Homecoming Week is Here (Football Game Notes)

Wooster hosting Ohio Wesleyan at 7 p.m. on Saturday

Michael Boyle, Wooster Football
Michael Boyle, Wooster Football
October 14, 2024
The College of Wooster football team (1-5, 0-4 North Coast Athletic Conference) hosts Ohio Wesleyan University (2-4, 1-3 NCAC) in Saturday's 7 p.m. Homecoming for Alumni and Families Weekend game. Wooster is coming off a 48-30 loss to Denison University (4-2, 4-0 NCAC), while Wittenberg University (2-2, 1-1 NCAC) held Ohio Wesleyan to 206 yards of offense in last Saturday's 17-6 Tigers' win in Springfield.
 
On The Air: MCTV produces Wooster's webcasts for home football games and shows the game on delay on Ch. 22 and Ch. 621. Wayne and Stark County MCTV customers should check local listings for air times. Livestreams of Wooster home football games can be viewed at https://northcoastnetwork.com/wooster. 1045 The River (formerly WQKT) is carrying this week's contest on WKVX 960 AM, FM 102.9 FM, and online at https://localsportsohio.com.
 
Ticket and Tailgate Information: Tickets for Wooster home football games are $6.00 for adults, $5.00 for senior citizens and youth, and free for College of Wooster students, faculty, and staff with your College of Wooster identification card. You can purchase tickets at the ticket booth located at the main entrance of John P. Papp Stadium (cash and credit card), located off E. University St., or the table at the back access driveway (cash only) located off Gasche St. Tailgate policies can be found at https://woosterathletics.com/information/spectator_information.
 
Special Events: Wooster's 2004 NCAC championship team is in town this weekend to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its conference championship. The 2004 team will be recognized between the first and second quarters. Following the Scot Marching Band's halftime performance, Wooster will recognize its W Association Hall of Fame class, which includes All-American alumnus Joe Kearney from the 2004 championship football team. 
 
All-Time Series: Ohio Wesleyan leads the all-time series 35-32. Ohio Wesleyan won the first all-time meeting 28-0 on October 5, 1901, in what marked Wooster's first game since 1890 due to a campus ban on intercollegiate athletics. Wooster's most recent win in the series was a 16-14 victory on November 2, 2019. Then-first-year Lake Barrett drilled a go-ahead 25-yard field goal with :42 remaining, and then-first-year Dorion Talley secured the victory by recovering a fumble after Barrett's squib kick deflected off the Battling Bishops' Braydon Chitty.
 
Last Meeting: Wooster fell 49-20 at Ohio Wesleyan on September 16, 2023. Wooster's drastic second-half turnaround was a positive the program was able to take forward. Wooster kept Ohio Wesleyan off the scoreboard in the third quarter and tied the Battling Bishops on the scoreboard after halftime with both teams scoring 14 points. Then-sophomore Chanden Lee (Barberton, Ohio/Barberton) completed 20-of-38 passes for 243 yards and two touchdowns. Then-junior Brazos Gadler (Houston, Texas/Cypress Creek) logged 130 yards on seven receptions. OWU's quarterbacks completed 28-of-33 passes for 350 yards.
 
Offense Notes: Gadler logged his second 100-yard game of the fall in Saturday's loss to Denison. The senior has surpassed 400 yards receiving each season in a Scots' jersey and is 42 yards shy of becoming the sixth 2,000-yard receiver in program history. Gadler's 15 receiving touchdowns are the seventh-most in program history, and should he get five more this fall, he will become the sixth player in program history with 20 career ones. Wooster's 188 yards rushing against Denison were the most since the team logged 264 in the season-opening win over Wilmington College on September 7. Sophomore Jace Austin (Youngstown, Ohio/Chaney) logged a third rushing touchdown of at least 50 yards in Saturday's game against Denison. Austin has two straight games with a touchdown run of at least 50 yards. 
 
Defense Notes: Junior linebacker Wyatt Harris (Cave Creek, Ariz./Notre Dame Preparatory) leads the team in tackles with 40. He is followed by junior defensive back Louie Lindsay (Waynesboro, Pa./Waynesboro Area Senior) and sophomore defensive back Wyatt Wilkie (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North) who have 36 and 30 tackles, respectively. Harris is also the team leader with four tackles for loss, while senior Neil Clayton (Boydton, Va./Bluestone) is next with 3.5.
 
Special Teams Notes: Senior Sebestyen Balassy (Medina, Ohio/St. Ignatius) made his third straight field goal in Saturday's game against Denison, with this one coming from 29 yards out. Balassy is up to 15 extra point makes on the year and he has converted a pair of two-point conversions. Wooster is 17th nationally with 26.6 yards per kickoff return.