Balanced Offense, Strong Defense Carries Scots Past Chicago

Brooks, Wrublik combine for four rushing scores

by Nathan Baliva

MONMOUTH, Ill. (09/14/2024) — The Monmouth College football team scored 31 unanswered points from the middle of the first quarter to the middle of the fourth quarter in a 34-21 road win over Chicago. The Scots (1-1, 1-0) scored four rushing touchdowns on the day to win the MWC opener for the 13th straight season.

"It is always good to get a win, especially on the road," said head coach Chad Braun. "Chicago has always been a really tough place for us to play. I thought we fought through some adversity being down early today and played some really good defense in the second and third quarters."

Chicago started the game with the ball and scored a touchdown on seven plays for a 7-0 lead. On the first Monmouth drive, McKade Brooks (Astoria, Illinois) ripped off a 36-yard run down to the Chicago 36. Brayden Deem (Andalusia, Illinois) hit Jackson Bergren (Monmouth, Illinois) for an 18-yard completion. A 10-yard pass play to Nate Thornton (Peoria, Illinois) put the Scots back in the red zone after a penalty. The drive stalled and Cody Szelc (Riverview, Florida) drilled a 30-yard field goal to get Monmouth on the board.

Both teams punted with Szelc hitting a 51-yard beauty inside the 10-yard line. Chicago started on their own eight and punted the ball back with Monmouth taking over in Maroons territory. On the second play of the drive, Brooks scored on a 32-yard run to give Monmouth a 10-7 lead. The Scots forced another punt in the second quarter and went to work on their own 39. Deem hit freshman Chase Newman (Morrison, Illinois) for 11 yards and a first down. Deem ran for 12 and nine yards before hitting Thornton for 19 more. Brooks finished off the drive with an 11-yard run and his second score of the day.

"It was nice to see us get the ground game going," said Braun. "Jackson and Nate made a ton of contested, tough catches on the outside today."

The defensive line wrecked the next Chicago drive as Anthony Cikauskas (Oswego, Illinois) and Tevin Baker (Kewanee, Illinois) had sacks on consecutive plays. Deem hit Thornton for a 49-yard pass play but the Monmouth drive stalled at the 18 without any points. Brant Baltes (Lisbon, Iowa) picked up his first sack of the season on the next drive and the Scots took a 17-7 lead into halftime.

"Anthony came up with that big sack and Tevin did a really good job of getting after the quarterback all day," said Braun. "Jeremiah and Brant were really stout on the inside for us. Special teams wise, Cody kicked and punted extremely well."

Monmouth started the second half with the ball and Deem hit Bergren for 12 yards to the Scots 42. Nate Wrublik (Lemont, Illinois) ran three straight times for a first down and into Maroons territory. A 10-yard pass to Thornton moved the sticks again but Monmouth turned the ball over on downs at the Chicago 32. Chicago went 3-and-out as Jeremiah Hardnett (O'Fallon, Illinois) recorded a sack on third down. However the Scots punted the ball back with Szlec hitting another bomb, 52 yards, to put Chicago inside their own 20. After a holding penalty moved the Maroons back, Kevins Soivilien (Miami, Florida) intercepted a pass at the 9-yard line to get the ball back for Monmouth Wrublik scored on the first play of the drive for a 24-7 lead.

Chicago moved the ball to the Monmouth 33 but missed a 50-yard field goal but Monmouth went 3-and-out. Monmouth ended the third quarter with the ball and Deem hit Bergren for 15 yards down to the Chicago 25. Wrublik carried the ball three straight times with a facemask penalty mixed in. A 1-yard plunge by Wrublik gave the Scots a 31-7 lead. Chicago scored later in the fourth but Monmouth stuffed the 2-point conversion attempt. Brooks and Wrublik carried the ball four straight times on the next drive before two straight pass interference calls against Chicago moved the ball across the 50. Deem ran for a first down but the drive stalled and Szelc hit a 21-yard field goal for a 34-13 lead. Chicago tacked on a meaningless touchdown in the last minute for the 34-21 final score.

Deem completed 12-of-26 passing for 179 yards while also rushing eight times for 43 yards. Brooks ran 15 times for 119 yards and two scores while Wrublik had 41 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries. Thornton caught four passes for 88 yards and Bergren caught four passes for 53 yards.

Cikauskas and Baltes both had two tackles for loss. Baltes and Zane Beebe (Davenport, Iowa) led the Scots with nine tackles. Rockyen Spinks (Galesburg, Illinois) and Baker both had two pass break ups.

MONMOUTH MOMENTS: Brooks registered his fourth career 100 yard rushing game ... Wrublik tied a career high with two touchdowns ... Thornton now has 152 career receptions, joining Michael Blodgett and Matt Shepherd as the only players with at least 150 in school history ... Bergren moved into 17th on the career reception list with 88 ... Szelc passed Devin Lawrence for 11th on the career scoring list with 188 points ... Cikauskas passed Jack Porter for seventh on the career list in tackles for loss ... Baker moved into ninth on the tackles for loss list and also recorded his 20th career sack which ranks eighth all time ... He also moved into a tie for 10th on the pass break up list with 15 ...Spinks is right behind him with 14 ... The Scots held Chicago to 94 passing yards ... Chicago was just 3-for-12 on third down ... The Scots have won six in a row against the Maroons including all five in MWC action ... The last time Monmouth lost a MWC opener was in 2010 ... The Scots are home next Saturday for Family Weekend with a 1 p.m. kickoff against Lawrence.