GAMEDAY: Football team travels to play Albion in season-finale

The Olivet College football team travels to play Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) rival Albion College in its season-finale Saturday, Nov. 10. Kick-off at Sprankle-Sprandel Stadium in Albion is scheduled for 1 p.m. Fans can follow the game via live stats and video.

GAMEDAY: Football team travels to play Albion in season-finale
November 9, 2018

OLIVET, Mich. -- The Olivet College football team travels to play Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) rival Albion College in its season-finale Saturday, Nov. 10. Kick-off at Sprankle-Sprandel Stadium in Albion is scheduled for 1 p.m. Fans can follow the game via live stats and video. Links are below as well as above.

The Comets enter the game with a 6-3 overall record, with a 4-2 record against MIAA opponents. In conference play, the Comets have beaten Finlandia University, 72-7; Adrian College, 50-22; Kalamazoo College, 21-17; and Alma College, 37-34; and lost 50-49 to Trine (Ind.) University and 35-30 to Hope College.

For the season, the Comets are averaging are average a hair under 450 yards of offense per game -- 253.6 on the ground and 195.0 passing. Sophomore Matthew Ellis and senior Jamaul Martin are both jusy shy of 1,000 yards rushing yards this season. Ellis has 995 yards and 11 rushing touchdowns. He has also caught 13 passes for 186 yards and three touchdowns to give him a team-high 78 points. Martin has rushed for 967 yards and has also scored 11 touchdowns.  Senior quarterback Lane Porter has thrown for 1,684 yards on 138-of-197 passing with zero interceptioons. He also has four rushing touchdowns. Senior Jacob Jodway has snared 33 passes for a team-high 624 yards and four touchdowns. Senior Nick Thomas has a team-high 39 catches for 362 yards and six touchdowns. Senior tight end Chris Talbott has three touchdown catches on 214 receiving yards.

Defensively, senior Chase Cavric has a team-high 50 total tackles, including three quarterback sacks. Seniors Mo Young and Coleton Swims are next with 44 tackles apiece. Young tops the team with 9.5 tackles for minus 26 yards. Junior Tyler Mojet has 36 tackles. Sophomore John Adams III leads the secondary with four interceptions and nine additional pass break-ups.

On special teams, junior Douglas Pollard has made seven field goals and 43-of-46 PAT kicks for 64 points. In addition, he handles kickoff duties, with a 57.4 average on 63 kicks. Twenty of kickoffs have been for touchbacks. Freshman Tyrain Connor is the starting punter, averaging 37.8 yards on 24 kicks. Adams III has returned 17 kickoffs for a 19.2 average, while Martin has 14 kickoff returns for a 16.6  average. Sophomore Hayden Barry-Coulier has returned 12 punts for a 9.2 average.

As a team, Olivet ranks first among all NCAA schools in fewest turnovers lost (three). The Comets are also one of only five NCAA schools across all levels with zero pass interceptions. In addition, the Comets lead the MIAA in blocked kicks (seven), blocked punts (five), fewest fumbles lost (three), passes had intercepted (zero), red zone offense (93.8), average time of possession (34:27) and pass completion percentage (69.6). Olivet ranks second in net punting average (35.71 ypp) and first downs (216). Individually, Porter is first in passing efficiency (170.3). Jodway ranks second in receiving yards (624) and third in yards per catch (18.91).

Albion enters the game with an indentical 6-3 overall record but is 3-3 against MIAA foes. The Britons' wins in conference play were 37-34 over Alma, 49-42 over Adrian and 63-10 over Finlandia. Albion lost 29-24 to Hope, 20-19 to Kalamazoo and 59-42 to Trine. The Britons are averaging 534.4 yards of offense, the most in the MIAA and the fourth-most among all NCAA DIII schools. Doug Freeman leads the ground game with 113 carries for 717 yards and eight touchdowns. Markell McCoy is next with 698 yards on 105 rushes. Kyle Thomas has completed 167-of-292 passes for 2,142 yards and 23 touchdowns, with 10 interceptions. He has also rushed for 514 yards and nine touchdowns. A trio of receivers each have more than 30 catches. Justin Thomas leads the group with 35 for 510 yards and seven touchdowns. Tight end Brian Blanzy has 33 catches for 544 yards and six touchdowns. Collin Poore has hauled in 32 passes for 321 yards. The defense, led by Levi Ladd's 65 tackles, is allowing 483.5 yards per game. Mitchell Arendsen leads the team with 17 tackles for loss, including 9.5 quarterback sacks.  The game is also the final one for head coach Craig Rundle, who is retiring after leading the Britons for the last 22 years.