PDF LINK OF WEEK 11 GAME NOTES
Sights and Sounds
- This week's game will be broadcast live on WNCO-AM 1340, with David Wilson handling the play-by-play and Don Graham providing the commentary. The game can be heard at WNCOAM.com, and also can be accessed on the scoreboard page on the home page of the AU athletics web site, GoAshlandEagles.com.
- AU head coach Lee Owens will do a weekly appearance on WRDL's "Early Bird's Word," every Wednesday at 8:30 a.m.
Ashland, Ohio Dominican To Play In Game For GLIAC South Division Championship
For the No. 20-ranked Ashland University football team, Week 11 of the 2016 regular season starts the postseason.
The Eagles, 8-2 overall and 6-2 in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, will travel to Columbus, Ohio, on Nov. 12 to take on Ohio Dominican (7-3, 7-3). Ashland has both a potential seventh NCAA Division II postseason appearance and a third GLIAC South Division championship on the line in the regular-season finale.
"You want to get to that last game and you're playing for a championship and an opportunity to be in the postseason," Owens said. "That's what it's all about. It's against a really good team. They've won five in a row, and beat some really good teams in that stretch. They're a talented team with really, really good players. They've always played us tough in the past.
"They were 2-3 at one point, trying to find their way. That's really a credit to the job he's (first-year head coach Kelly Cummings) been able to do."
ASHLAND OFFENSE VS. OHIO DOMINICAN DEFENSE
ASHLAND: Junior quarterback Travis Tarnowski has completed 64.7 percent of his passes for 2,762 yards, 30 touchdowns and six interceptions...Senior tailback Vance Settlemire has 783 yards, nine touchdowns and a 6.4-yard average on the ground...Junior tight end Adam Shaheen has caught 54 passes for 828 yards and a school-record 15 touchdowns.
OHIO DOMINICAN: Sophomore linebacker Ross Thompson has a team-leading 86 total tackles to go with 10 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery...Junior defensive lineman Demetrius Farmer leads ODU with eight sacks and has 63 total tackles, a team-high 13.5 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles...Junior linebacker Tre McIntyre has collected 71 total tackles and a team-high four interceptions.
ASHLAND DEFENSE VS. OHIO DOMINICAN OFFENSE
ASHLAND: Senior inside linebacker Brandon Gency has 70 total tackles (11.5 for loss), 2.5 sacks, one interception, one fumble-return touchdown and two forced fumbles...Senior safety Terrell Hudson has amassed 61 total tackles (four for loss), one interception and a forced fumble...Junior defensive end Austin Utter and senior stud Adam Wallace are tied for the team lead with 5.5 sacks.
OHIO DOMINICAN: Junior quarterback Grant Russell is completing 70.5 percent of his passes for 2,499 yards, 22 touchdowns and 11 interceptions...Sophomore wide receivers Cory Contini (64 catches, 899 yards, seven touchdowns) and Dar Stanford (53 catches, 608 yards, three TDs) account for more than half of the Panthers' receptions in 2016.
SPECIAL TEAMS
ASHLAND: Junior kicker Aidan Simenc is 46-for-47 on extra points and 6-for-8 on field goals...Freshman tailback Keishaun Sims is averaging 24.2 yards per kickoff return...Junior cornerback Dale Irby averages 12.0 yards per punt return...Senior punter Austin Bruns is averaging 41.5 yards per punt.
OHIO DOMINICAN: Senior kicker-punter Justin Bonchek has forced 19 fair catches on 40 punts and has hit 38-of-39 extra points...Freshman wide receiver David Turner is averaging 26.6 yards per kickoff return.
Leaders Of The Pack
The 2016 Ashland University captains are Settlemire, Gency, Tarnowski and Wallace - three seniors and a junior.
Tarnowski and Gency were captains in 2015, as well.
Eagles Ninth In Super Region 4 Heading Into Week 11
Heading into the final regular-season weekend of 2016, Ashland is ranked No. 9 in Super Region 4 in the NCAA Division II regional rankings released on Monday (Nov. 7) afternoon.
The first two sets of regional rankings were released on Oct. 24 and 31. The selection show for the 2016 NCAA Division II playoffs will be Sunday (Nov. 13) at 5 p.m. at NCAA.com.
The 28-team Division II postseason - seven teams from each of four super regions - will begin on Nov. 19, with the national championship game slated for Dec. 17 in Kansas City, Mo. The top seed in each super region gets a first-round bye.
Ashland has made six D-II postseason appearances – 1986, 1997, 2007-08, 2012 and 2015.
2016 NCAA DIVISION II SUPER REGION 4 RANKINGS
|
SCHOOL |
RANK #1 |
RANK #2 |
RANK #3 |
|
Grand Valley State |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
Midwestern State |
3 |
2 |
2 |
|
Southwest Baptist |
2 |
3 |
3 |
|
Texas A&M Commerce |
5 |
4 |
4 |
|
Truman |
8 |
6 |
5 |
|
Ferris State |
9 |
8 |
6 |
|
Colorado Mesa |
10 |
9 |
7 |
|
Colorado Mines |
7 |
5 |
8 |
|
ASHLAND |
4 |
7 |
9 |
|
Colorado St.-Pueblo |
N/A |
N/A |
10 |
|
Wayne State |
6 |
10 |
N/A |
Settlemire Is Repeating Late-Season Touchdown Run
Settlemire scores touchdowns in bunches.
And he does so during crunch time at the end of the season.
Settlemire, whose 44 career touchdowns are one short of the program record set by former backfield mate Anthony Taylor (45), has crossed the goal line seven times in the last four games. Settlemire went on a touchdown tear at the end of 2015, as well, scoring 12 touchdowns in the last five contests.
"He's pretty good down around the goal line," Owens said. "If we've got a run called to him, there's a pretty good chance he's going to score."
Also in the last four games, Settlemire has rushed for 445 yards and a 7.7-yard average.
With at least one game remaining in his career, Settlemire has 3,032 rushing yards, seven behind Donald Church (3,039) for sixth place and 27 behind D.J. McCoy (3,059) for fifth on the program's all-time list, and 35 career rushing touchdowns, good for third all-time at Ashland. He also has 266 career points, four away from tying Taylor (270) for second in Ashland history.
The game against Walsh is the first time any Eagle tailback (Settlemire) has had at least 20 rushes in a game in 2016.
"We do have good depth there," said Owens. "That's got to be part of the plan this week is keeping fresh legs. Keeping him fresh is really important, and we've got guys behind him to do that."
The Eagles' Oh So Sweet Home
The 2016 season is the eighth for the Eagles at Jack Miller Stadium/Martinelli Field, and to say they enjoy playing on Broad Street is an understatement.
Ashland is 36-8 (.818) at home since 2009, and has won 17 straight regular-season contests at "The Jack."
|
SEASON |
W-L |
|
SEASON |
W-L |
|
2009 |
3-2 |
|
2013 |
3-2 |
|
2010 |
5-1 |
|
2014 |
5-0 |
|
2011 |
4-1 |
|
2015 |
5-1 |
|
2012 |
6-1 |
|
2016 |
5-0 |
The Eagles have earned a 16-game GLIAC regular-season home winning streak, best in the conference. The GLIAC teams with current winning streaks within the conference at home in the regular season include:
|
SCHOOL |
STREAK |
SCHOOL |
STREAK |
|
Ashland |
16 |
Findlay |
2 |
|
Grand Valley State |
9 |
Ohio Dominican |
2 |
|
Wayne State |
8 |
Michigan Tech |
1 |
|
Ferris State |
3 |
|
|
Eagles Turn In Stellar Defensive Effort
The statistics coming out of the Walsh game for Ashland's defense are very impressive:
- The 86 total yards allowed are the fewest by an Eagle "D" at Jack Miller Stadium/Martinelli Field, and the fewest in a game in the Lee Owens era.
- It was the second Ashland shutout of the season, the program's most since 2012 (three).
- Ashland yielded seven rushing yards to the Cavaliers, the third time in 2016 the Eagles have given up single-digit rushing yards in a game.
Going into the final week of the regular season, the Eagles lead the GLIAC in scoring defense (14.5 ppg.), total defense (298.4 ypg.) and passing defense (181.5 ypg.), and are second in rushing defense (101.2 ypg.). Nationally, Ashland is eighth in scoring defense.
"They need to be there on Saturday," Owens said. "We'll get tested, there's no question. Offensively, defensively, special teams, the whole thing. It's really going to take that, not just one side of the ball. We have to play well across the board."
Shaheen Still Chasing AU, D-II History
Shaheen already has set a new Ashland single-season standard with 15 touchdown catches this fall. He also has tied the NCAA Division II single-season record for tight ends in that category.
At Ohio Dominican in the 2016 regular-season finale, Shaheen can have that D-II tight end record by himself with another TD grab. His 25 career touchdown catches also are three away from tying Joe Horn for the Ashland career record (28), and his 1,716 career receiving yards are 10th all-time, and 43 away from tying Bill Seder (1,759) for ninth place.
With 124 receiving yards either at ODU or in that game plus any postseason contests, Shaheen would go from 10th to sixth in Ashland history.
More From The Eagle Record Book
- Tarnowski's 76 touchdown passes are three away from Billy Cundiff's program record of 79. Tarnowski also became the second Eagle quarterback to pass the 8,000-yard mark (8,050) against Walsh.
- With 120 career extra points, Simenc is second on the program's all-time list, trailing only Gregg Berkshire (155).
- Gency's 30.5 career tackles for loss rank him fourth all-time at Ashland.
NCAA Division II Rankings Through Week 10
INDIVIDUAL CAREER - ACTIVE
Tarnowski - total offense yards per play - 2nd (7.75)
Simenc - field-goal percentage - T-2nd (85.7)
Settlemire - total touchdowns - T-4th (44)
Tarnowski - yards per passing attempt - 5th (8.23)
Settlemire - yards per carry - T-5th (6.6)
Tarnowski - touchdown passes - T-6th (76)
Tarnowski - passing efficiency - 10th (152.15)
Tarnowski - passing yards per game - 10th (259.7)
Tarnowski - touchdowns responsible for - 10th (82)
Settlemire - total points scored - 10th (266)
INDIVIDUAL - 2016
Shaheen - receiving touchdowns - T-4th (15)
Tarnowski - touchdown passes - T-7th (30)
Tarnowski - passing efficiency - 9th (169.0)
TEAM - 2016
Third-down conversion offense - 1st (60.9)
Fewest tackles for loss allowed - 1st (23)
Fewest penalty yards per game - 2nd (33.8)
Fewest penalties per game - 2nd (3.40)
Fourth-down conversion offense - 3rd (81.3)
Total offense per game - 4th (537.0)
Scoring offense per game - 6th (44.5)
Scoring defense per game - 8th (14.5)
First downs, offense - T-8th (255)
2016 Competitiveness Chart
The following is a look at the Eagles' 2016 "competitiveness chart" – the measure of how long a team leads, is tied and trails in a game:
|
DATE |
OPPONENT |
TIME AHEAD |
TIME TIED |
TIME BEHIND |
|
9/1 |
MERCYHURST |
53:31 |
6:29 |
0:00 |
|
9/10 |
WAYNE STATE |
27:12 |
3:36 |
29:12 |
|
9/17 |
FINDLAY |
33:05 |
13:50 |
13:05 |
|
9/24 |
at Ferris State |
17:39 |
3:04 |
39:17 |
|
10/1 |
at Tiffin |
0:00 |
4:48 |
55:12 |
|
10/8 |
NORTHWOOD |
55:19 |
4:41 |
0:00 |
|
10/15 |
at Lake Erie |
58:53 |
1:07 |
0:00 |
|
10/22 |
at Ky. Wesleyan |
51:22 |
8:38 |
0:00 |
|
10/29 |
at Michigan Tech |
9:10 |
10:15 |
40:35 |
|
11/5 |
WALSH |
55:10 |
4:50 |
0:00 |
AU
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