Wabash caps emotional season with another Monon Bell triumph

CRAWFORDSVILLE – In the waning minutes of the 125th Monon Bell Classic, an announcement echoed in Little Giant Stadium.

The public service announcer asked fans to wait until both teams were off the field before entering the field of play.

Like anyone was listening.

Before the clock hit 0:00, Wabash students were on the field, with hundreds of fans following to celebrate the Little Giants’ 24-17 victory Saturday. The win marked the ninth time in the previous 10 seasons that Wabash came out on top against rival DePauw.

It was a euphoric moment for the Little Giants football team, who moves to 9-1 and gives it a share of the North Coast Athletic Conference title. It was a moment that coach Don Morel couldn’t have foreseen six weeks prior.

“This win is particularly special, not just the Bell game but finishing the season period,” Morel said. “With what our football team’s been through, you can’t even describe it. … To win our last five and win the Bell game, it’s just a real statement about the kids we have at Wabash College.”

Following the suicide of senior Evan Hansen, Morel didn’t even know if his team was going to win another game, let alone finish as they did. He admits there’s still a lot of healing to be had, but this win is a start.

“Our thoughts were that, ‘We’re going to get through this together and good things are going to end up happening,’” Morel said. “And they did.”

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Hours before the rivalry game, thousands of fans dressed in either yellow and black or red and white filled the streets and parking lots of Wabash’s campus.

The sound of the 9,555 that found their way into Little Giant Stadium — a sellout crowd — drowned out the sounds of the 300-pound locomotive bell that, like always, rang throughout the contest.  

It’s been said that records can be thrown away anytime these two teams meet. That notion remained true in the 125th rendition of the rivalry.  

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Wabash set the tone on the first drive. Less than a minute in, junior quarterback Jake Reid found Ryan Thomas who broke double-coverage and ran downfield for a 79-yard Wabash touchdown. On the first play of the game, the pair tried a similar pass-and-catch, which fell incomplete.

Morel says the play-call was because he respects DePauw’s defense, which allows around 320 yards to opposing offenses per game. Reid, starting in his first Monon Bell Classic, had another reason.

“In a game like this, you want to set the tone on the first play,” Reid said. “We wanted to take a shot and see what we could do to try and get the momentum in our favor.”

A few drives later, senior linebacker Byshup Rhodes found the end zone after scooping a DePauw fumble and going 54-yards for a score, putting Wabash up 14 early.

But DePauw wouldn’t go away quietly. In the second quarter, the Tigers capped off a pair of 75-plus-yard drives with sophomore quarterback Chase Andries finding Andy Hunt and Michael Grace to bring DePauw within three.

The Little Giants ran off most of the remaining four minutes until halftime, scoring on a 9-yard touchdown from Reid to Ivan Martinez, to go up 24-14.

In the second half, the defenses took over.

Two of DePauw’s three interceptions came in the third quarter and a late-game stop on fourth-and-6 gave the Tigers one last opportunity to tie the score following their previous drive that ended in a field goal.  

A forced fumble gave Wabash the eventual victory and kept them in possession of the Monon Bell trophy for the second year in a row. 

Wabash 24, DePauw 17

DePauw  0   14   0  3  —  17
Wabash  14  10  0  0  —  24

W – Ryan Thomas 79 pass from Jake Reid (Jack Handley kick)

W – Byshup Rhodes 54 fumble return (Handley kick)

D – Andy Hunt 1 pass from Chase Andries (Jake Tanner kick)

W – Schuyler Nehrig 25 FG

D – Michael Grace 22 pass from Andries (Tanner kick)

W – Ivan Martinez 9 pass from Reid (Handley kick)

D – Tanner 26 FG

Rushing — DePauw: Hunt 4-51, Andries 11-42, Ramon Lopez 9-37, Demarco Henry 6-20, Matt Labus 4-7, Tanner Cleveland 1-5, Noah Jones 1-2, Team 1-(minus-27); Wabash: Isaac Avant 36-150, Matt Penola 4-23, Micah Walker 2-(minus-5)

Passing — DePauw: Andries 17-26-1 183, Labus 0-3-0 0; Wabash: Reid 13-28-3 232.

Receiving — DePauw: Hunt 8-73, Will Harris 5-54, Blake Podschine 1-26, Grace 1-22, Josh Pottebaum 1-6, Lopez 1-2; Wabash: Thomas 3-95, Oliver Page 5-73, Ra’Shawn Jones 1-29, Penola 1-17, Avant 2-9, Martinez 1-9.