OHIO ATHLETIC CONFERENCE Running duo dominates as Mt. Union tops ONU

Coach Larry Kehres credited the Purple Raiders' offensive line for the 31-3 win.
By MARK W. MILLER
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
ALLIANCE -- For the second year in a row, Mount Union had the same pair of running backs each rush for 100 yards against Ohio Northern.
Senior Chuck Moore rushed for 129 yards on 21 carries, including a 1-yard touchdown run, helping the Purple Raiders to a 31-3 victory Saturday before 5,023 fans at Mount Union Stadium.
Moore also caught a 7-yard TD pass from quarterback Rob Adamson and had a 95-yard second-half kickoff return nullified by a holding penalty in the Ohio Athletic Conference game.
Junior Dan Pugh gained 110 yards on 19 carries, which included a 5-yard TD run. Moore caught four passes for for 29 yards and Pugh three for 24.
"They [Ohio Northern] had a tough defensive line and backers," said Moore, "but our offensive line takes a lot of pride in getting their blocks and that's what makes our job a little easier."
Up front: "Our offensive line allowed us to win time of possession running the ball," said Mount Union coach Larry Kehres. "We ran the ball more today then we usually do because that was going for us.
"Our line has been playing solid and our two backs [Moore and Pugh] complement each other because they block well for each other."
The Purple Raiders' offense produced 277 yards on the ground, and Adamson connected on 14-of-21 passes for 154 yards. Senior wide receiver Jason Candle caught three for 54 yards, including a 29-yard TD strike from Adamson.
Growing up: Of the 22 starters for Ohio Northern (2-2, 2-1 OAC), only one was a senior. Tom Kaczkowski, coach of the Polar Bears, said, "I can't be critical of our young team playing the No. 1 team in the country.
"We were out-manned by their big offensive line. They are a powerful squad and it's very positive for us that we made Mount Union earn everything that it got."
The Purple Raiders (4-0, 3-0 OAC) won their 68th straight regular season game and 61st straight in the OAC.
Mount Union's defense limited the Polar Bears to 156 yards on the ground and 69 passing.
Kaczkowski said, "They [Mount Union] have a talented defense that knew how to shut off things. They didn't allow us to do some things we wanted to do."
Ohio Northern0030--3
Mount Union31477--31
First quarter
MUC--Chenos 20 FG, 1:00
Second quarter
MUC--Moore 1 run (Chenos kick), 8:28
MUC--Moore 7 pass from Adamson (Chenos kick), 0:19
Third quarter
MUC--Pugh 5 run (Chenos kick), 10:58
ONU--Burkholder 34 FG, 4:46
Fourth quarter
MUC--Candle 14 pass from Adamson (Chenos kick), 12:03
ONUMUC
First downs1424
Rushes-yards40-15650-277
Passing69154
Comp-Att-Int5-17-114-24-1
Punts-Avg.7-37.14-29.8
Fumbles-lost1-00-0
Penalties-yards5-466-40
Time of possession26:5833:02
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING--Ohio Northern, Tanner 10-60, Weber 11-48, Stewart 12-45, Johnston 1-2, Soliday 6-1. Mount Union, Moore 21-128, Pugh 19-110, Deitrick 4-19, Ilacqua 2-12, Burghardt 3-10, Adamson 1-(minus 2).
PASSING--Ohio Northern, Soliday 5-17-1-69. Mount Union, Adamson 14-24-1-154.
RECEIVING--Ohio Northern, Metzner 2-22, Evilsizor 1-27, Odenweller 1-10, Fast 1-10. Mount Union, Moore 4-29, Candle 3-54, Pugh 3-24, Richards 2-, Liddell 1-29, Leach 1-12.