Spielbuhler guides ULV after injury
Campus Times
November 20, 1998
The football season came to an end last Saturday with a game against
Menlo College. Late in the second quarter, junior running back Ordell Williams
carries the ball over one of Menlo's defenders. The Leopards won, 19-15.
In a season of injuries for the University of La Verne football team,
the Leopards' final game of the season had its share of bumps and bruises.
And with every injured player comes his replacement to step up and fill
the void.
Junior quarterback Kyle Spielbuhler took over for the injured Dan Blahy,
the junior starting quarterback, and led the Leopards to a 19-15 come-from-behind
victory over the visiting Menlo College Oaks last Saturday.
Spielbuhler, who threw for 166 yards and a touchdown pass, scored the
deciding touchdown on a 9-yard run with 2:35 left in the fourth quarter.
"Kyle was competitive and made it happen," La Verne head coach
Don Morel said. "He is not going to make anybody miss, [because] he
is a tank."
Coach Morel described Spielbuhler as a "tank" because the
backup quarterback was plowing through the Menlo defense before stretching
into the end zone for the game-winner.
"We ran the play because we kept running the ball outside, so we
booted back," Spielbuhler said of his scoring scramble. "I saw
one guy, so I decided to run it. I had a couple other times earlier, so
I am going to do whatever I can to get in the end zone."
"I knew we had plenty of time," junior Andrew Woolsey said.
"Throughout the drive, we were taking it one play at a time. [Spielbuhler]
knew exactly what to do."
The La Verne defense was doing all it could in keeping the Oaks out
of the end zone. Although Menlo quarterback junior J.P. Albert threw for
155 yards, he was intercepted four times by the Leopards secondary.
"When they came out in a pass formation, our defensive coordinator
[Kirk] Harmon would have us blitzing a lot, which put a lot of pressure
on their quarterback to get the ball off, so our [defensive backs] had a
chance to step up and make the plays," said junior outside linebacker
Joe Wright, who had two interceptions.
With the Leopards trailing 15-9, the ULV offense was forced to punt
at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Spielbuhler, who is the full-time
punter, booted the pigskin inside the Menlo 20-yard line. But as the ball
was coming down, it bounced off the foot of Oaks' wide receiver Tim Delaney,
and La Verne junior linebacker Mike Barreiro fell on the ball it at the
Oaks' 19. The turnover set up a 25-yard field goal off the foot of the backup
place kicker sophomore James Synder, who took over the kicking duties after
the third quarter for Blahy.
"They made a big mistake of getting near the ball when they were
trying to field it, and they are not supposed to do that," Barreiro
said. "First, I was going to pick it up, but I decided to fall on it.
"Our defensive line, they played spectacular, they were getting
penetration. Our corners were locked up. Our free safety was making good
reads. All-around, it was a great defensive effort."
The first touchdown the Leopards put on the board was a 55-yard pass
from Spielbuhler to Woolsey.
Woolsey's sixth touchdown catch of the season gave the Leopards a 9-0
lead with 5:54 left in the third.
The Oaks, however, responded with a long kickoff return down to the
La Verne 13-yard line. On the first play, Menlo's senior running back Sheva
Brach found the end zone, cutting the Leopards' lead to 9-7.
The Oaks took the lead on a 1-yard touchdown run by senior fullback
Dan Nguyen with 1:27 to go in the third.
After the Leopards scored on Spielbuhler's run, senior defensive back
Devin Carillo picked off Albert with 1:42 to go in the game, and after Menlo
received the ball with 1:18 left, Wright intercepted Albert for the second
time to seal the victory for the Leopards.
"It is a great way to end this season, which is actually starting
off next season," Wright said. "We are going to have a real solid
core of starters on both sides of the ball [next year]. Everybody came together
and did what they had to do today, and that shows the heart that we will
be able to bring into next season.
"Being SCIAC champions [next year] is not a farfetched goal at
all."
"We started 17 underclassmen today, so the bulk [of the starters]
is coming back" Morel said of his team, which finished 4-5 overall.
"We have a good character group of guys. Our goal was to be an improved
team from last year [when the Leopards finished 2-7 overall], and we have
done that."
