NOVEMBER 13, 2004
BOB ZIADIE
WILKES RALLIES TO DOWN KING'S IN NINTH ANNUAL
MAYOR'S CUP GAME
(Trichilo and Jackson conclude careers with a
combined 11,202 rushing yards)
WILKES-BARRE - Senior tailback Brett Trichilo rushed
for 108 of his 144 yards in the second half and scored two touchdowns as
visiting Wilkes University rallied for a 12-6 victory over cross-town
rival King's College in the ninth annual Mayor's Cup Saturday at Betzler
Fields.
With the win, Wilkes concluded the regular-season at
6-4 overall and 6-3 in the Middle Atlantic Conference while the Monarchs
ended their season at 4-6 and 4-5 in conference play.
The game billed as a clash of two of the top
tailbacks in small college history as Trichilo entered the game as the
fourth all-time runner in Division III with 5,693 yards while King's
senior tailback Richard Jackson stood ninth with 5,212 yards. It is
believed to the first time two running backs with over 5,000 have played
in the same game at any level of college football.
The first half was a defensive struggle as the teams
combined for 12 punts. After a scoreless first period, King's pushed
across the game's first score when the Monarchs put together a 10-play,
63-yard drive. A 21-yard run by Jackson and a 17-yard pass from Chris
Barnic to Joe Tassoni moved the ball to the Wilkes 11. Two plays later,
Jackson would score his 21st touchdown of the season with a two-yard run
to put the Monarchs on top. But Bobby Nawrocki's point-after attempt
sailed wide as King's led 6-0 with 9:07 left in the half.
The King's defense played outstanding in the first
half, stopping Trichilo for a loss on a fourth-and-one play from the
Monarch one-yard line on the second possession of the game. The Monarchs
came up again big on the opening possession of the second half when
Trichilo was stuffed for no gain on a fourth-and-one from the Monarchs 24.
Two possessions later, Wilkes faced a fourth-and-two play from the King's
34 but sophomore linebacker John Haller stopped Trichilo a yard short as
the Monarchs thwarted another Colonel attempt
Wilkes defense was equally outstanding and limited
the Monarchs to just 30 yards of total offense in the second half.
With King's offense unable to move the ball, the Colonel offense would
slowly wear down the Monarch defense.
The turning point of the game came late in the third
quarter when the Colonels faced a third-and-six play from its own 33-yard
line. Quarterback Al Karraffa would find Trichilo alone on a screen pass
and the Colonel standout followed his blockers while breaking a pair of
tackles to race 59 yards to the King's eight yard line. Facing another
fourth down play from the Monarchs one, Trichilo would finally find the
end zone to get the Colonels on the scoreboard. But Ryan Yurewicz's
conversion was wide and the game was tied at 6-6 with 13:39 left in the
contest.
The Wilkes defense forced another King's punt and
the Colonels would take over at its own 38-yard line. An 18-yard pass from
Karraffa to Jim Jordan and a 14-yard run by Trichilo helped the Colonels
advance to the King's eight. Two plays later Trichilo would cap the
nine-play drive with a five-yard run to put Wilkes on top. Derek Zambino
would block the extra-point kick as Wilkes led 12-6 with 7:30 remaining in
the game.
The Monarchs would assume possession at its 20
following the kickoff and would move to its own 36 before the Colonel
defense forced another punt with 5:32 left in the contest. Wilkes would
move to the King's 13-yard line and faced a fourth-and-two play. From
there, Kyle Gallagher would pick up the all important first down with 0:52
remaining, enabling the Colonels to run out the clock.
Wilkes dominated the second half with overwhelming
advantage in possession time. The Colonels owned the ball for 22:42
compared to just 9:24 for King's over the final 30 minutes of play.
Trichilo, who fell one carry shy or equaling a
Wilkes school-record of 43 rushing attempts, became the all-time leading
points and touchdown scorer and in Middle Atlantic Conference history in
the game, surpassing NFL Hall of Famer Billy "White Shoes"
Johnson of Widener University. Trichilo entered the game tied with Johnson
in both categories with 62 touchdowns and 362 points and now stands at 64
touchdowns and 374 points. Trichilo upped his career rushing total to
5,837 yards.
Karraffa was 8-of-13 passing for 134 yards for
Wilkes as the Colonels would gain 194 yards of total offense. Kyle
Follweiller and Tyler Henninger topped the Colonel defense with eight
tackles each.
Jackson, who rushed for 153 yards on 28 carries but
was limited to just 33 yards in the second half, moved into seventh place
all-time in Division III history with 5,365 yards.
Jackson and Trichilo would leave the field with a
combined 11,202 rushing yards in the illustrious careers.
Trichilo was named the most valuable player for
Wilkes in the game while Monarch senior linebacker Geoff Ashton was
selected as King's top player after posting a career-high 17 tackles,
including 11 solo stops.
NCAA Division III Career Rushing Leaders – Updated
November 13, 2004
1. 7,353 by R.J. Bowers, Grove City,
1997-2000
2. 6,125 by Carey Bender, Coe, 1991-94
3. 6,093 by Steve Tardif, Maine Maritime, 1996-99
4. 5,693 by Brett Trichilo, Wilkes,
2001-present
5. 5,570 by Joe Dudek, Plymouth St., 1982-85
6. 5,434 by Mark Kacmarynski, Central (IA), 5,434
7. 5,365 by Richard Jackson, King’s,
2001-present
8. 5,325 by Brad Olsen, Lawrence, 1994-97
9. 5,281 by Eric Frees, McDaniel, 1988-91
10. 5,205 by Paul Smith, Gettysburg, 1996-99
11. 5,112 by Casey Donaldson, Wittenberg, 1997-2000
12. 5,107 by Kirk Matthieu, Maine Maritime, 1989-93
13. 5,040 by Tony Sutton, Woster, 2001-present
14. 5,010 by Terry Underwood, Wagner, 1985-88
15. 4,792 by Steve Dixon, Beloit, 1990-93
16. 4,738 by Shane Davis, Loras, 1994-97
JACKSON FOURTH TO 5,000 / 1,000
Richard Jackson stands as just the
fourth player in NCAA Division III history to rush for more than 5,000
yards and post over 1,000 carries in a career.
1. 7,353 yards / 1,188 carries by R.J. Bowers, Grove
City, 1997-2000
2. 6,093 yards / 1,190 carries by Steve Tardif, Maine Maritime, 1996-99
3. 5,281 yards / 1,059 carries by Eric Frees, McDaniel, 1988-91
4. 5,365 yards / 1,114 carries by Richard
Jackson, King’s, 2001-present
