Round Up: Tigers End the Season With a Polarized Split Pair

---

Ken Bibb

The Wittenberg football team rounded out the 2005 season with its best performance in a 45-0 win over Wooster on Nov. 5 and then one of its worst in a 31-21 road defeat against Allegheny on Nov. 12. The Tigers wound up with a 5-5 overall record, including a mark of 5-2 in the North Coast Athletic Conference, good for a third-place tie with Ohio Wesleyan.

The .500 record was the program's first non-winning mark since 1991 and just the third since 1955, and it was the first time Wittenberg has finished out of the top two in the conference since 1992.

Against Wooster, the Tigers were dominant from start to finish, especially on defense. The Scots came into the game ranked second in the conference in scoring and total offense, but the Tigers recorded their third shutout in four games and limited Wooster to just 145 yards total offense. Wittenberg picked up 10 tackles from junior linebacker Tyler Harmon (Indianapolis, Ind./Perry Meridian) and seven more from senior linebacker Ken Bibb (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian), who also added his first career interception and a forced fumble that led to a touchdown return by junior safety Mitch Fonseca (Miami, Fla./Christopher Columbus).

Against Allegheny, however, the defense was unable to come up with timely stops and just enough big plays went against the Tigers. Senior tailback Tristan Murray (New Carlisle, Ohio/Tecumseh) added two more 100-yard rushing games, giving him eight on the season. The 2004 NCAC Newcomer of the Year, Murray finished the 2005 season first in the conference in rushing yards, all-purpose yards and points per game.

Senior wide receiver Jered Glover (Middletown, Ohio/Middletown) finished his final season in the Red & White with a team-best 34 receptions for 420 yards and five touchdowns. The team's leading receiver in each of his four seasons, Glover capped his career as the program's career leader in receptions and receiving yards.