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RIPON, Wis. - The Red Hawks won their second consecutive game last week, in a 28-10 victory over Knox College, moving their conference record to 2-0 on the season, which is good enough for a first place tie, with four other teams. One of those other four teams is Saturday's opponent Illinois College. The Blueboys are arguably the toughest conference foe Ripon's faced this season, so the Red Hawks must step up their game a notch or two.
"Last week against Knox, we didn't really play up to our ability, so this week, we've certainly got to do that if we hope to come home with a victory," said head football coach Ron Ernst.
Illinois College will bring their high-octane offense to the field in Jacksonville, Ill. on Saturday. The Blueboys rank first in total offense and pass offense, while ranking second in points per game. Senior quarterback Pete Jennings is the leader of the attack, having thrown for 930 yards and nine touchdowns through their first three games, in which they've averaged 33 points per game.
"We're going to try to cover their receivers as best we can and we've got a couple thoughts about how we're going to do some different things to stop them," said Ernst.
The offense isn't the only thing Illinois College has going for them, as their defense has played just as well. The Blueboys lead the conference in total defense, pass defense, and points allowed, giving up just 12 points per contest. They are allowing just 119.3 yards per game through the air.
"They've got good athletes that all run to the ball very well," Ernst said. "They have good defensive schemes and they've gotten off to a good start, so they will be very tough."
Ripon leads the all-time series 10-3 against Illinois College, having won nine of the last 10 games. Last year, the Red Hawks came away victorious 31-21 at Ingalls Field, as Ripon intercepted Jennings four times, including one that was returned 60 yards for a touchdown. That turnover battle will likely be the key to victory once again come Saturday.
"It's a big game for a lot of reasons. Both teams are very good. Illinois College has established themselves as a very fine program and we have a very good team ourselves, so it's going to be a good game," Ernst said. "I think it's going to come down to which team can control the ball the longest and make the fewest mistakes."
Ripon has won their first two conference games for the second consecutive season. Last year, the Red Hawks didn't lose a MWC contest until their sixth game. In order to have a repeat of that success, Ripon will have to work at correcting the things that they have not done well.
"I'm pleased with where we're at. We can't be any better than where we are, at 2-0 in conference play, but we still have a lot of room for improvement and I think we can get better. If we can continue to improve each week, we will be pretty good this year," said Ernst.
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