Interception, field goal in 4th quarter solidifies win

The Waynesburg University football team is currently in the midst of its longest win streak since the 2014 season, when the Jackets went 8-3.

After starting the season 0-3, a 10-7 win over Geneva helped jumpstart a team that desperately needed a spark, especially on the offensive side of the ball and just overall as a team in the second half.

Heading into a stretch of three consecutive road games that begins Saturday at Grove City, the Yellow Jackets are riding a three-game win streak that have each been decided by a field goal. For head coach Chris Smithley, the team’s jump the past three weeks is a testament to the mentality he’s trying to establish.

“I think it’s just keeping the course and just keeping our focus on what we need to take care of on our end as opposed to focusing on what our opponents are doing or what anybody else is doing,” he said. “I think that alone has helped us to really work through some of this adversity that we face in some of these games and to be able to overcome it rather than in the first couple of games where we didn’t necessarily overcome that adversity.”

After allowing just 252 yards of offense against Carnegie Mellon this past week, Waynesburg sits atop the Presidents’ Athletic Conference in total defense—giving up just 278.2 yards per contest.

Offensively, Smithley knows the team has a way to go to get to where he wants it to be, but said the offense is doing enough based on the strong defensive play to scratch out wins.

“It’s been more of us offensively matching the defensive efforts in the second half,” said Smithley. “I think the defense has been playing well. Every now and then they have minor breakdowns, but their effort and how hard they’re playing the game kind of compensates for some of those hiccups we have. We’re playing really good defense and that’s been a backbone to our success right now.”

Another reason for the win streak lies in the arm—and occasionally legs—of junior quarterback Tyler Perone. Over the past three games, Perone has turned the ball over just once via interception, while throwing three touchdown passes and rushing for another touchdown.

In his last 18 games played, Perone threw 19 interceptions. While Smithley said there are still small adjustments the Seton Hill transfer needs to make, he feels Perone is getting much more comfortable each week.

“He’s taking his chances when he knows it’s the right time to take the chances,” said Smithley. “I think that that stretches defenses out, it makes them nervous about you stretching them vertically. I definitely think that we take plenty of shots down the field to make people on edge.”

Another key in the Yellow Jackets’ ascend to .500 has been the balanced distribution of the football, according to Smithley. Over the last three games, three different receivers have paced the team in catches and yards. Each game has also featured at least four receivers with multiple catches in the game.

With receivers like sophomores JaWuan Jones and Cole Booth, juniors Nick Moretti and Bobby Grishaber, and even freshman Dozhay Crumb, who caught the game-tying touchdown against Carnegie Mellon, among others, the Jackets have plenty of options.

“We’re really balanced with who’s touching the ball. All of our guys that are playing are touching the football,” Smithley said. “Everybody is playing a major role in what we’re doing, which I can’t explain how important that is because those guys are just feeding off each other and they’re all excited because they all know they’re going to be major role players in each game that we play.”

As the team looks to extend its win streak to four games, which was last done in 2014, Smithley continues to see his team grinding to give themselves the best opportunity each week.

“I think that the guys are really coming together as a team and when things are getting tough they’re still playing as a team,” said Smithley. “They’re just staying the course and they’re just doing what they need to do to help us win games. That’s why you see us come together here these last couple weeks and we just find a way to win.”