Golden Bears’ defense downright grizzly in opening-round rout of Bentley

Seconds into its NCAA Division II Tournament opener Saturday the Kutztown Golden Bears were on the defensive.

They fumbled the opening kickoff, giving Bentley the ball at the Golden Bears’ 22.

No sweat, said KU linebacker Eden Johnson.

“You’ve gotta embrace it,” the Governor Mifflin grad said of the situation. “You’ve gotta embrace the chaos.”

The Golden Bears train for just those kinds of situations, Johnson said. They reacted like it, stoning the Falcons, including on a fourth-down pass, to keep them off the board.

“We put ourselves in some adverse situations, and they responded like they have all year,” Kutztown coach Jim Clements said after his top-rated defensive unit came up with its third shutout of the season in turning back overmatched Bentley 52-0 at Andre Reed Stadium.

The Golden Bears (12-0) fumbled the ball away later in the first quarter, giving Bentley the ball in Kutztown territory. A long kickoff return early in the second quarter gave the Falcons (7-4) starting position on the KU side of the field for the third time.

After each the Golden Bears defensive unit stopped them cold, forcing a punt on one, turnovers on downs on the other two. That sent a message to the Bentley sideline that it was going to be a long afternoon.

“We practice ‘sudden change’ (of possession) all the time,” Clements said. “We’ll blow a whistle at any point and put the ball on the ground, and (tell our defense): ‘Let’s get a stop.’ ”

They usually do. Kutztown had the Pennsylvania Conference’s best defensive unit this season, and by a wide margin. It was No. 1 in the conference in scoring defense, allowing just 10.8 points per game; the No. 2 team allowed 20.8.

The Golden Bears were ranked No. 1 in total defense, rushing defense and red zone defense, and No. 2 in pass defense. They were third-best in both third-down and fourth-down conversions.

All of that played out Saturday as they gradually pulled away, building a 24-0 lead by halftime, then a 38-point cushion a few minutes into the third quarter when all-conference defensive back Lee Coleman picked up a fumbled reception and returned it 20 yards for a touchdown.

Bentley averaged just 2.3 yards on its 74 plays. Its quarterbacks completed 24 (of 52) passes but had just 156 yards to show for it. When they did complete passes, Coleman, a ball-hawking cornerback, or linebacker Brandon Hile, the PSAC East Defensive Player of the Year, or someone else in maroon was on them immediately, preventing those oh-so-valuable yards after the catch.

“When they catch it, we’ve gotta knock ’em down,” said Johnson. “That’s the goal – flying through the ball and tackling.”

When backup quarterback Antonio Russo threw an 11-yard touchdown pass in the final minutes to complete the romp, Kutztown had produced the most points in a postseason game in program history, as well as its first postseason shutout.

Kutztown, seeded No. 1 in Super Region One and ranked No. 3 in the nation, advances for a rematch against unseeded Assumption, which knocked off fourth-seeded Indiana University 23-20. 

Kutztown defeated Assumption 51-14 at Andre Reed Stadium on Sept. 4. They’ll get together there again next Saturday (time TBA).

It wasn’t all defense Saturday. The offense, after some early hiccups, was dominant as well, producing 502 total yards.

Quarterback Judd Novak, a few days removed from being named the PSAC East Offensive Player of the Year, lived up to the hype, completing 19-of-25 passed for 290 yards and three touchdowns. He was pinpoint on his throws and was quick to see mismatches in the secondary and take advantage of them.

“We wanted to exploit the cover guys,” said Novak, who played at Manheim Central. “We thought that our receivers could get open, and we did just that.

“My line gave me enough time to deliver the ball, so it was great. They ran a lot of Cover-4, so we just ran the post corner. The safety played on 2; there was a shot with the guys on the outside, so I took my shot.”

Novak made a pretty throw into the left corner of the end zone on a 21-yard TD pass to Noah Kracyla for a 7-0 lead on Kutztown’s second possession. He found Lenniek Preston with a 19-yard TD pass early in the second quarter to make it 17-0. He again made a good reach on a second-and-5 at the Bentley 10 in the final minute of the first half when he found running back Steve Burkhardt uncovered along the left sideline; Burkhardt scored with 25 seconds left in the half for a 24-0 lead.

“His mind’s working really good, he’s seeing it really well,” Clements said of his quarterback, “and he has the ability to get out of the pocket and escape with his feet. He’s one of our best athletes.”

Clements marvels at the fact that Novak has yet to throw an interception this season in 262 attempts.

“The kid is phenomenal,” Clements said. “He’s like 35-3 now as a starter. He gets better every week.”

Novak credits KU’s outstanding defense – which features eight all-conference picks – for helping to sharpen his game.

“Our defense did a tremendous job (today),” he said. “They’re very aggressive; they especially (were) this week (in practice). They were making it tough on me throwing the ball.”