Tartans Fall 38-24 in 26th Academic Bowl
(PITTSBURGH, Pa.) – The Carnegie Mellon University football team lost in its final game of the season Saturday, November 12 when they hosted Case Western Reserve University in the 26th Annual Academic Bowl. Case's stout defense stopped the potent rushing attack of the Tartans en route to a 38-24 victory.
The victory in the Academic Bowl sends the rivalry trophy as well as the University Athletic Association (UAA) championship to Cleveland. Case stretches its longest win streak against Carnegie Mellon to five straight games, as well as winning four of the past five UAA Titles.
The Tartans' offensive unit started Senior Day strong when sophomore quarterback Rob Kalkstein (Monroeville, Pa./Gateway) found senior fullback Chris Garcia (Albuquerque, N.M./Valley) for a 35-yard pass on the first play from scrimmage. Four plays later Garcia punched the ball into the end zone from the 2-yard line. Freshman kicker Dylan Munoz (Houston, Texas/Langham Creek) added the extra point giving Carnegie Mellon an early 7-0 lead.
Case didn't waste time getting on the scoreboard following the Tartans' touchdown. The Spartans' sophomore running back Kenny Riordan broke away from the defense down the right side of the field for 56-yard touchdown run.
Case's freshman running back Manny Sicre added the second touchdown of the day for the Spartans on 7-yard run. The 10-play, 63-yard drive capped with Sicre's touchdown gave the Spartans their first lead of the day, 14-7.
The visiting Spartans added to their seven point lead when Riordan found the end zone for the second time of the day with just less than two minutes remaining in the first quarter. Riordan went untouched through the middle of the Carnegie Mellon defense for an 11-yard touchdown.
The Tartans were driving and converted on fourth down when junior running back Patrick Blanks (Cincinnati, Ohio/Moeller) picked up eight yards to move the chains. Looking to score for the first time since the opening drive, the Tartans attempted a screen pass. Kalkstein's throw was intercepted by senior defensive tackle Dale English who returned it into Carnegie Mellon territory. The defense came up with a big stop however to keep the score at 21-7.
After stopping the Spartans' offense again, the Tartans caught one of their first breaks of the day. A bad snap on the punt attempt led to Carnegie Mellon taking the ball over right at the red zone at the Case 20-yard line. Munoz would successfully kick a 33-yard field goal to narrow the deficit to 21-10 early in the third quarter.
The Case offense responded on the next drive and kicked a field goal of its own to extend the league back to two touchdowns, 24-10, when senior kicker Daniel Vasil connected on a 22-yard field goal.
Once again, the Spartans took advantage of good field position following Kalkstein's second interception of the day. On fourth and seven from the 21-yard line, junior quarterback Erik Olson found senior wide receiver Bryan Metlesitz for a touchdown on a diving catch in the back of the end zone. The extra point extended the lead to 31-10.
Carnegie Mellon put together a scoring drive of 13 plays totaling 70 yards to cut into the visitor's lead. Kalkstein rolled to his right and found junior running back Jake Nardone (Beaver, Pa./Beaver) just across the goal line for a two-yard touchdown pass narrowing the Spartans' lead to 31-17.
Following a fumble by Blanks, Olson found Metlesitz for another touchdown, this time an 18-yard connection. Metlesitz caught six balls for 61 yards and two touchdowns Saturday. Their second touchdown hook up stretched the Case lead to 38-17.
The Tartans struck again for a final touchdown, bringing the score to the final, 38-24, with under a minute to go as senior quarterback Seth Napierkowski (Lower Burrell, Pa./Burrell) found sophomore wide out Eric Dissinger (Cockeysville, Md./Dulaney) for a 20-yard touchdown pass.
As a team, Carnegie Mellon struggled against the talented rush defense of Case – ranked ninth in the country entering Saturday's action. The Cardinal and Gray rushed the ball 41 times for 68 yards, a number that shows the dominance of the Case defense racking up six sacks.
Blanks entered the game needing 108 yards to become only the fourth Tartan to have a 1,000 yard season but failed to reach the milestone, as he ended the game with 52 yards on the ground. Kalkstein completed 11 passes on 19 attempts for 136 yards. He throw for a touchdown and added two interceptions in the final game of the season. Nardone recorded four receptions for 41 yards and a score in the setback
Senior cornerback Dan Miller (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair) led the Tartans defense with a career-high 10 tackles, six solo. In all, the Tartans totaled 11 tackles for a loss on the afternoon.
Olson finished the day 13 of 18 for 129 yards and two touchdowns for the visiting Spartans. Riordan carried the ball 16 times for the Spartans for 108 yards and two touchdowns. Sicre added to the balanced rushing attack with 17 carries of his own for 76 yards and a touchdown.
The Tartans' season comes to a close, as they end the 2011 campaign with a 5-5 (2-3) record while Case ends its regular season with a mark of 9-1 (3-0).