By Frank Rajkowski & Ryan Klinkner '04

Box Score | SJU Press Conference | UNW Press Conference

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – On a frigid and blustery November day, Aaron Syverson (Minnetonka, Minn.) and his fourth-ranked Saint John's University teammates were determined to start off on fire Saturday afternoon.

And that's just what happened as Syverson, the Johnnies' junior quarterback, led his team on five-straight scoring drives in the first half en route to a 49-0 victory over Northwestern in the first round of the NCAA Division III playoffs at a sunny, but chilly Clemens Stadium.

"It means a lot to get the momentum going early," said Syverson, who finished 19 of 23 passing for 204 yards and four touchdowns as his team built a 35-0 halftime lead. "The defense was playing really well early and the offense was clicking. That's how the coaches draw it up - start hot and keep it going the whole game."

The Johnnies improved to 10-1 and advanced to the second round where they will meet No. 12 Wartburg (Iowa) at noon next Saturday (Nov. 26) in Collegeville.

The Knights, the champions of the American Rivers Conference, defeated No. 7 Wisconsin-La Crosse 14-6 in the first round Saturday. 



"I expect a hard-fought game," said junior wide receiver Jimmy Buck (Orono, Minn.), who finished with eight catches for 76 yards and two touchdowns against UNW. "They just beat a really great team. But we (likely) have another home game. It's a great opportunity and we need to take advantage of it."

The Johnnies certainly made the most of their opportunities Saturday. Senior Nick VanErp (Battle Lake, Minn./Ottertail Central) – who finished with four catches for 87 yards - got things started on the right foot with a 41-yard touchdown catch on the game's opening drive.

Then Syverson and Buck connected on a 9-yard scoring strike early in the second quarter to make it 14-0. Senior tight end Alex Larson (Woodbury, Minn./East Ridge) hauled in a 6-yard touchdown catch, junior Tony Underwood (Eagan, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall) scored on a 4-yard run and Buck caught an 11-yard touchdown pass to close out the first-half scoring.

"We knew their offense was going to be tough," said Northwestern senior linebacker Nic Schultz, whose team finished its season 6-5 overall.  "It's Saint John's – they're good."

Meanwhile, the SJU defense held the Eagles – the champions of the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference – to just 42 yards of offense in the first half and (-13) on the ground. Northwestern finished the afternoon with a net total of just six yards rushing.

The Johnnies recorded 10 tackles for loss, including five sacks, and intercepted two passes.

"We wanted to keep the same mentality we had (in a 28-10 victory over Bethel in the MIAC Championship Game a week ago)," said senior defensive end Metoriah Faoliu (Wildomar, Calif./Vista Murrieta), who had six tackles, including two for a loss, and a sack to lead his team defensively.

"We just wanted to keep working on our craft and try to keep (their offense) to a minimum."

Freshman Caden Wheeler (Andover, Minn.) and sophomore Quinn Christoffersen (South St. Paul, Minn.) each rushed for a touchdown in the second half to close out the scoring and send SJU into the second round with momentum.

"You have to come out and set the tone right away," SJU coach Gary Fasching said. "You do that by how hard you play and how physical you are. I thought our guys showed that right away (today). We came out and you could see that we were probably more physical on the offensive line than they were on the defensive line. We were able to run the football early and give Aaron time to throw.

"Things like that make a big difference. Games like this – when you're favored – you have to come in and take care of business. I thought we did that."

The temperature at kickoff Saturday was 14 degrees, making it the coldest game SJU has played in since at least 2001. The temperature at kickoff for a 45-14 victory over Coe (Iowa) in the second round of the 2002 playoffs was 16 degrees. It was 17 degrees at kickoff for a 38-10 win over Rensselaer (N.Y.) in the national semifinals in 2003 and again for a 63-23 victory over Thomas More (Ky.) in the regular-season finale in 2018.

The temperature at kickoff for a 29-26 win over Bethel on Nov. 8, 2003 – when former head coach John Gagliardi passed Eddie Robinson as the winningest coach in school history – was 18 degrees.

"It was cold, but we're all from Minnesota," Buck said. "We've all played in cold games and adjusted to it."

Still, Fasching praised the work of the school's grounds crew who got the field ready despite the snow that fell in Central Minnesota for most of the past week.

"When I went out there on Thursday, I thought we might be in trouble," Fasching said. "But (SJU physical plant director) Russ Klein and his crew did a great job."

Slingin' It Up the Charts
Saturday's performance enabled Syverson to climb the charts in a number of SJU passing categories. His season totals have him fifth in both completions (235) and attempts (365), and sixth in in passing yards (3,058) and passing touchdowns (34). Syverson's career totals place him in a tie for seventh in passing touchdowns (51) and eighth in three other stats: attempts (553), completions (360) and passing yards (4,826).

25th 10-Win Season
Saturday's win provided the Johnnies with their 25th 10-win season in program history, as well as their fourth consecutive and seventh in nine competitive seasons with Fasching as head coach.

Postseason Shutout
The shutout is the 189th in program history - the 20th in 107 games under Fasching and the 72nd with defensive coordinator Jerry Haugen '76 on staff – but just the fourth for SJU in 75 postseason games. The last SJU shutout in the playoffs was a 61-0 drubbing of Buena Vista (Iowa) in the Division III semifinals on Nov. 27, 1976, in sub-zero temperatures in Collegeville. 

First-Round Success Continues
SJU is now 49-26 (.653) record in postseason games, including a 44-25 record at the Division III level, and 21-4 in the first round.