Football | 12/5/2007 2:26:00 PM
Next Game: Season is over.
Last Game: WOU defeated Colorado School of Mines in Rotary Bowl, 26-12
Final Record: 9-2
That's a wrap: Coach Arne Ferguson's Western Oregon football squad finished the 2007 season with a 26-12 Dixie Rotary Bowl victory over Colorado School of Mines on Dec. 1 in St. George, Utah. The Wolves finished the season with a 9-2 record.
Arne's assessment: "I am extremely pleased with how our season came out. The progress our senior class made (18 seniors) has been phenomenal, especially when you consider that they were 1-9 their freshman season (2004)."
To the nines: WOU's nine wins in 2007 is only the fourth nine-win season in 78 years of Western Oregon University football. The last one was a Bill McArthur club in 1976 (9-1). McArthur's 1975 squad also went 9-1, and his 1949 team holds WOU's top all-time mark at 9-0.
Re-live it: The Wolves-Orediggers contest can be watched this week on Comcast or MINET cable in Monmouth-Independence. Go to www.wouwolves.com for the TV schedule. An expanded version of the game with all the festivities of the week can be purchased for $25. For more information, send an email to blunckr@wou.edu.
Very little bowling: WOU's bowl game appearance was just the seventh post-season appearance in the school record books. In its' football history, Western Oregon has made NAIA national playoff appearances in 1975, 1978, 1985 and 1997. They also twice played in the Oregon Bowl in 1976 and 1979. The Wolves lost all four playoff contests, and are now 3-0 in bowl games, winning both battles in the 70's against Linfield.
National notice: Western Oregon is ranked 23rd this week in Don Hansen's National Football Gazette Division II poll.
Defense, special teams shine in win: WOU's defense tallied nine quarterback sacks and its special teams recovered two fumbles (one for a touchdown) to help lead the Wolves to a 26-12 victory in front of 2,279 fans at Hansen Stadium. Victor Felipe, the Wolves only native of Utah, had three of those sacks for -29 yards. Matt Buche recovered an Oredigger fumble in the end zone for a WOU score and Shaun Kauleinamoku earned bowl MVP honors with 163 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns.
Arne on bowl win: "Most bowl games are decided by defense and special teams, and this one was no exception. We knew that our offense might be a bit sluggish after three weeks off, but they were able to get it going again in the second quarter. Our defense was able to take the long ball away from them, which was a key. Our offensive line allowed only one sack against a team that leads the nation in that category. We were able to get more people into the game in the fourth quarter on defense. It is nice to not have to play perfect to win football games. We made our share of mistakes, but we also made a lot of big plays when we needed to. It was a great experience for our kids, the Rotary people really do an excellent job of serving and hosting. Our players will never forget the experience."
Fine finish: Western Oregon finished the season on a five-game win streak. They outscored their opponents 193-39 in those five contests.
Stop unit: The Wolves' defense allowed only 69 yards of rushing per game, the lowest total at Western Oregon since 1986 (43.6).
NCAA lists: Western Oregon moved up again in a number of NCAA Division II categories last week.
4th, Team Pass Sacks (3.91 per game)
4th, Rushing Defense (69.0 yards per game)
4th, Scoring Defense (14.4 points a game)
7th, Kickoff Return Defense (15.29 per return)
7th Punt Return Defense (3.17 yards per return)
8th, Fumbles Recovered (17 total)
9th, Turnovers Gained (34 total)
11th, Matt Cox, Tackles for Loss (1.7 a game)
15th, Matt Cox, Pass Sacks (0.9 a game)
15th, JT Gilmore, Total Tackles (11.1 a game)
Thorson finishes re-write of record book: Senior Mark Thorson has now written the final chapter of his four years of record book work. He finished with four career records and one single-season honor, breaking his own mark for most pass completions in a season with 195 in his final game.
Career Top 10-Thorson
Passing attempts: 987 (1st) Old Record: 895, Denny Bies (2001-04)
Passes completed: 568 (1st) Old Record: 496, Brian Traeger (1993-96)
Passing yardage: 6,672 (2nd) Record: 6,778, Brian Traeger (1993-96)
Touchdown passes: 60 (1st) Old Record: 47, Tony Burris (1985-86)
Completion percentage: .575 (2nd) Record: .593, Brian Traeger (1993-96)
Total offense: 6,542 (2nd) Record: 7,097, Brian Traeger (1993-96)
TD's responsible for: 63 (1st) Old Record: 56, Brian Traeger (1993-96)
Single Season Top 10-Thorson 2007
Passing attempts: 327 (5th) Record: 365, Adam Bledsoe (2000)
Passes completed: 195 (1st) Old Record: 186, Mark Thorson (2005)
Passing yardage: 2,316 (5th) Record: 2,628, Erik Davis (1999)
Touchdown passes: 24 (t-2nd) Record: 25, Tony Burris (1985)
Completion percentage: .596 (2nd) Record: .628, Brian Traeger (1994)
More record book material: Other Western Oregon players also made their mark in the record books this season.
Isaiah Smith, 7th in career average per reception (16.6)
Shaun Kauleinamoku, T-9th career punt return yardage (226)
Bruce Voges, 6th career scoring (189 points)
Bruce Voges, 3rd career field goals (27)
Bruce Voges, 6th single-season extra points (33)
Bruce Voges, T-2nd career extra points (108)
JT Gilmore, T-2nd single-season tackles (122)
Shaun Kauleinamoku, 8th single-season punt return yardage (219)
Independent laurels: WOU head coach Arne Ferguson was named the Coach of the Year and junior defensive tackle Matt Cox was selected as the Co-Defensive Player of the Year by the Independent Collegiate Athletic Association yesterday. Cox shared his honor with Oklahoma Panhandle's Matt Warner. Here's the first and second team award winners.
First team: Allan Mikolas (OL), Brett Rhodes (OL), Paul Wright (OL), Ben Kuenzi (RB), Bruce Voges (K), Matt Cox (DL), JT Gilmore (LB), Zach Christopherson (DB).
Second team: Mark Thorson (QB), Shaun Kauleinamoku (PR).
More Indy honors: Western Oregon placed eight players on the d2football.com All-Independent team and Arne Ferguson was named the Coach of the Year, announced in late November. The names were picked from the 13 NCAA Division II independent teams from across the nation. The Wolves were also picked as the top independent team in the country by d2football.com (see below). Here's the WOU award winners.
First team: Paul Wright (OL), Matt Cox (DL)
Second team: Mark Thorson (QB), Ben Kuenzi (RB), Allan Mikolas (OL), JT Gilmore (LB).
Third team: Casey O'Donnell (DE), Zach Christopherson (DB)
Coach of the Year: Arne Ferguson, Western Oregon
Final D2football.com Independent ranking: (1) Western Oregon 9-2, (2) Tiffin OH 9-2, (3) North Greenville SC 5-6, (4) Central State OK 5-6, (5) St. Joseph's NY 4-7, (6) Missouri-Rolla 4-7, (7) UNC Pembroke 4-7, (8) Dixie State UT 3-8, (9) Kentucky Wesleyan 3-8, (10) Humboldt State CA 2-8, (11) Chowan NC 2-9, (12) Lincoln MO 2-8, (13) Oklahoma Panhandle State 0-10.
GNAC preview: Beginning in 2008, the Great Northwest Athletic Conference will offer football again, and WOU will play twice a year against each squad with league title hopes on the line. Western Washington, Central Washington and Humboldt State return to the conference and newcomer Dixie State will also join the fray. CWU and WWU played this year in the North Central Conference, which will disband next season, while HSU and Dixie, like WOU, are playing as NCAA Division II independents.
Ferguson factor: Head coach Arne Ferguson finished his third season at WOU: as the head coach. He has spent nearly a lifetime at the school as a player, assistant coach, and now leader of the program. The Vale, Oregon native was a three-time All-CFA defensive back for the Wolves from 1986-88, and began his coaching career at Western in 1989. He has been WOU's defensive coordinator since 1997. In Ferguson's first season at the helm in 2005, the Wolves went 5-6 and finished the season on a three-game win streak. Last year, they were 6-4, with all four losses coming by a total of 21 points. His career head coaching mark is now 20-12.
Now what?: "Our kids will get a break for the rest of the month before they begin workouts in the winter and of course, spring ball. Our younger players have seen first hand what hard work can do, with the example set by our seniors. As coaches, we will look for leaders from each of the classes to continue to build on what we have started. With 18 productive seniors, we obviously have some holes to fill, but we also have some very good young talent and I am very curious to see how they develop."
