Gary Dunn took some time to speak to his players, who were assembled on the Adamson Stadium turf.
After his No. 17 California University of Pennsylvania team dropped a 21-14 decision to visiting No. 3 Kutztown Saturday afternoon in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference championship game, the ninth-year Vulcans coach then turned his attention elsewhere.
With the 28-team NCAA Division II playoff bracket set to be unveiled Sunday evening, Dunn wasn’t in a mood to mince words.
By virtue of winning its third PSAC championship in four years, Kutztown (11-0, 7-0) received the conference’s automatic berth to the NCAA postseason field, while California (8-2, 6-0) must wait to see if it will keep its season alive with an at-large bid to the national playoffs.
“I bit my tongue two years ago when we didn’t get in at 10-1,” said Dunn after his team fell short of winning its 10th PSAC title and first since 2016 Saturday. “I won’t bite my tongue again. I think we’re in. Our only two losses are going to be to the No. 1 team in the region and the No. 2 team in the region. We’ve beaten the No. 4 team in the region going into this week.
“I don’t think there’s a way they can hold us out.”
The Vulcans opened their season with a tough 23-19 loss to Charleston, W.Va., which went on to win its second consecutive Mountain East Conference title and finish as the undefeated sixth-ranked team in the country.
En route to earning an undefeated record in the PSAC West Division, California also knocked off No. 11 Slippery Rock, which finished the regular season as the fourth-ranked team in its region.
“Let it hurt for a night, flush it Sunday, recover, come back here Monday and I feel like we earned our right to be in the playoffs,” Vulcans quarterback Davis Black said. “Hopefully that’s what other people think as well. We’ll just come in ready to work because it’s a another season come Monday.”
The Vulcans’ offense trailed early and was never fully able to recover and gain momentum against the Golden Bears, who came into the game No. 2 in the nation in total defense.
“They’re really, really good,” Dunn said. “Give them credit, they played better today than we did. I thought we had some things offensively, and at the end of the day we just didn’t execute well enough to win the game. Our defense played their hearts out, but we win as a team, lose as a team. We just didn’t make the plays today and they did.”
Black completed 14-of-29 passes for 193 yards and rushed for 42 yards and two touchdowns. His 8-yard run in the third quarter and his 3-yard run to pay dirt in the fourth accounted for all of California’s points.
Running back Bobby Boyd Jr., a McKeesport product, also rushed for a team-high 48 yards for the Vulcans, while wide receiver Eric Willis III caught five passes for 89 yards.
“We got inside their 40, I think, three or four times in the first half,” Black said. “We got no points out of it. You’ve got to score touchdowns to win a game like that.”
Kutztown running back Jaedyn Stewart carried the football 14 times for 115 yards and a touchdown. His 8-yard touchdown catch from Golden Bears quarterback Judd Novak on the game’s opening possession were the only points of the first half.
Stewart, who was named PSAC championship game MVP, rushed for a 41-yard touchdown in the third quarter before running back Steven Burkhardt effectively put the game out of reach with a 2-yard run to the end zone with 13:21 left in the fourth quarter.
“It’s pretty awesome,” said Kutztown coach Jim Clements, whose team advanced to the NCAA semifinals a year ago and has appeared in the PSAC title game in five of the past eight years. “It’s a great experience for our kids. They worked extremely hard. They earned it.”
Kutztown entered Saturday’s contest on NCAA Division II’s longest regular-season winning streak at 19 games. The last time the Golden Bears lost a regular-season contest was in Week 2 in 2023 when California defeated them, 31-20, at Adamson Stadium.
Clements said he was pleased to get a measure of revenge.
“I think Cal is one of the best teams in the West,” he said. “Obviously they won the West this year and they’re always in the mix. They’re always one of the tougher teams that we play. When they’re on our regular schedule early in the year, I’m not real happy about it.
“Gary does an unbelievable job, very similar to how we do it,” he added. “I’ve just got the utmost respect for their program. Their kids play hard. We got this one, a little revenge from last year’s loss.”
California will now turn its attention to the NCAA playoffs should they receive an at-large bid.
“Our guys are going to battle,” Dunn said. “They’re going to compete. They’re heartbroken right now because they put all their eggs into this basket. I feel for them. I wish we would’ve played our best football. We didn’t play that today.
“We’re going to get together tomorrow and see where we’re at and get back to work for the NCAA playoffs.”
No. 11 Slippery Rock closes out regular season with win over Bloomsburg
Running back Idris Lawrence rushed for 111 yards and a touchdown, while quarterback Brayden Long added another score on the ground, as No. 11 Slippery Rock knocked off visiting Bloomsburg, 27-7, Saturday afternoon at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium.
The Rock (9-1, 5-1), which finished second in the PSAC West behind California, will now also be waiting to see if they receive an at-large bid to the NCAA playoffs after dispatching of Bloomsburg (6-5, 4-3).
Linebacker Jacob Snow returned an interception 23 yards for a Slippery Rock touchdown, while kicker Mason Yohn made field-goal attempts of 25 and 40 yards.
IUP closes out season with victory
Quarterback Karst Hunter racked up 247 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns to lead Indiana University of Pennsylvania to a 38-7 PSAC win against Shippensburg at George P. Miller Stadium Saturday afternoon in both teams’ regular-season finales.
Hunter threw for 134 yards and two interceptions, but also rushed for touchdowns of 18, 2 and 4 yards for the Crimson Hawks (7-3, 3-3) against the Raiders (2-9, 1-6).
Running backs Adam Houser and Bethel Park product Austin Caye also rushed for touchdowns for IUP.
Duquesne remains perfect in NEC with rout of Wagner
Quarterback Darius Perrantes completed 27-of-46 passes for 393 yards, six touchdowns and two interceptions to lead No. 21 Duquesne to a 42-21 rout of Wagner and at least a share of the Northeast Conference championship Saturday afternoon at Arthur J. Rooney Field in its final home game of the regular season.
With the win against Wagner (4-7, 2-3), the Dukes (8-2, 5-0) remain alone atop the NEC standings and will have a chance to secure their second straight outright conference championship and NCAA Division I FCS playoff berth next week with a victory on the road against second-place Central Connecticut State.
Wide receiver Teddy Aful caught 10 passes for 208 yards and a touchdown to lead Duquesne, while Joey Isabella caught five passes for 67 yards and two scores, John Erby added six catches for 63 yards and two touchdowns and Steven Mahan Jr. chipped in an 8-yard touchdown reception.
Robert Morris falls to Central Connecticut State in double-overtime thriller
Robert Morris blew a 14-point, third-quarter advantage en route to suffering a 35-33 loss in double overtime Saturday afternoon against Central Connecticut State at Arute Field in New Britain, Conn.
A victory for the Colonials (6-5, 4-2) against the Blue Devils (6-5, 5-1) would have assured their crosstown rival, Duquesne, an outright NEC championship.
Senior defensive back Rob Carter Jr. made his mark early in the contest for Robert Morris, which took a 3-0 lead on a field goal by Gateway product Jayson Jenkins. Carter then returned a kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown before taking an interception 50 yards to the end zone for a score.
The Colonials’ lead would balloon to as much as 24-10 in the third quarter following a 19-yard touchdown pass from Bethel Park graduate Anthony Chiccitt to Carl Smith Jr.
The Blue Devils responded by outscoring Robert Morris, 17-3, in the fourth quarter to force overtime before Elijah Howard scored a 12-yard touchdown run and his team added a 2-point conversion on a pass from Brady Olson to Isaac Boston in the second overtime to seal the victory.
Chiccitt threw for 120 yards and a touchdown, and wide receiver Noah Robinson had four catches for 60 yards and a score.
No. 18 W&J wins share of PAC championship, conference’s automatic bid to NCAA Division III tournament
No. 18 Washington & Jefferson routed Allegheny, 45-0, Saturday afternoon at Frank B. Fuhrer Field in Meadville to claim a share of its first Presidents’ Athletic Conference championship since 2018 and, more critically, an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs.
The Presidents (9-1) assured themselves of a first-place tie in the PAC with No. 12 Grove City (9-1) and No. 13 Carnegie Mellon (9-1) with the road victory against the Gators (1-9).
W&J handed Grove City its only loss of the season but dropped a heartbreaking overtime decision to Carnegie Mellon. The Tartans’ lone loss of the 2024 campaign came against Grove City. The Presidents earned the tiebreaker because they hold the best point-differential between the three teams finishing in first place.
The NCAA will announce the expanded 40-team NCAA Division III playoff bracket at 5 p.m. Sunday.
Senior quarterback Jacob Pugh, a Thomas Jefferson product and one of the nation’s top passers, was again magnificent Saturday. He threw for 295 yards and five touchdowns.
Peters Township product Jacob Macosko caught six passes for a game-high 135 yards and two scores, while fellow W&J wide receiver John Peduzzi added seven receptions for 103 yards and two scores and Southmoreland graduate Zach Cernuto contributed four catches for 49 yards and a touchdown.
Running back Troy Volpatti, a Bethel Park product, finished with a game-high 75 rushing yards for the Presidents and Laurel graduate Kobe Derosa added 60 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
No. 12 Grove City dominates Westminster en route to share of second straight PAC title
Running back Ian Demeri, a Penn-Trafford graduate, carried the football 30 times for 163 yards and three touchdowns as No. 12 Grove City defeated host Westminster, 36-9, Saturday afternoon in a PAC game at Memorial Field inside Harold Burry Stadium in New Wilmington.
Quarterback Logan Pfeuffer, a Peters Township graduate, threw for 166 yard and a touchdown, while also rushing for 11 yards and a score, to lead the Wolverines, who advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs a season ago.
Grove City, which won its first NCAA playoff game in school history a season ago, fell to eventual national champion Cortland, 25-24, to end its historic season in the second round.
Pfeuffer completed six passes for 79 yards against Westminster (7-3) Saturday to Knoch product Scott Fraser and two passes for 70 yards and a score to Blackhawk graduate Ryan Heckathorn.
No. 13 Carnegie Mellon keeps hopes for NCAA playoff berth alive with win over rival Case Western Reserve
No. 13 Carnegie Mellon quarterback Ben Mills rushed for a 2-yard touchdown with 1:21 left in Saturday’s 38th annual Academic Bowl to escape with a 37-30 victory against rival Case Western Reserve in both teams’ PAC regular-season finales at DiSanto Field in Cleveland, Ohio.
The win against the Spartans (6-4) assured the Tartans a share of the PAC championship and a shot at a third NCAA playoff berth in four seasons.
Running back Tre Vasiliadis carried the football 20 times for 111 yards for Carnegie Mellon, while Mills and Joey McGinnis IV contributed two touchdowns apiece.
Tartans kicker Justin Caputo, a South Fayette product, also made field goals of 32 and 33 yards.
Zayne Cawley shines in loss for Waynesburg in regular-season finale
Running back Zayne Cawley rushed for a game-high 113 yards on 19 carries, but was unable to help Waynesburg close out its regular season on a high note with a 33-6 PAC loss to Geneva at Reeves Field in Beaver Falls.
Isaac Trout, a Southmoreland product, caught a game-high six passes for 48 yards for the Yellow Jackets (4-6) against the Golden Tornadoes (5-5).
Bruising running back David Reid rushed for 92 yards and three touchdowns to pace Geneva.
John is a copy editor and page designer at the Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at jsanta@unionprogress.com.