INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.—For the second consecutive season, the
National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has announced that the
Huntingdon football team will be awarded a statistical championship, as
the Hawks’ offensive unit led all Division III institutions in total
offense.
Huntingdon finished the 2009 campaign averaging 561.0 yards of total
offense, averaging 236.8 yards per game on the ground and 324.2 yards
through the air. The total was more than 33 yards better than Monmouth
College in Illinois, which finish second. Perennial D-III powerhouse
Mount Union ranked third.
“This award is a credit to our player’s attention to detail and the
effort they gave all season long,” head coach Mike Turk said. “Our
coaches prepared our team for every game, but players had to go out and
execute the plays. This is without a doubt a team accomplishment and
something that we are very proud of.”
Among all divisions of the NCAA, the Hawks ranked second in total
offense, trailing only the University of Houston, which averaged 563.4
yards per contest and was quarterbacked by record-setting signal caller
Case Keenum. Huntingdon was also one of just eight NCAA institutions to
average better than 500 yards of total offense each game.
This season, the Hawks amassed 500 or more total yards in their
final seven games of the season, including a school-record total of 784
in their victory at Westminster. Huntingdon also finished with 693
yards in its win at Birmingham-Southern, while posting better than 460
total yards in nine of 10 games.
Individually, senior quarterback Justin Ridgeway led the Hawks in
total offense and ranked fifth in the nation with an average of 341.4
yards per game. Fellow senior Alex Baronich averaged 113.3 yards per
game.
The statistical championship marked the second in as many years for
the Hawks, who led Division III in kickoff return average with a mark
of 26.55 yards per game during the 2008 season.
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Tim Lutz
Sports Information Director
Phone: (334) 833-4579
tlutz@huntingdon.edu
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