own 40. Fudge kept the ball himself twice for 18 yards and found freshman Brandon Ojikutu (Cleveland, Ohio) on the far sideline for a 13 yard gain. Then, Fudge hooked up again with Ojikutu, and the redshirt freshman spun free of a would-be tackler and raced down the sideline for a 21 yard TD.
The Panthers had a chance to score again before intermission, as senior Brandon Robinson (Eaton, Ohio) had a 28 yard punt return and Noffsinger a 13 yard reception. But ODU ran out of timeouts and couldn't spike the ball in time from the SJC 12 as time ran out, so the Panthers took a 13-7 lead into the break.
White ended SJC's opening drive of the second half by making a diving interception of a deflected pass at the SJC 30, and five plays later sophomore Ronnel Spates (Cleveland, Ohio) crashed through the goal line to make it 20-7.
The Panthers took over again on their own eight yard and engineered another 92 yard scoring drive. ODU moved out to its own 41, and Purcell took a handoff around the right end and broke loose into the SJC secondary and raced to the end zone 59 yards, the fourth longest run in school history.
"We were winning the battle of conditioning, and had the opportunity to stretch their defense out on that play," Conley said. "Tyler did a great job getting through and getting north and south to the end zone."
That made the score 27-7 with 3:28 to play in the third, but SJC came right back and needed just three plays – all passes – to move 68 yards for a touchdown and cut the score to 27-14.
Hardy ended SJC's next drive with a diving interception at the Panther three, and ODU again had another long scoring drive, working the ball 87 yards in nine plays. Freshman Casey Williams (Nashport, Ohio) made his first collegiate reception on the drive, running a streak down the near sideline and dragging a defender over 20 yards down the field before finally being brought down at the Puma 21 yard line. The Panthers settled for Vortkamp's 27 yard field goal to take a 30-14 lead with 11:49 left.
Again, the Pumas answered right back, scoring a touchdown after a 60 yard drive to make it 30-20. SJC went for two but VandeMerkt, facing heavy pressure from ODU's front four, had to hurry a throw that was off target.
The Panthers' ensuing drive stalled, but Vortkamp pinned SJC on the Puma goal line, and four plays later SJC took an intentional safety as sophomore Garrett Wilcox (Streetsboro, Ohio) chased VandeMerkt out of the back of the end zone with 3:20 left. ODU took the free kick and ran out the clock behind the legs of Noffsinger.
"Mike is just a reliable runner," Conley said. "When he needs to get yards, he gets them. We have 100 percent trust in him to make the right play. He has great quickness and can make guys miss."
Fudge finished 13-of-23 for 193 yards and a touchdown and ran the ball 13 times for 67 yards, and the offensive line did not yield a sack. Ojikutu (three catches, 40 yards) and Noffsinger (three catches, 38 yards) led the way in receptions, while Williams' 67 yard grab – the ninth-longest in school history – led the way in terms of yardage.
On defense, freshman Tyrone Patel (Cincinnati, Ohio) made eight tackles in his first contest, and Kevin Guthrie (Gahanna, Ohio) finished with seven stops.
The Panthers kick off GLIAC play next Saturday as ODU travels to Midland, Mich. to take on Northwood for a noon kickoff. Northwood defeated Findlay 14-10 earlier this afternoon in its opener.
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- With a slew of returners on both sides of the football, a talented recruiting class and a year of experience of play in the GLIAC and at the Division II level, Ohio Dominican's football team looks forward to enjoying a successful second year in the conference.
The Panthers will kick off the 2011 season with a non-league game against Saint Joseph's (Ind.) College at noon Saturday at Panther Field. Schedule cards will be passed out at the gate, and fans who can not make it to the game can follow along with live stats and video at the link above.
Forty-nine letterwinners and 18 starters return from 2010, with depth and experience across the board. All 11 starters are back on offense, including seniors in quarterback Jeremy Fudge (522 yards rushing) and running back Mike Noffsinger (school-record 794 yards rushing). Noffsinger is just 96 yards away from the career rushing record, and he has plenty of experience up front for him as all five offensive linemen, including All-GLIAC honoree Andrew Carpenter, return. Also back are senior wideouts Brandon Robinson and Tyler Purcell, who combined for 68 receptions in 2010. Robinson earned All-GLIAC distinctions in 2010.
Defensively, seven starters return, including linemen Vince German, Joe Richter and Eli Kovach (16.0 combined tackles for loss), linebackers Kevin Guthrie (28 tackles) and Mark Markakis (65 tackles), corner Eisen Hardy (67 tackles) and safety Jeff White (65 tackles). White has four career interceptions and six forced fumbles.
On special teams, Chris Vortkamp – the school record-holder for most career field goals (18), is back to handle both the placekicking and punting duties. He hit 11-of-16 field goals in 2010 and placed 11 of his 14 punts inside the opponent's 20.
THE SERIESOhio Dominican leads the all-time series 1-0. The teams matched up at Panther Field on Oct. 10, 2009, and the Panthers overcame a 7-3 deficit in the second quarter to come away with a 45-14 win. ODU racked up 601 yards of offense, as Billy Griffin threw for 439 yards and three touchdowns, Austin Wallace ran for 81 yards and a touchdown, and Jeff White had six tackles and an interception.
OH CAPTAIN MY CAPTAINSeniors Jeremy Fudge and Brandon Robinson and junior Eli Kovach were selected this week as the team captains for the 2011 season. A fourth gameday captain will be selected based on work ethic during the week leading up to the game.