MARION, Ind. – Indiana Wesleyan University football finished the first season in program history with a 7-3 record following a 55-19 win over fellow first year program Lawrence Tech (Mich.) on Saturday in Wildcat Stadium. Devodney Alford had a huge game on the ground to highlight a stellar offensive afternoon in the final game of 2018.
GROUND ATTACK
RB Devodney Alford was featured with 169 yards rushing on 26 attempts. He completed the afternoon with 2 touchdowns and 6.5 yards per carry. In all, Indiana Wesleyan stockpiled 269 rushing yards on 43 carries.
FINISHING STRONG
The Wildcats raced out to a 17-0 lead after the first quarter but the Blue Devils responded with 13 second quarter points for a 17-13 score at halftime. The Wildcats blew the game wide open in the third quarter with 20 points to lead 37-13 heading into the final quarter.
Leading 20-13, the Wildcats scored 14 points in a matter of 13 seconds to take control of the game. Zack Blair scored on a 4-yard rush and the Blue Devils fumbled the ensuing kickoff. Devodney Alford capitalized with an 18-yard run on the next play.
JUST FOR KICKS
IWU kicker Ben VonGunten nailed a pair of 45-yard field goals and added a 32-yarder for a perfect 3-of-3 on the day. He also had a pair of touchbacks on kickoffs and averaged 41.5 yard on four punts.
LANGS SAYS…
On the 17-0 lead in the first quarter…
“We have learned and been through a lot of stuff this year. We went through a slow start the first time vs. Lawrence Tech and other games. Now our kids have some experience with 10 games under their belt and we were ready to rock.”
On dominating the second half…
“We made some mental and emotional adjustments at halftime. We weren’t locked in during the first half and in the second half they came out and did exactly what we asked them to do. When our kids are locked in we can compete with anybody. Emotionally we responded. We were focused and didn’t lift our foot off the gas. That has been a big learning curve throughout the year and it was just good to see.”
On the first year of IWU Football…
“Pretty remarkable. It was pretty impressive by these kids. The games that they won vs. five conference teams and going down to do what we did on Homecoming, doing what we did at Olivet Nazarene, we fought vs. the two ranked teams. The fight is what I noticed. We are trying to prepare them for life and we are preparing them to fight for the rest of their lives. We learned and we grew from every experience we had. And we never gave up.”
THAT’S A WRAP
The long awaited inaugural season for Indiana Wesleyan football is over. The Wildcats end the campaign at 7-3 with wins over Olivet Nazarene and St. Francis (Ill.) to highlight the season. IWU averaged 40 points per game and 417 yards of offense.
