MIAC Roundup: St. Olaf’s fast start continues against Augsburg

St. Olaf quarterback Ricardo Johnson III (left) and Bethel defensive back Brendan Whalen.

MIAC STANDINGS

TEAM MIAC ALL
St. Olaf 2-0 4-0
St. John’s 2-0 3-0
Concordia 2-0 3-1
Bethel 1-0 3-0
St. Thomas 1-0 3-0
Augsburg 0-2 2-2
Carleton 0-2 1-3
Gustavus 0-2 1-3
Hamline 0-2 0-4

MIAC SCOREBOARD

Saturday

  • St. Thomas 49, Wis.-Eau Claire 0
  • St. Olaf 33, Augsburg 3
  • Concordia 55, Hamline 0
  • Bethel 31, Gustavus 0
  • St. John’s 59, Carleton 0

Saturday, Sept. 29

  • Bethel at Carleton, 1 p.m.
  • St. John’s at Augsburg, 1 p.m.
  • St. Thomas at Concordia, 1:10 p.m.
  • St. Olaf at Hamline, 7 p.m.

St. Olaf quarterback Ricardo Johnson III proved to be double trouble once again, passing for 162 yards and three touchdowns and running for 77 yards more to lead the Oles (2-0 MIAC, 4-0 overall) to a 33-3 victory over Augsburg (0-2, 2-3) on Homecoming Saturday at Northfield.

Khayleb Willis added 101 yards on 26 rushes with two touchdowns.

St. Olaf is off to a 4-0 start for the first time since 2007.

Willis’ first score gave the Oles a 6-0 lead with 8 minutes 8 seconds to play in the first quarter. With 3:24 on the clock, Johnson connected with Gabe Alada for the first of his two touchdowns, this one on a 5-yard pass.

After Augsburg’s Tyler Hanson kicked a 25-yard field goal in the second quarter, Willis added a 3-yard scoring run with 7:06 to go before halftime.

With 4:49 to play in the third quarter, Johnson and Alada teamed up for a 34-yard touchdown play. Johnson closed the scoring with 4:24 remaining in the fourth with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Caleb Golberg.

Johnson completed 15 of 22 passes with an interception. Through four games, he has completed 63 of 114 passes (55.3 percent) for 873 yards and 13 touchdowns with three interceptions. He has carried the ball 64 times for 396 yards and four scores.

Johnson, a senior, transferred to St. Olaf after a season at Ohio Northern University and a season at San Bernardino Valley Junior College in California. He played his high school football at Cretin-Derham Hall in St. Paul.

Concordia 55, Hamline 0

Quarterback Blake Kragnes passed for 130 yards and two touchdowns, and ran for two more as Concordia (2-0, 3-1) limbered up for its homecoming tussle next week against St. Thomas.

Kragnes’ first of two scoring passes to Kevin Marzolf five minutes into the game and his 1-yard run eight minutes later put the game out of reach for Hamline (0-2, 0-4).

Matt Bye, Rylie Sheridan, Andy Grafdahl and Sean McGuire added rushing touchdowns for the Cobbers.

The Cobber defense held Hamline to 14 yards of offense, and it stifled Hamline quarterback Justice Spriggs, who completed only four passes for 10 yards.

Bethel 31, Gustavus 0

Defensive back Brendan Whalen tackled punter Brayton Finch for a safety on Gustavus’ first offensive series, setting the tone for Bethel (1-0, 3-0) to romp past the visiting Gusties (0-2, 1-3) at Arden Hills.

Whalen added a 28-yard punt return for a touchdown five minutes into the third quarter, and quarterback Jaran Roste ran for three touchdowns for the Royals. Roste completed 10 of 13 passes for 102 yards and rushed 15 times for 123 yards. Sam Gibas added 114 rushing yards on 22 carries to help Bethel rack up 353 yards of offense.

St. John’s 59, Carleton 0

Quarterback Jackson Erdmann and receiver Joey Eckhoff linked up on the second play of the game for a 63-yard touchdown pass, and St. John’s (2-0, 3-0) was off to the races in a homecoming rout of Carleton (0-2, 1-3) at Collegeville.

Erdman added an 11-yard scoring strike to Tommy Auger in the first period, and a 23-yarder to Will Gillach in the second, leading St. John’s to a 52-0 halftime lead.

Erdmann completed 9 of 10 passes for 179 yards in a half of play.

Zach Barwick kicked eight extra points and a 38-yard field goal for the Johnnies.