No. 5 Saint Xavier (Ill.) took home its first-ever trophy by winning the Russell Athletic-NAIA Football National Championship, 24-20, over No. 2 Carroll (Mont.) tonight at Barron Stadium. Appearing in their first title game, the Cougars top-ranked offense recorded 355 yards.
"This is indescribable," said St. Xavier head coach Mike Feminis. "So many guys stepped up. Offensively, we have an All-America quarterback in Jimmy Coy and an All-America wide receiver in Shane Zackery. They had the best games of their year tonight. Our offense gets a lot of the attention but our defense came up big to win us the national championship.
Behind the legs and arm of senior quarterback and Outstanding Offensive Player of the Game Jimmy Coy, the Cougars (14-1) put pressure on the Carroll defense. Coy finished with 294 yards of total offense, with 216 coming through the air. He tossed one touchdown and found the end zone on the ground.
The Cougar offense was impressive early scoring on their first two drives of the game. Equally important was the unit eating up the clock. Tom Lynch booted a 20-yard field goal, which was followed by an eight-yard touchdown run by Coy. With 1:43 remaining in the first quarter, St. Xavier held a 10-0 advantage. Both drives spanned 15 plays and covered more than 70 yards each.
Carroll's offense in the second quarter got going. Senior quarterback Dane Broadhead hit senior wide receiver Matt Ritter from 20 yards out to put the Fighting Saints on the board. That play culminated a 10-play, 62 yard drive. Coy and the Cougar offense responded quickly going 49 yards in nine plays and scoring on an 11-yard pass to junior wide receiver Shane Zackery.
With just over a minute left in the first half, Carroll did not lay down as it trailed 17-7. Broadhead engineered a quick strike by finding freshman wide receiver Anthony Clarke on a 26-yard score. That drive only took :43 on the clock.
At the half, St. Xavier led 17-14 as both offenses gained over 200 yards.
Freshman Jared Mayernik put the Fighting Saints in the lead for the first time by returning the second half opening kickoff 94 yards. After a Tom Yaremko missed PAT, Carroll held a 20-17 advantage. That kickoff return for a score was the first in the national championship since Adam Lopez of Sioux Falls (S.D.) went 91 yards for a touchdown in 2009.
The lead was short-lived for Carroll. Three minutes later, St. Xavier's KJ Franklin rushed in from four yards out. That capped another long drive with 11 plays and 67 yards and would be the eventual game-winner for the team out of the Mid-States Football Association Mideast Division.
The Saint Xavier defense, which was overshadowed all season by the No. 1-ranked offense, put on a show in the second half. The Carroll offense had successive drives of zero yards, 12 and 20 that spanned into the fourth quarter. The Outstanding Defensive Player of the Game Patrick Appino was the star with five total tackles (four solo), 1.0 sack and 2.0 tackles-for-loss. He was part of a unit to tally 9.0 tackles-for-loss and 2.0 sacks.
Junior strong safety Clayton Fejedelem led the Cougars with nine total stops (six solo) and three pass break-ups. Sophomore linebacker Zach Dolph and senior backer Michael Prosser each were credited with eight total tackles.
Defensively for Carroll, junior linebacker Thomas Robison went for 14 tackles (10 solo) and one tackle-for-loss.
Coy led all rushers with 78 yards on 16 carries for a 4.9 yard average. His favorite target was Zackery, who caught nine balls for 78 yards. Broadhead went 20-for-31 passing for 223 yards and two touchdowns for the Fighting Saints. Ritter had 11 catches for 117 yards. National Player of the Year Chance Demarais was held to 57 rushing yards on 21 carries for a 2.7 average.
Carroll, who was shooting for its seventh national title, ends its season with a 13-2 record.
Championship Outstanding Offensive Player of the Game: Jimmy Coy, Saint Xavier (Ill.)
Championship Outstanding Defensive Player of the Game: Joseph Appino, Saint Xavier (Ill.)
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2011-12-17 SXU football claims first National Championship, WGN 9 News at 9 p.m.by Xavs18461,695 views
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