BETHANY, W.Va. - Everybody around the Presidents' Athletic Conference talks about the Waynesburg University football team's running attack, and they should. It's very good. With freshman halfback Robert Heller, who entered the weekend leading all NCAA divisions in rushing, third-year Yellow Jackets head coach Rick Shepas has a relentless and dependable way to move the football.
However, if it were up to Bethany coach Tim Weaver, all talk about Waynesburg would start with the Yellow Jackets' defense.
"Waynesburg's defense, that's what no one is talking about. I told Rick that his team could lay an egg on offense and he'd still be in every game because of that defense," Weaver said after Waynesburg's dominated Bethany's offense Saturday afternoon.
Waynesburg held the Bison to a mere five first downs and 24 rushing yards as the Yellow Jackets remained undefeated by rolling to a 45-7 victory on Homecoming Day at Bethany Field.
Waynesburg is 6-0 for the first time since 1967, one year after the Yellow Jackets won the NAIA national championship.
"That defense is good at every level," Weaver said. "You can't block No. 29 (defensive end Mike Czerwien) and No. 85 (defensive end D.J. DeWitt). Then there's Brendon Steele at linebacker and the whole secondary runs well. That's clearly the best team we've played so far. ... Offensively, we didn't know what we could do against them."
Bethany (0-3, 2-4) did little against the Waynesburg defense. The Bison turned the ball over twice, averaged 1.1 yards per rushing attempt and fell behind 14-0 before gaining their initial first down - with 4:42 remaining in the first half. It was the second consecutive week Waynesburg's defense went the first 25 minutes without allowing a first down.
"Our defense doesn't mind being overlooked. Those guys don't want the attention," Shepas said.
The Waynesburg defense got the attention of the Bethany offense on the Bison's third play from scrimmage. Steele took a deep drop from his linebacker position and intercepted Milton Joyner's pass at the Bethany 31-yard line - 22 yards downfield.
"The coaches always say that you're not guarding grass. The quarterback isn't going to throw you the ball, so go find some work," explained Steele, a Canon-McMillan graduate. "There was nobody in my area, so I went looking for work. I found a receiver and was at the right spot at the right time."
Steele's interception set up Heller's 20-yard touchdown run that made it 7-0. Heller finished with two touchdown runs, as did backup halfback Jamelle Price, who capped a 46-yard drive early in the second quarter with a one-yard plunge that gave Waynesburg a 14-0 advantage. Heller stretched the lead to 21-0 with an eight-yard jaunt around right end in the final minute of the first half.
Heller carried 29 times for 130 yards - 78 below his average. With Bethany's defense crowding the line of scrimmage, Waynesburg took to the air in the second half and broke open the game. Cornerback Jacques Newberry intercepted Joyner on the first play of the second half, setting up a 30-yard touchdown toss from Waynesburg freshman quarterback Kyle Kyper to freshman wide receiver Ray Hightower.
"Every week we take the philosophy that we want to run, but it's not easy to block nine guys in the box," said Kyper, a transfer from IUP, where he was redshirted last fall. "When teams do that, we get man coverage all over the field. I'm gaining a trust in our receivers. Remember, they're new too."
On Waynesburg's next possession, Kyper and Hightower connected again on a 24-yard post pattern that made it 35-0. Kyper completed eight of 13 passes for 132 yards.
"No question we dared them to pass," Weaver said. "Give them credit because they did it. And it wasn't like anyone was wide open. Their guys completed the passes and the receivers broke tackles."
Bethany's only score came on a 31-yard pass from Joyner to Matt Cruse late in the third quarter. Price's second touchdown was a five-yard run early in the fourth quarter.
While Weaver said he isn't surprised by Waynesburg's 6-0 start, Steele admits there was a time when he wasn't sure how quickly the Jackets would climb the ladder of success.
"You always set your goals for something like this," Steele said. "We knew we had a good team, but the big question was how quickly the team would jell. But by the time we broke camp, we knew big things were possible."
Extra points
Kyle McBride kicked a 35-yard field goal in the third quarter for Waynesburg. ... Czerwien, who led Division III in sacks (1.9 per game) had two more to bring his season total to 12. ... Nelson Mitzen, a sophomore safety and Waynesburg Central graduate, led Bethany's defense with 10 tackles. ... Ten of Bethany's 13 possessions lasted three plays or less. ... Dan Takah, a quarterback from Avella, was one of five inducted Friday into the Bethany Athletic Hall of Fame. Takah played 1991-93.