Written by John Goetz

COLUMBUS, Ohio – It may have been the first-ever playoff game for the NAIA #3 Ohio Dominican football team, but it sure did not seem any different than the results the Panthers experienced during their perfect regular season. The host ODU easily handled the option offense of their opponent, the #17 University of the Cumberlands (KY) en route to a 62-35 victory in the first round of the NAIA Championship Series.

Any playoff jitters the Panthers may have had quickly dissipated after the first offensive series of the game. ODU began their first drive at their own 18-yard line before quarterback Cris Reisert (Cincinnati, OH) was intercepted by the Patriots’ Brian Abshire. Following a 16 yard return and a Panther personal foul, the Cumberlands was set up with a first-and-goal from the ODU 10-yard line. But the Patriots’ good fortune would not last as the Panther defense rose to the occasion, forcing the Cumberlands ground attack as far back as the 30-yard line before the Patriots settled for a 34-yard field goal attempt by Hunter Meade. His attempt sailed wide right. Ohio Dominican had dodged a big bullet. “Holding the Cumberlands to a field goal attempt after we turned the ball over that deep in our territory was a big momentum booster for us,” said Panther Head Coach Dale Carlson. “Our defense stepped up at that point and gave our offense the opportunity to take control.”

Following that scare, the Panther offense buckled down and went to work. Reisert directed an eight play, 80 yard drive before junior Nathan Clark (Newark, OH) plunged into the end zone from two yards out at the 7:53 mark of the first quarter. The extra point attempt by senior Andy Wernicke (Wheaton, IL) failed but the Panthers held the 6-0 lead.

ODU added their next score on their subsequent possession. Following a Patriot punt, the Panthers were backed up in their own territory, starting from their own nine yard line. Once again, Reisert orchestrated an efficient drive consisting of eleven plays before freshman De Wallace (Kettering, OH) scored from a yard away for the 13-0 lead with one minute left in the first stanza.

The Cumberlands got on the scoreboard on the following possession to open the second quarter. Beginning on their own 34-yard line, the option offense began to find holes in the Panther defense. Quarterback Rod Mason utilized the threat of the run to set up a 40-yard pass to Matt Jones on a first down play to cut the ODU lead to six, 13-7. But Ohio Dominican would answer on the next drive when Reisert hooked up with freshman Justin Campbell (Laurel, MD) from ten yards out to push their lead back to thirteen. Not to be outdone, the Patriots rolled down the field to again pull within six with 5:09 remaining in the half.

With the opposition still hanging around and the home crowd feeling a tad restless, the ODU offensive juggernaut kicked it into another gear. Taking over at their own 43-yard line, the Panthers put the ball into the capable hands of Wallace. Tearing through the Patriots’ defense, the freshman used a burst of speed to elude tacklers and sprint 57 yards for the touchdown. The Panthers would add another score seconds before halftime as Reisert connected with Justin Sayre (Newark, OH) for the 34-14 advantage. “Those scores really exhibited our big play abilities,” said Carlson. “The coaching staff challenges our players to score on every drive and then hold the opposition. That sequence was a great example of that.”

Coming out of the locker room, Ohio Dominican looked to pull away quickly. On a third-and-12 play at his own 31-yard line, Reisert unleashed a 69 yard bomb to Sayre that took the Cumberlands by surprise and gave the Panthers the 41-14 lead. Despite the large deficit and the quick strike capabilities of their opponents, the Patriots were determined not to leave Panther Field quietly. They responded on their very next drive with a quick score of their own as Mason again found Jones, this time from 44 yards away.

Once again, however, the Panthers came right back with not one but two scores to put the game out of reach. The first scoring drive proved to be historic as Reisert added two more broken records to his already crowded mantle. With a ten yard completion to Josh Smart (Englewood, OH) at the 7:42 mark, Reisert broke the NAIA single season passing yardage record of 4,885 yards held by Craig Fobbe of Morningside College. He also broke the NAIA single season total offensive yards mark of 4,944 yards held by current Detroit Lions’ quarterback Jon Kitna of Central Washington. Three plays later, Reisert connected with Campbell from five yards away. He found Campbell for the third time on the day just over three minutes later for a 55-21 lead to close out the third quarter. “Once again, similar to the situation at the end of the half, our offense was able to respond to the other team’s score and push the momentum back to our side,” observed Carlson.

The fourth quarter began with the Cumberlands trying to salvage what little chance they had left of pulling off an upset. The Patriots pulled within four scores following a one yard run from quarterback Kyle King. On the subsequent Panther possession, ODU iced the game as backup quarterback Billy Griffin (Columbus, OH) found Sayre for an eight yard touchdown pass. The Patriots would add a touchdown from Ricky Walker with just over three minutes remaining to close out the scoring.

The Ohio Dominican offense rolled up a total of 648 yards on the day. Reisert finished the game 30-of-42 for 470 yards and five touchdowns. The junior now has compiled 5,005 yards and 50 touchdowns on 392-of-551 (71 percent) passing for the season. For his efforts, Reisert was named the NAIA Offensive Player of the Game. “Cris is a special player. This game showed why he was selected by the coaches as the MSFA Mideast League Player of the Year,” noted Carlson. “Cris has that ability to spread the ball around and make plays. I’m excited that he plays for this team.” Smart hauled in 12 passes for a school record 185 yards, while Sayre had eight catches for 156 yards and three touchdowns.

Defensively, the Panthers were paced by Jeremy Ambrose (Gahanna, OH), who had 12 tackles. Junior linebacker Josh Fraley (Belleville, OH) was named the NAIA Defensive Player of the Game. He made several key tackles early in the game to set the tone for the defense. In all, Fraley made eight stops on the day.

“Our goal the whole season was to put ourselves in position to play this deep into November,” said Carlson. “We are excited to play at home again next week against our opponent, whoever they may be.”

Ohio Dominican will host their quarterfinal game of the NAIA Championship Series on Saturday, November 24^th. The opponent has yet to be determined, but kick-off is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. at Panther Field.