Sophomore wide receiver Pierce McCrary celebrates with his teammates after a touchdown. The Tommies defeated the Davidson Wildcats 35-7 Saturday, Oct. 31, at O’Shaughnessy Stadium, with McCrary’s touchdown expanding their lead further in the second quarter. (Ali Thor/The Crest) 
Peipert scores a touchdown as players from both teams converge in the end zone. (Ali Thor/The Crest) 
McCrary scores a touchdown after a 19-yard pass from redshirt first-year quarterback Nick Peipert. (Ali Thor/The Crest) 
The Tommies and Wildcats get in position for a play. (Ali Thor/The Crest) 
McCrary secures a catch after a Wildcat player tried to block him. (Ali Thor/The Crest) 
Junior kicker Ben Hoiland prepares to punt the ball as the Wildcats line up. (Ali Thor/The Crest)
St. Thomas football is closing in on the end of the season tied for first in the Pioneer Football League with Butler and Dayton with three games left.
The Tommies (7-2, 4-1 in PFL) dominated the game against the Davidson Wildcats (3-6, 1-4) 35-7 Saturday at O’Shaughnessy Stadium.
The Tommies took control early, racking up 351 yards and scoring all 35 of their points in the first half while allowing only 49 yards to junior quarterback Casey Bullock and the Wildcat offense.
Coach Glenn Caruso said he was pleased with the Tommies’ first half but expressed that they had room for improvement in the second half, when the team mustered only 138 yards.
“A lot of good in there, and a lot that we can grow from, and we’re going to need to grow,” Caruso said.
Redshirt first-year quarterback Nick Peipert delivered another impressive performance, totaling 257 passing yards with one passing touchdown to sophomore wide receiver Pierce McCrary late in the second quarter. Peipert also contributed on the ground with 116 rushing yards and three touchdowns.
Caruso highlighted Peipert’s vision, poise and maturity whenever he is in control of the ball.
“He’s the best I’ve ever seen at being able to, when he extends the plays and he moves vertically in the pocket, at keeping his eyes downfield,” Caruso said. “I think he’s really growing up quickly, not just when he runs, but how he runs, when he runs.”
The Tommie offensive line also played a clean game, allowing zero sacks. Graduate lineman James Morrison was a standout among them; Caruso said the 6-foot-6, 354-pound lineman has impressed with his speed and quickness, as he led the way for many rushing plays Saturday.
“He’s so valuable, not just when he’s able to pull and move people, because he’s uber smooth and very flexible. And for a guy who’s 354 pounds, not many guys can do a full split and bend over backward,” Caruso said.
Junior wide receiver Quentin Cobb-Butler had a career-high 126 receiving yards on 12 receptions. Cobb-Butler said that he thinks many of his receptions this season came because teams fear the deep threats that he and McCrary create.
“I don’t think teams want to get beat deep by us, and they’re starting to give us a lot more room,” Cobb-Butler said. “So they’re respecting me and Pierce a lot more.”
The Tommie defense attacked the Wildcat offense throughout the game, allowing only 192 yards for the game and totaling seven sacks. Three and a half came from sophomore linebacker Will Seymour.
Seymour attributed the career-high number to the rest of the defense and their efforts to limit the Wildcats.
“Credit to our D-line for staying in their rush lanes, and that’s how we were able to keep them in the pocket, keep them stepping up, keep them rolling out,” Seymour said. “We were taking good angles, and then also our D-backs played good coverage.”
The Tommies’ next three games will be crucial to their chances of winning the PFL, as they face Butler, Drake and Valparaiso in the coming weeks.
Caruso said the team will need to stay grounded in their work to continue their current success.
“At this point, every week is huge, and if we are a focused and mentally tough team, as I hope we are, we’ll display that by making sure that we keep our eyes on one week,” Caruso said.
The Tommies will play Butler at noon on Saturday, Nov. 7, at the Bud and Jackie Sellick Bowl in Indianapolis.
Jackson Geibig can be reached at geib3470@stthomas.edu.
Ali Thor can be reached at thor72902@stthomas.edu.
