Critical HAAC matchup on deck for LU as Ravens come to town

Tony Ete'aki (94) and Dino Morales (4)

The Lions finally open the home portion of the 2005 football schedule Saturday evening against traditional HAAC power Benedictine College, and it’s not a moment too soon—after opening the season in the 7th spot of the NAIA national rankings, LU has struggled on the road in its first two games, losing both.

Hopefully, a return to the familiar turf at LU Stadium, and a nice home crowd for support, will bring back some of that magic from last fall. The Lions were 10-0 the last time they played Benedictine, in the 2004 regular season finale, when they won that emotional, hard-fought game by a count of 22-17 in Atchison, Kan.

The Ravens, directed by legendary head coach Larry Wilcox, now in his 28th year as the BC mentor, are 2-0 and ranked 13th nationally coming into Saturday’s game. They handed Culver-Stockton, a team which beat the Lions in the season opener, a 23-3 loss at home last weekend, and came from behind to drop Baker, 31-27, in Week One. Simply, the Ravens are so well-coached that they will not beat themselves, ever.

The big question around the LU camp in the early weeks of the season is, what in the world is going on? Nobody—including HAAC coaches, who picked the Lions as an overwhelming favorite in the preseason poll—pictured this team at 0-2 going into the Benedictine game. It’s pretty much the same team that won the school’s first-ever HAAC title in 2004, with only a few not-so-subtle differences.

First to consider is the “Hunted, not the Hunter Factor”: this team isn’t going to sneak up on anyone this time around, and both teams LU has played so far have played very well against the Lions. Also in play is the “New Quarterback Factor”: the Lions are breaking in talented but inexperienced sophomores Brent Hodgkiss and Gerry Connell in the place of departed senior Emiliano Salazar. Finally, there is the “Where is my Mojo Factor?”: the Lions consistently got the good bounce, the big play, had the great confidence in 2004—and that smile of good fortune has been mostly absent so far in 2005.

The good news is, LU played much better on offense at Olivet Nazarene last weekend than the showing at Culver-Stockton. The passing game produced 181 yards at Olivet, after being a dead horse against Culver, and even though Hodgkiss stilled showed his inexperience at times, there is reason to suspect that the offense is ready to bust out here tonight against the Ravens.

Senior tailback De De Dorsey, the reigning HAAC MVP, has been bottled up to some extent in the early going, posting 182 rushing yards on 41 carries, but he has yet to get into the end zone, which he did with some regularity last season.

Getting the passing game going will open things up for Dorsey, and it will also get the ball in the hands of wideouts Steven Kennedy and George Mumphard more often. That pair is as good as any in the HAAC, and they haven’t been a big enough factor in the first two games.

The Ravens will try to keep it that way with a strong defense that features fast and strong senior lineman Tony Lolesio and cornerback Dominique Mourning. The Ravens love to run the football, and tailbacks Mike Steen and Jason Garland have been impressive so far. Like the Lions, Benedictine is dealing with an unsettled QB situation, as both Luke Krusemark and Wes Tanner have played in their two wins.

The LU defense, so dominant a year ago, is also looking for a return to that kind of magic against Benedictine. The second half against Olivet looked much like the game-plan wreckers of last season, so it will be interesting to see if BC can run the ball against a fired-up Lion defense.

No matter what happens, Saturday’s game is huge for the Lions, maybe the biggest game of the season. The talent is there on both sides of the football for this to be a quality team, but LU needs a favorable glance from the football gods tonight.

The other good news is, the conference race is still wide open—the Lions can take down one of the early leaders this weekend, and the loss at Olivet means nothing in terms of the HAAC championship battle. A win on Saturday night, and the Lions are right back in the thick of the hunt.

Senior tailback De De Dorsey returns the opening kickoff against Olivet Nazarene.
Benedictine tailback Mike Steen (24) has run well in the early going for the Ravens.