WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Nov. 10) – The Waynesburg University football team wrapped up the 2018 season on Saturday with their annual Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Backyard Brawl rivalry game against 17^th-ranked Washington & Jefferson, which also served as the Orange and Black's senior day. After struggling to put up points in the first half, the Yellow Jackets pulled to within 12 points of the Presidents in the fourth quarter, but W&J, which clinched the PAC title with the win, tallied the final score of a 33-14 game.
 
Waynesburg (4-6, 4-5) ends a season that saw it post its most total wins and PAC wins since 2014. The Presidents (9-1, 8-1) could still wind up in a tie with 18^th-ranked Case Western Reserve at the top of the league standings. However, W&J's 44-36 win over Case on Oct. 6, gives it the head-to-head tiebreaker and the automatic bid into the NCAA Division III National Championship tournament.
 
The visiting team built a 20-0 lead 57 seconds into the second quarter. However, the Jacket defense responded by keeping the Red and Black off the scoreboard for the remainder of the half and the first 10-plus minutes of the third quarter, when W&J got the scoring going again with a touchdown pass that made the score 26-0.
 
The Jackets outscored their opponents 14-6 over the remainder of the game. Freshman running back Jordan Taylor (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Quaker Valley) broke up the shutout with a one-yard touchdown plunge, his first as a Jacket, that finished off a 10-play, 87-yard drive with less than a minute to play in the third period. Senior kicker Garret Guthrie (Marianna, Pa. / Trinity) connected on his first of two success PAT tries.
 
Waynesburg controlled the ball for nearly the entire third quarter. Along with its 3:47 scoring drive, the Jackets also put together a 15-play, 62-yard marathon after taking the opening kickoff. Unfortunately, the 9:12 possession ended one yard short of a fourth-down conversion, giving the ball back to W&J.
 
Senior defensive end Logan Eller (Somerset, Pa. / Somerset) made his final collegiate game a memorable one when he scored the last Waynesburg points of the season on a 45-yard interception return for a touchdown. After W&J posted the final touchdown of the contest, Waynesburg got the ball back one more time and again masterfully controlled the clock and the football as it moved 40 yards on 14 plays. Unfortunately, the drive stalled on fourth down at the opposing 29-yard-line.
 
Junior running back Chad Walker (Waldorf, Md. / Thomas Stone) was Waynesburg's best offensive weapon, as he rushed for 102 yards on just 15 carries before leaving the game with an injury.
 
Junior quarterback Tyler Perone completed 17-of-32 passes for 107 yards and an interception. He completed five passes to junior wide receiver Nick Moretti (Washington, Pa. / Trinity) and hooked up with sophomore wide out Dorian Hardy (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Taylor Allderdice) a team-high six times for 37 yards.
 
Senior defensive back Andrew Brncic (Export, Pa. / Franklin Regional) had a productive final collegiate game. He set game highs in both total tackles (13) and solo stops (10). Brncic also broke up a pass and logged a tackle for loss.
 
Junior defensive back Dan Verhovsek (Johnstown, Pa. / Richland) added 10 tackles, while juniors VaShon Graham (Pittsburgh, Pa. / North Catholic) and Tyler Smith (Poland, Ohio / Poland) logged nine and eight tackles, respectively.
 
Waynesburg's offensive line not only led the way for Walker's 100-yard running back, but gave up just one sack to W&J, which came into the game with 30 sacks, the second-highest total in the PAC.