Wittenberg Football Opens Up 2016 with 34-0 Victory Over Capital

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio—On and off the field, anyone associated with the Wittenberg Tiger football program would tell you that it was a long summer. After the tragic loss of Miles Laboy, the Tigers were left to figure out what to do with the pain and emotion that the loss of a teammate had left inside of them. Doing what they all do best, the Tigers knew that even though Laboy's contagious smile and compassion for those around him would be cemented in people's minds forever, it was their job to make sure that his competitiveness and drive was apparent on the field all season long; starting with the home opener.

Saturday night's matchup against Capital began with Wittenberg's captains carrying Laboy's now iconic number eight jersey out to the coin toss. While his jersey graced Edwards-Maurer Field for one last time as an honorary captain, the feeling inside the stadium, and on the sidelines, was that what Laboy meant to the program will never leave that field.  

Wittenberg took care of business, thumping the visiting Crusaders 34-0, scoring in every quarter. Defensively, the Tigers managed to get to Capital's quarterback three times, never allowing the offensive unit to settle in. Football aside, what no box score or statistic will tell you about Saturday's game is that there was one big smile looking down on the Tigers on Saturday night. One big smile from one number eight who watched a special group come full circle as a team, from the best seat in the house.

QUICK HITS

• The Tiger's 34-0 shoutout is the first opening-game shutout for the program since 1997 when they beat Bluffton 52-0.
• After losing four openers to Capital from 2004-07, Wittenberg has now won four openers against the Crusaders in the last six years.
• In his first career start at quarterback for the Tigers, Jake Kennedy showed poise and versatility, operating inside and out of the pocket on his way to 291 yards in the air, including two touchdown strikes.
• On the ground, DeShawn Sarley was a man on a mission early on for the Tigers, finishing his 93 yard night with one score after averaging an astonishing 5.2 yards a carry.
• Senior Luke Landis was a nightmare for the Capital secondary Saturday, as the Brookville native hauled in six passes for 109 yards and a touchdown.

DEFENSIVE NOTES

• Bobby Saul, Brandon Daniels, and Jeremy Assifo combined for three sacks on the night, accounting for a net loss of 32 yards for Capital.
• Terrance Crowe paced the Tiger defense with 14 tackles, as the senior linebacker was all over the field for the red and white.
• Michael Ford climbed the ladder in the third-quarter for the Tigers, picking off an errant pass over the middle to give the Tigers defense the first interception of 2016.

DRIVE OF THE NIGHT

BY THE NUMBERS