Courtesy: Pat Knapinski, McKendree Athletics
The Hillsdale College football team opened its season on the road with a 22-17 win against the McKendree University Bearcats Sept. 6.
Sophomore quarterback Colin McKernan had a career-high 255 passing yards, three touchdowns on 17 of 32 passing, and added 50 rushing yards, also a career high.
“The pass game felt great,” McKernan said. “I’m definitely feeling comfortable behind the O-line and with my receivers.”
The Chargers jumped out to a 14-0 lead entering the second half. They then allowed McKendree to score 17 unanswered points, leaving the Chargers with a 17-14 deficit on their own 19-yard line with 2:06 on the clock.
After converting a 4th and 10 pass a few plays earlier, McKernan uncorked a game-winning 50-yard touchdown pass to sophomore receiver Tutt Carrico with 1:09 left on the clock.
McKendree drove the ball all the way to the Chargers’ 12-yard line before an interception by junior defensive back Ryan Niska iced the game.
The Hillsdale defense held the Bearcats to 54 rushing yards and the offense controlled the ball for 38:20 of game time as opposed to 21:40 for the Bearcats.
“Our defense did a great job controlling McKendree’s running game, which allowed us to have a huge advantage in the time of possession,” head coach Nate Shreffler said. “They also did a great job minimizing the number of big plays McKendree was able to generate and created a couple of huge, timely turnovers. Offensively, we took pretty good care of the football and made some really big plays when we needed them.”
Shreffler also praised McKernan’s performance.
“Colin has a firm understanding of what we are trying to do, he is reading the defense well, getting the ball where it needs to go, and he is also making plays with his feet,” Shreffler said. “He is much more comfortable than he was a year ago and he will keep getting better with more and more experience.”
Sophomore wide receiver Andrew Konieczny led the team in receiving with 106 yards on seven catches.
“It feels great being back in action,” Konieczny said. “All the hard work we’ve been putting in since the offseason and seeing it pay off is a great feeling.”
Konieczny said the team is looking forward to building off its momentum.
“The energy in the locker room is great,” Konieczny said. “It was a great team win on the road and gives us momentum going into our game against Michigan Tech. “
The Chargers will next face the Michigan Technological University Huskies at their first home game Sept. 13, with kickoff at 1 p.m.
“We’re always confident we can beat anyone in the nation,” McKernan said. “We have that same confidence no matter who we face, and we push to get better every day no matter how we play.”
