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ESPN College GameDay Story
As part of the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the opening of Perkins Stadium, the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Department of Intercollegiate Athletics presents the "Perkins Stadium at 50" series Presented by UW Credit Union, a look at some of the most memorable moments and games in the history of the stadium.
On Oct. 25, 2014, hours after a feature on head coach Lance Leipold's 100th career win and the Warhawks aired on ESPN's College GameDay, the Warhawks defeated UW-Oshkosh 24-7 on Homecoming Saturday in front of 13,627 fans at Perkins Stadium, a school and conference record at the time.
Leipold had reach the milestone the previous week at UW-Eau Claire in his 106th game as a head coach, which is the fastest in NCAA history – at any level – to reach 100 career wins.
His achievement was chronicled by ESPN national college football writer Gene Wojciechowski during the nationally-syndicated show, which draws between 1.5 and 2 million viewers each Saturday morning during the college football season.
Former Warhawk defensive back Brady Grayvold (2012-14), who was interviewed for the story, spoke about the experience during a recent edition of Inside Warhawk Athletics Presented by Educators Credit Union.
"When you work so hard for something, you don't necessarily do it because you're getting recognized, you're not doing it to get compensated due to likeness, you're not getting 50 free pairs of shoes and 100,000 people at your games," Grayvold said. "We're there because we're good, but we're playing the game because we love the game.
"I think that was the part in the little niche that we carved, getting the recognition that we not necessarily deserved, but to show people that these guys show up just like the big dogs do every single week, and are practicing just as hard, and doing the same things, and don't have all the amenities.
"The crowd was absolutely unbelievable. To come out of that game with a win, I mean it was a close game throughout. But I think that's still one of the coolest things that I got to be a part of and one of the cooler things I've ever seen. Seeing us on ESPN College GameDay, I mean everybody knows ESPN College GameDay across the football world. To have that little piece of history and have that moment was pretty special."
See below for the complete recap from that day, courtesy of uwwsports.com.
October 25, 2014 – UW-Whitewater 24, UW-Oshkosh 7
WHITEWATER, Wis. – The top-ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater football team scored 17 first-half points and used an aggressive, hard-hitting style of defense on Homecoming Saturday to defeat UW-Oshkosh 24-7 in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference showdown in front of a raucous, school record-setting crowd of 13,627 at Perkins Stadium.
The Warhawks (7-0 overall, 4-0 WIAC) scored the first 24 points in the game and allowed only a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter – the first touchdown surrendered by the defense in just over 11 quarters – against the Titans.
UW-Whitewater extended its win streak to 24, the second-longest in any NCAA division of college football.
Senior quarterback
Matt Behrendt (Westchester, IL/Nazareth Academy) finished 17-of-29 for 175 yards and two touchdowns with one interception – his first since Nov. 2, 2013, after 388 straight attempts without a pick.
Junior running back
Jordan Ratliffe (Milwaukee/Milwaukee Vincent)d rushed for a team-high 66 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries, while senior wide receiver
Justin Howard (West Bend/Homestead) corralled five receptions for 43 yards. Senior wide receiver
Jake Kumerow (Bartlett, IL/South Elgin) tallied three catches for 59 yards and a score.
Junior defensive back
Ryan Winske (Omro/Omro) and junior linebacker
Justin Dischler (Milwaukee/Pius XI) led the UW-Whitewater defense with 11 and 10 tackles, respectively. Sophomore defensive lineman
Brandon Tamsett (Waterford/Waterford-Union) totaled six tackles, including two for a loss, and junior defensive lineman
Zach Franz (DeForest/DeForest Area) registered six stops and 1.5 sacks.
Senior defensive back
Brady Grayvold (Norway, MI/Norway) added six tackles and an interception, his fourth of the season and 10th in his last 12 games.
The Warhawks outgained the Titans 212-68 in the first half, running just nine more plays from scrimmage than UW-Oshkosh (3-4, 3-1).
UW-Whitewater stopped the Titans on the opening possession, then traveled 72 yards in just six plays as Behrendt threw to the corner of the end zone for Kumerow, who made a fantastic one-handed catch for a nine-yard touchdown with 11:23 to play in the first quarter.
After another UW-Oshkosh three-and-out, the Warhawks drove deep into Titan territory. Following a key third down conversion on a 10-yard pass from Behrendt to Howard, Ratliffe finished the drive with a four-yard touchdown run to put UW-Whitewater ahead 14-0 with 6:18 to play in the period.
The two teams traded punts before UW-Oshkosh converted a first down for the first time in the contest late in the first quarter. The Warhawks forced a punt, but had to punt it back to the Titans on a three-and-out on the ensuing drive.
After four more punts (two by each team), UW-Whitewater recorded the first turnover of the game as sophomore defensive lineman
Tim Regan (Algonquin, IL/HD Jacobs) recovered a UW-Oshkosh fumble at the Titans' 32-yard line with 1:36 left in the second quarter.
Junior running back
Dennis Moore (Elgin, IL/Elgin) rushed for 19 yards on the ensuing drive, which concluded with a 25-yard field goal by freshman kicker
Will Meyer (Sheboygan Falls, Wis./Sheboygan Falls) as the first half ended.
The second half started with the Warhawks' second turnover of the season on the first possession as Behrendt's pass got by Howard and into the hands of the Titans' Kevin MacCudden.
With the ball deep in UW-Whitewater territory, UW-Oshkosh fumbled on its first play from scrimmage. Winske stripped CJ Blackburn and the ball was recovered by senior defensive back
Marcus McLin (Delavan/Delavan-Darien).
After three empty drives, the Titans drove into Warhawks territory, but were stopped at the UW-Whitewater 27-yard line as Gravyold intercepted Dylan Hecker and returned it 54 yards back to the UW-Oshkosh 14-yard line.
Two plays later, Behrendt found senior tight end
Derric Junakin (Cudahy/Cudahy) on first-and-goal from three yards out to give the Warhawks a 24-0 advantage with 3:22 left in the third quarter.
Following a UW-Oshkosh punt and a UW-Whitewater turnover on downs, the Titans put together a 12-play, 74-yard drive, posting their first touchdown of the contest one play after converting on fourth-and-one to make it 24-7 with 8:55 on the clock in the fourth quarter.
After forcing a three-and-out, UW-Oshkosh drove down to the Warhawks' 14-yard line, but were stopped on fourth-and-nine as junior defensive back
Dylan Morang (Saint John, IN/Lake Central) intercepted Hecker in the end zone with 2:01 to play to post UW-Whitewater's fourth turnover of the contest.
The Warhawks finished with 297 yards (122 rushing, 175 passing) while holding the Titans to 263 (195 rushing, 99 passing). UW-Oshkosh held the ball for 33:40, including more than 10 minutes in the fourth quarter, but was stymied by UW-Whitewater on third down, converting just 5-of-18.
The Warhawks continue WIAC competition next Saturday at 13th-ranked UW-Platteville, which is also unbeaten in conference play. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m.
