No. 16 Chapman takes perfect record to Pomona-Pitzer
No. 16 Chapman at Pomona-Pitzer
Saturday, November 2, 2019
Merritt Field (Claremont, Calif.)
7 p.m.
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THE MATCHUP
The Chapman University football team takes its perfect record on the road to Pomona-Pitzer as it tries to close in on a conference title. The undefeated Panthers play their second conference road game at one-loss Pomona-Pitzer.
SERIES HISTORY
Dramatic finishes have been the theme of this matchup over the last two years. In 2017, the Panthers started their road to a SCIAC title with a final play touchdown to beat the Sagehens in Claremont. Trailing 40-36, the Panthers had an untimed down from the one and punched in the TD to walk off with the win. Pomona-Pitzer returned the favor a year later when now-senior Karter Odermann caught a 30-yard pass in the back of the end zone with three seconds remaining to secure a 24-21 win in Orange. Overall, the Panthers are 13-3 against the Sagehens but have lost two of the last three.
A PROGRAM-BEST START
Chapman is 6-0 for the first time in its 26-year history as a Division III program. Only the 1994 and 2013 teams had started a season 5-0 before this year. The 2019 Panthers surpassed both teams with last week's 44-6 win over Cal Lutheran.
A PROGRAM-BEST RANKING
With the historic 6-0 start comes a historic place in the national polls. The Panthers moved up one spot to No. 16 in the D3football.com poll for its highest ranking in program history. The 2014 team reached as high as No. 17 after its SCIAC title run. Chapman switched places with Linfield in the Coaches' Poll, moving up to No. 19.
LOCKING DOWN THE LINE OF SCRIMMAGE
For the second week in a row and the third time this season, the Panthers' defense held its opponent to 10 yards or less on the ground. Cal Lutheran managed just two rushing yards after being sacked six times and caught in the backfield twice more on run plays. Over the last two weeks, Cal Lutheran and Occidental have combined for 39 rushing attempts for negative four yards. The Panthers have allowed an average of just 46 yards per game this season
200+
Chapman has rushed for over 200 yards in each of its first six games with four different Panthers taking a turn in leading the rushing attack. Chapman ranks 10th in Division III with 278.7 rushing yards per game this season. That mark is just under 15 yards less than the school record of 293.2 yards per game that was set in 1995. The Panthers' 226 yards in last week's win were the least in a single game this season but their 261 passing yards made up the highest passing total of the year.
THE LEADERS ON THIRD DOWN
No one in the SCIAC has been better on third down than Chapman on either side of the ball this year. The Panthers have converted 52 percent of their third downs in to first downs, ranking 12th in the nation. Defensively, the Panthers have allowed their opponents to move the sticks just a quarter of the time on third down – the seventh lowest mark in the nation. Pomona-Pitzer converts 39 percent of its third downs on offense while allowing opponents to convert the same percentage on defense.
MOVING THE STICKS
With the Panthers winning third down situations on both sides of the ball, no one in the SCIAC has been better at moving the sticks than Chapman this year. The Panthers' 168 first downs are the most in the SCIAC despite playing one less game than four teams in the conference. Chapman and Pomona-Pitzer are the two-best defenses at getting off the field in the SCIAC as both rank in the top-25 in Division III with less than 100 first downs surrendered this year.
PARTY IN THE BACKFIELD
The Panthers have been one of the best in SCIAC and the nation in dragging down opponents in the backfield. They top the SCIAC and rank sixth in the nation with four sacks per game and rank second in the conference with 7.3 tackles for loss per game. Pomona-Pitzer is one of the best in the nation at not getting caught behind the line. The offensive line allows just 3.4 TFLs per game, which is the fifth-lowest mark in Division III.
ABOUT POMONA-PITZER
Senior QB Karter Odermann ranks third in the SCIAC with 254.7 passing yards per game and leads the conference with 81.3 rushing yards per game. As a dual threat QB, he has had a game over 300 yards passing and another game over 200 yards rushing. Despite having eight interceptions this season, he hasn't thrown one in two weeks. The Sagehens score just over 28 points and give up 21 points per game. They have given up just six rushing touchdowns this season. Linebacker Jack Storrs leads the defense with 8.3 tackles per game but Graham Olson leads the push in the backfield with four sacks this season.