Statement Made: UMHB Football stuns No. 3 UW-Whitewater in 35-17 victory

File photo by Luke Zayas/True To The Cru

WHITEWATER, Wis. — What does a statement win look like? If you’re UMHB, it comes in the form of five interceptions. Of three fumble recoveries. A day in which your quarterback completes 72 percent of his passes and throws for a pair of touchdowns. A monumental 35-17 victory on the biggest of stages in the most hostile of environments in Division III football.

Saturday’s win inside No. 3 UW-Whitewater’s Perkins stadium, on UWW’s alumni weekend no less, turned heads around the country. The doubt that had come from The Cru’s 6-4 season in 2023 and the season-opening loss to Bethel (TN) just two weeks prior seemed to fade as the minutes ticked by, the lead increased, and the crowd of nearly 13,000 drew quieter, recognizing UMHB’s apparent victory even before the final horn sounded.  

It marked UMHB’s first win over UWW during the regular season—The Cru dropped the previous four contests—and just the second time The Cru pulled out a victory in Whitewater. The Warhawks had not lost in a regular season home game by more than three points since the 2012 season, when UW-Oshkosh walked away with a 28-13 win on Oct. 20, 2012. That was also the last time UWW ever walked into the locker room at halftime trailing by 21. That is, until Saturday, when UMHB held a 28-7 advantage at the intermission. 

For head coach Larry Harmon, it marked the third Top 25 win of his career, and certainly the biggest in his three seasons as head coach. It will also go down as the program’s first victory over a ranked opponent since Week 4 of 2022, when UMHB prevailed at No. 6 Hardin-Simmons.

Defense led the charge

In a program that has been headlined by exceptional defensive play through the years, it was fitting that it was the defensive effort that spearheaded the charge. From UW-Whitewater’s first drive on, the Crusader defense put together a near-unblemished performance, pulling the momentum in UMHB’s favor and surpressing every attempt by the Warhawk offense to reach the end zone. 

While UWW scored two touchdowns, both came on blocked punts. The last time the Warhawks finished a game without an offensive touchdown? The 2015 Stagg Bowl, when UWW managed just two field goals in a 36-6 loss to Mount Union. 

In a game that saw the two offenses combine for a total of 11 turnovers, UMHB came away with an astounding three fumble recoveries and five interceptions. On top of that, The Cru forced UWW into three turnovers on downs, the latter two of which came in the second half, with the Warhawks within 11 and 21 yards of the end zone, respectively. 

The last time UMHB tallied five interceptions in a game was an 82-0 shutout of Louisiana College on Nov. 2, 2019.

The magnitude of those numbers cannot be overstated. UWW ran 25 more plays (75 to UMHB’s 50), tallied 332 yards of total offense to The Cru’s 307, and held possession for nearly 11 minutes more than UMHB. Yet, The Cru led from start to finish, going up by as many as 25 points in the second half, with the lead never in question.

The initial lead came directly from the defense, as UWW quarterback Jason Ceniti misfired on the Warhawks’ fourth play of the game. Durand Hill, a D3football.com Preseason All-American at linebacker, displayed his solid pass coverage abilities, as he read the route and stepped in front of the pass for an 18-yard interception return that ended in the end zone.

The pick-six took the energy out of the home crowd, and any momentum that remained on the UWW sidelines soon evaporated. UMHB’s Da’marion Morris intercepted Ceniti on each of UWW’s next two drives, the second of which saw Morris collect a tipped pass and run it 27 yards in the other direction for a second pick-six. UMHB led 14-0 with 8:36 in the first quarter, with both scores coming from the defense in a surprising turn of events that favored the visitors from Belton.

Ceniti was pulled from the game in favor of the backup, Jackson Chryst, following Morris’ pick-six, and Chryst finished the game, going 20-of-33 for 236 yards and two interceptions. Ceniti completed just one pass for an eight-yard gain, with three of his other four passing attempts ending up in the hands of the Crusader defense. 

Whether it was Ceniti or Chryst taking the snaps, UMHB’s front four did yeoman’s work in the trenches, putting consistent pressure on UWW’s quarterback. On the first interception, Ceniti forced the throw as Te’Ron Brown was just a step away from a sack, and the other four interceptions were similar in nature. The Crusaders’ force up front had costly effects for the Warhawk offense. 

And the same went for the rushing attack, a trait that has traditionally made UWW tough to defend. With a strong offensive line and quality tailbacks, the Warhawks entered the game having rushed for 150 or more yards in each of its first two contests. Yet, with UMHB’s defensive front engaged on every play, the run game was limited to just 88 yards on 37 carries, and just one rushing play went for more than 20 yards. 

Entering the week, Harmon said Saturday’s game would come down to which team would be “the most physical the longest.” UMHB left little doubt about who that was by the fourth quarter, not only contending, but overpowering UWW’s offensive line. 

And The Cru did not let up, even as the lead grew. With the game not completely out of reach and 5:03 left in the third quarter, UWW ran consecutive pass plays from the UMHB 11-yard line. It was the closest the Warhawks would get to an offensive touchdown, yet The Cru forced consecutive incompletions—one out of the back of the end zone and one to the right of the end zone. 

The offensive contributions

To the credit of the Crusader offense, they too answered the challenge against a quality UWW defense that surrendered just 21 points through the season’s first two games. After mustering just 10 points in the season-opener and drawing criticism for the low offensive output, UMHB followed last week’s 85-point performance by putting together three solid scoring drives and tallying 100-plus yards on both the ground and through the air. 

Isaac Phe completed 16 of his 22 passes for a 169.6 quarterback rating, with a season-high two touchdowns and 199 passing yards. His 30-yard strike to AJ Williams at the back of the end zone in the opening quarter extended UMHB’s lead to 21-0, and that was the beginning of a number of well-placed passes for the sophomore quarterback. 

Moving the offense quickly down the field with under two minutes in the second quarter after a fumble recovery by Hill, Phe completed passes of 37, 12, and 11 yards. The three-play drive spanned 60 yards in just 31 seconds, capped by a passing touchdown in which Phe evaded pressure from the UWW defensive line, rolled to his right, and found Asa Osbourn for the 11-yard score. It was Osbourn’s second-straight game with a receiving touchdown. 

On the ground, Kamerin Ferguson etched his name into UMHB’s record book, recording the longest rushing score in program history on a 96-yard sprint down the left sideline in the third quarter. With 8:04 left in the third, Ferguson took a handoff on UMHB’s first play, found a gap in the line and ran right through it before outracing a trio of UWW defenders to the end zone. 

The previous record for the longest rushing touchdown in Cru history came in 2007, when Jarvis Thrasher ran for a 94-yard score against ETBU. 

The UMHB offense turned the ball over three times in the contest, twice on fumbles and once on an interception early in the second quarter. But UWW did not score as a result of any of its three takeaways, unlike The Cru, who scored 28 of its 35 points on or immediately following a turnover. 

And that was the key. Not only did UMHB force eight turnovers, but The Cru took advantage of those opportunities, turning high-level, heads-up defense into points. UWW had no counter, and in many ways, that is the definition of a statement win. Aside from the two blocked punts, an aspect that will need to be addressed moving forwards, UMHB executed well. The Cru left no doubt, both in Whitewater and around the country, about its ability to perform with the lights shining bright. 

Statistical Notes/Looking Ahead

Hill finished the game with 10 total tackles, an interception, and a fumble recovery. Morris also had 10 tackles in addition to his team-high two interceptions, along with a forced fumble. And Justin Hines-Moore was at the forefront of UMHB’s strong showing on the defensive line, tallying 2.0 sacks and four solo tackles. 

Williams highlighted the offensive effort with three catches for 100 yards; the first 100-yard receiving performance of his career. Osbourn, Christopher Gacayan, and TJ Rone each tallied 20 or more receiving yards. Ferguson accounted for the majority of UMHB’s rushing production with 112 yards on six carries. 

Looking ahead, UMHB hosts John Melvin University at Crusader Stadium next Saturday, before opening its double-round robin ASC schedule against ETBU in Belton on Oct. 5. For UW-Whitewater, next week gives the Warhawks a bye week before hosting No. 14 UW-Oshkosh on Oct. 5.