Devereaux Peters and No. 4 Notre Dame were frustrated heading into Tuesday night’s game against Providence. Their exasperation only grew when they got off to a slow start. Eventually, they shook it off in a big way.CLEVELAND – Luckily, the world’s leading heart hospital is just a few blocks away from Case Field.
After Trine’s 51-38 win over Case Western Reserve in the first round of the NCAA Division III football playoffs, if any member of the big contingent of Trine partisans was clutching his or her chest, it was just a short stagger to the Cleveland Clinic.
The thrilling, come-from-behind win over the host and heavily favored Spartans advances the Thunder to the second round. They’ll face Wittenberg next Saturday in Springfield, Ohio.
“Well, winning one game isn’t good enough,” Trine head coach Matt Land said. “There’s always something next. This win here today bought us another week.”
Things didn’t look good for the Thunder (10-1) early. The Spartans scored on their first two possessions. Quarterback Dan Whalen connected with junior wide receiver Zach Homyk for an 11-yard touchdown. Whalen got the ball back at the 50-yard line after Case senior linebacker Jeff Brown forced a fumble by Trine quarterback Eric Watt. Seven plays later, it was Case 14-0.
At that point, Watt, the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association’s offensive MVP, told himself not to panic.
“We’ve been in that situation plenty of times. You’ve just got to play four quarters,” Watt said.
On their next two drives, the Thunder scored two touchdowns. In between, the Thunder defense forced the game’s first punt on the first play of the second quarter. Both touchdowns were long passes from Watt to freshman Devin Leas. The first was a 42-yard score; the second was a 48-yard score.
“I’m not the No. 1 guy, and Watt just reads the defense and luckily he found me,” Leas said. By the half, the Thunder had knotted the score at 28.
In the second half, the Thunder defense made some adjustments to stop the Spartans’ offense. Whalen was a finalist for the Gagliardi Trophy last year, which is the Division III equivalent of the Heisman Trophy. The Spartans came in ranked fourth in scoring offense in Division III at 42.8 points per game.
The Thunder blew the game open early in the fourth quarter. Trine’s standout running back Kent Biller scored on back-to-back possessions and put the Thunder up 51-31.
Biller led the team in rushing with 113 yards. Watt threw five touchdowns.
“I’m just looking forward to next week. Hopefully I get to eat Thanksgiving (dinner),” Watt said.
Land joked that he might let his team go home for an hour. Preparing for Wittenberg will be the top priority.
