READ THE ODAC FOOTBALL REPORT: WEEK 11
Randolph-Macon put the caps on its strong season in week 11, avoiding a possible tie with two other squads for first place by defeating Hampden-Sydney in the 121st edition of "The Game" and securing the ODAC title outright. Emory & Henry and Washington and Lee both finished at 5-2 in the league, one game back of 6-1 R-MC. E&H topped Guilford, while W&L trumped Shenandoah. Bridgewater also finished the season with a win, defeating Catholic in Washington, D.C.
The win for Randolph-Macon (9-1, 6-1) also earned the conference's automatic entry in the NCAA Division III Football Tournament. Play begins next weekend with all 32 teams playing in the first round on Saturday. R-MC was one of 25 automatic entries into the field. One team, the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, picked up a bid out of pool B as a true independent, while the six remaining entries were filled via at-large selection.
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Randolph-Macon returns to the NCAA postseason for the first time in eight seasons. R-MC previously participated in the D-III postseason in 1984 and 2008, losing contests in the first round both times. The Yellow Jackets first round opponent will be Johns Hopkins University (10-0). R-MC will travel to Baltimore, Md., for a 12:00 p.m. ET kickoff.
Johns Hopkins, winners of the Centennial Conference automatic bid, is making its eighth overall and sixth straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The Blue Jays are 5-7 in those games, reaching the quarterfinals in 2009. Randolph-Macon and Johns Hopkins have a long history of competition, with Saturday's contest marking their 39th since 1904. The Blue Jays own a 21-16-1 advantage in the series. JHU won the first nine recorded meetings, including a 6-0 win in the series opener in 1904. R-MC got its first win via a 25-7 result in 1936. The Yellow Jackets won six straight outings on two separate occasions, but Johns Hopkins has held the upperhand of late, winning four straight meetings and nine of the past 11 showdowns. The two squads met in the regular season from 2012 thru 2015, with JHU winning each time including a 52-17 triumph in 2015.
THE GAMES
RANDOLPH-MACON 48, HAMPDEN-SYDNEY 23 -- Box Score
Randolph-Macon led Hampden-Sydney, 24-23, at the half, but outscored the Tigers 24-0 in the second half to win the 121st edition of "The Game" via a 48-23 result to clinch the ODAC title and a bid into the NCAA Division III Football Tournament.
WASHINGTON AND LEE 59, SHENANDOAH 42 -- Box Score
Washington and Lee and Shenandoah combined for 1,145 yards of offense with W&L running for 506 yards in its 59-42 win over SU. Quarterback Charlie Nelson threw for two touchdowns and ran for two more to lead the Generals' offense, while Hayden Bauserman threw for 352 yards and four touchdowns to highlight the Hornets' day.
EMORY & HENRY 34, GUILFORD 7 -- Box Score
Emory & Henry posted its fifth straight victory and put itself into a tie for second in the ODAC with a 34-7 win over Guilford. E&H registered 509 yards of offense and held Guilford to 238 yards from scrimmage.
BRIDGEWATER 50, CATHOLIC 13 -- Box Score
Bridgewater scored early and often while holding Catholic to just 207 yards of offense in the Eagles 50-13 victory. The game also marked the final contest for CUA under the ODAC banner as the Cardinals will begin play in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) next season.
ODAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSE: Washington and Lee senior quarterback Charlie Nelson, a senior from Redding, Conn., put together a dual-threat performance in the Generals' 59-42 win over Shenandoah. The trigger man for Washington and Lee's multi-option offense led the unit to 631 total yards from scrimmage, including 506 on the ground. He contributed 120 yards on 19 carries, finding the end zone twice. Nelson was efficient thru the air in arguably W&L's best passing day of the year. He completed 12-of-13 passes for 125 yards and two more touchdowns to McKenna Johnston and Jack Taylor. For the year, Nelson completed 55.7-percent of his passes for 749 yards and five touchdowns. He also rushed for 745 yards and six scores on 123 carries. He caps his career with 2,014 yards and 11 touchdowns thru the air to go with 2,280 yards and 18 touchdowns on the ground.
DEFENSE: Bridgewater sophomore defensive end Muhammad Khan, a sophomore from Springfield, Va., helped the Eagles finish the season on a three-game winning streak with a 50-13 victory over Catholic. Khan shared team-high honors with six tackles including three solo stops. He proved a nuisance to CUA quarterbacks, registering 2.5 sacks that cost the Cardinals 19 yards of offense. Bridgewater's defense forced four Catholic miscues on the day. Khan was involved in that as well, turning one of his sacks into a strip-sack in which he covered the loose ball at the close of the first half. For the season, Khan registered 27 tackles with 19 solo stops. He collected 4.5 tackles for a loss including 3.5 sacks, costing opposing offenses 26 yards from scrimmage.
For more information on this week's action in ODAC football, view the ODAC Football Report: Week 11. You can also go to any of the participating school's websites. Don't forget to become a fan of the ODAC on Facebook and follow @odacathletics on Twitter and Instagram.