Long PAT propels Bethany by 1

By STEVE SELL, Sentinel Sports Editor

Bethany College football coach Ted Kessinger had won 214 games in about every conceivable way in his 28 years.

But his 215th victory was achieved with what was even a first for him.

J.R. Romine's 40-yard extra point broke a 34-34 tie and rallied the Swedes past intra-county rival McPherson College 35-34 Saturday before more than 2,500 fans.

Bethany backup tailback Dominick Tatum scored on a 49-yard run with 7:07 left to tie the game at 34. On the first PAT, the Swedes fumbled the snap and a Romine pass wound up being grabbed by an offensive lineman, who took it into the end zone. Mac took the penalty, which came from the spot of the foul, and forced the former Missouri Tiger to attempt from long distance.

But he dialed it in, and the Swedes' defense was able to seal the deal, made easier by the fact Mac starting quarterback Erik Johnson was out with a broken bone in his hand.

"That's two weeks in a row (with a wild ending)," Kessinger said. "It's making me a lot older. The fans sure got their money's worth tonight."

It was somewhat of a defensive struggle in the first half, as the Swedes led 14-6. After Mac jumped up 6-0 on Lamar Jacobs' 1-yard run, Bethany scored a pair of second-quarter touchdowns on a 16-yard pass from James Daily to Ryan Dugan and a 5-yard run by Tatum.

But the momentum swung in the third quarter. The Bulldogs scored 20 straight points, including TD passes of 23 and 21 yards from Johnson to John Berlanga and Robert Ullom respectively. Right after Ullom's score, Mac's Preston Taylor blocked a Romine punt and returned it 10 yards for a 26-14 lead.

Bethany immediately unplugged the momentum machine with a lickity-split drive that took just 1:21, capped by Daily's 15-yard strike to Jason Kearns, making it 26-21 going into the fourth quarter.

Mac came right back, as the Swede defense couldn't stop the Bulldogs. A 74-yard drive was capped by Johnson's 8-yard run, but sometime during that march, he broke a bone in his hand and was done for the night. The Swedes came right back, zipping 64 yards in less than two minutes, as Daily hit Dugan for a 26-yard pitch and catch to make it 34-28.

A few minutes later came the key play of the game. The Bulldogs had stuffed the Swedes and forced a punt, which Kris Smiley returned deep into Bethany territory. But Mac's special teams again blundered, as a roughing penalty was called on the play and it gave the Swedes new life. Two plays later, Tatum ran 49 yards to tie it and Romine then kicked the winner.

The Bulldogs had a couple of more cracks, but freshman backup Chris Johnson was under siege in what was his first varsity game.

"We knew we couldn't keep trading scores with them," Mac coach David Cunningham said. "We couldn't get a stop."

Again, special teams haunted the Bulldogs. They had two PATs blocked and had to eschew a sure-fire field goal early in the game for fear of it being blocked. Mac was up 6-0 when Colt Knigge picked off his third pass of the year and he returned it to the Swede 3. But the Swedes bowed their backs and Cunningham wound up going for the touchdown instead of taking the trey. "We'd just had a PAT blocked," he said. "We couldn't risk it."

Jacobs rushed for 116 yards to lead the Bulldogs, while Johnson was 10 of 13 passing before leaving. His return date, if any, is unknown.

Tatum came off the bench to give the Swedes a shot in the arm with 118 yards on 11 carries. Daily threw for 196 yards.

Mac, 1-2 overall and 0-2 in the KCAC, with the two losses by a total of four points, hosts Saint Mary Saturday. Bethany, 1-1 both overall and in the KCAC, plays at Bethel.

STATISTICS

Mac Listed First

First Downs -- 20, 23. Rushes-Yards -- 47-186; 38-189. Passing -- 12-19-2-137; 17-35-196. Punts-Avg. -- 5-31.0; 7-32.7. Fumbles-Lost -- 2-2; 0-0. Penalties-Yards -- 10-97; 9-70.

INDIVIDUALS

Rushing

Mac -- Jacobs 19-116, E. Johnson 12-32, Cole 5-32, C. Johnson 2-(-3), Chavez 2-5, Smiley 1-10, Griggs 2-0, Mireles 1-5, Dufrene 1-1.

Bethany -- Tatum 11-118, Johnson 15-40, Conner 9-51, Daily 4-(-20).

Passing

Mac -- E. Johnson 10-13-2-94, C. Johnson 2-5-1-30.

Bethany -- Daily 17-35-1-196.

Receiving

Mac -- Berlanga 6-73, Jacobs 2-16, Ullom 1-23, Mireles 2-11, Cole 1-2, Davis 1-(-2).

Bethany -- Dugan 7-72, Bailey 7-71, Kearns 3-53.