The categories are:
- Best offensive performance by the Golden Rams - Kutztown.
The high water mark in terms of offensive yards and points both came against Seton Hill, but the Golden Ram offense played its most complete and dominant game against the Golden Bears. Sophomore quarterback Pat Moriarty finished 30 of 40 for 437 yards and five touchdowns for an efficiency rating of 208.0 which was his highest of the season. Passes were completed to ten different receivers and four different Golden Rams nabbed touchdown catches. Four different running backs carried the ball for positive yards in the contest. With 32 first downs and zero turnovers, West Chester controlled the ball for almost 40 minutes of game time. Moriarty was named ECAC Offensive Player of Week for his performance.
- Best offensive performance by an individual Golden Ram - Jarel Elder vs Seton Hill.
The Golden Ram offense didn't miss a beat with starting running back Brandon Monk out due to an injury. Elder amassed a whopping 365 all-purpose yards and scored four touchdowns. He carried the ball 25 times for 247 yards and three touchdown, all of which were West Chester season highs. Elder was also the Golden Rams' leading receiver with eight catches for 84 yards and a score. And he also returned two kickoffs for 34 yards. Elder's 365 all-purpose yards are the third most in a single game in West Chester history. He was recognized as PSAC East Offensive Player of the Week. - Best offensive performance by an opposing team - Lenoir-Rhyne.
It was the season opener and a nationally broadcast game, and the country got to see the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears roll up 442 rushing yards and six touchdowns in their 41-28 victory over West Chester. Sure they earned only 17 first downs in the contest, but that's because they averaged 8.0 yards per carry. Eight different players rushed for positive yards with half of them gaining at least 65 yards. It was a case where everyone in Farrell Stadium knew what Lenoir-Rhyne was going to do on offense, but there wasn't anything that West Chester could do to stop it.
Also considered: Slippery Rock - Best offensive performance by an opposing individual - Brendan Boylan - Mercyhurst.
Boylan completed only 19 of his 41 pass attempts, but they went for 331 yards and three touchdowns. The only reason his top receiver, FJ Williams who had nine catches for 174 yards and two touchdowns didn't get this recognition, is because with two minutes left, with Mercyhurst trailing 35-31, with a fourth and three from the West Chester eight yard line, it was Boylan who scrambled into the end zone for the winning touchdown. Boylan was named PSAC West Offensive Player of the Week for the game.
Also considered: Dante Nania - Slippery Rock - Best defensive performance by the Golden Rams - Bloomsburg.
Although both defenses played well in this homecoming battle between rivals, West Chester's defense dominated and determined the outcome. For the season, Bloomsburg averaged 379 yards per game with 229 of those coming on the ground. The Golden Rams held the Huskies to just 181 total yards and 75 rushing yards or a measly 1.8 yards per carry. Ten Bloomsburg possessions lasted three plays or fewer, with six of those possessions ending in negative yards. The West Chester defense intercepted three passes which led to 17 points, with none being bigger than Shaquil James' 92-yard pick six in the waning seconds to clinch the game. - Best defensive performance by an individual Golden Ram - George Shipp vs Bloomsburg.
In front of over 6,000 fans on homecoming, it was Shipp that led the defensive effort for West Chester. On Bloomsburg's second possession, the sophomore defensive end sacked the Husky quarterback in the end zone for a safety. In the third quarter, Shipp registered another sack for an 11-yard loss and a forced fumble. He finished with six total tackles and was named PSAC East Defensive Player of the Week.
Also considered: Nydair Rouse - Lock Haven - Best defensive performance by an opposing team - Slippery Rock.
In the PSAC Championship Game, the Rock held West Chester to just 245 total yards of offense and 12 points. The Golden Rams mustered only 15 first downs and 52 yards rushing. The Rock forced three turnovers, two of which resulted in touchdowns including a 57-yard fumble return while the third merely ended the game. - Best defensive performance by an opposing individual - Cortlin Dell - Shippensburg.
Dell was all over the field and played a big role in West Chester scoring a season low 11 points. He finished with a game high nine total tackles, but also registered a sack, an additional tackle for loss, an interception and a quarterback hurry. Dell's interception came at the goal line, bringing West Chester's nine-play, 62-yard drive to an abrupt end with no points. His sack came on a second and goal which forced West Chester to settle for a field goal. Dell was named PSAC East Defensive Player of the Week for the game. - Most memorable game - East Stroudsburg.
After an 0-2 start to the season, West Chester improved to 6-3 coming into the game. And although West Chester was 5-1 in the division, they were on the wrong end of the tiebreaker with Shippensburg in pursuit of the division crown. West Chester shot out to a 24-0 lead and held a 31-7 lead at intermission on a great leaping catch by Eddie Elliott as time ran out in the first half. After the break, the Warriors aerial offense would not relent while the Golden Rams could only manage a field goal and the score sat at 34-27 in favor of West Chester midway through the fourth quarter. But the Golden Rams would go on a nine-play, 77 yard drive, with Brandon Monk accounting for 63 of those yards and the final touchdown. As Mike Catalano forced a fumble and Pete Galiano recovered it, everyone in the stadium learned that Kutztown had pummeled Shippensburg, giving West Chester its first outright division title since 2008.
Also considered: Bloomsburg - Most memorable single offensive play - Camille Max touchdown catch versus East Stroudsburg.
NO one saw this coming! On the game's opening possession, East Stroudsburg picked up a few first downs but were eventually forced to punt. However, the ball was downed at West Chester's own seven yard line. The long field ahead of the offense got longer on the drive due to a couple of illegal procedure penalties. The offense started the journey downfield and were on the verge of a touchdown when Brandon Monk broke a big run from the East Stroudburg 39. But he was caught at the five and Golden Rams fans heard the words they have come to dread - "First and Goal". Eddie Elliott picked up two yards on first down and Monk got two more on second down. When Monk was stuffed on third down, there was a big decision at hand. A field goal would likely not be enough against the prolific scoring offense of East Stroudsburg. But three previous tries from inside the five didn't cross the goal line, so how would fourth down be any different? How about lining up in a running formation, running play action, and throw it to the fullback who was not even on the roster at the beginning of the season? Max made a diving catch for the score and his only yard from scrimmage of the season. - Most memorable single defensive play - Shaquil James pick six versus Bloomsburg.
The Golden Rams 19-0 first quarter lead narrowed to 19-14 midway through the fourth quarter and then the visiting Huskies took a 22-19 lead with under four minutes to play. The West Chester offense awoke from its mid-game slumber to retake the lead, 26-22, but with 93 seconds left, Bloomsburg had one last shot. The ensuing kickoff sailed to the one, but was returned to the 40 which invigorated the Husky offense and they efficiently moved to the West Chester 23 yard line. But they would get no further as Shaq James picked off a Bloomsburg pass at the eight yard line. With the Huskies out of timeouts, that would have been enough to seal the victory, but James navigated his way 92 yards up the home sideline for a thrilling touchdown in front of the homecoming crowd.
- Most memorable single special teams play - Mercyhurst's failed PAT in the final minute.
After a first half offensive explosion by both teams, the Golden Rams held a 35-31 lead going into the locker room. Then the monsoon hit, as heavy, wind-swept rain kept both teams off the scoreboard for the next 29 minutes. On a fourth and three, the Mercyhurst quarterback scrambled for an eight-yard touchdown run to take a 37-35 lead. With the Golden Rams' offense gaining just 14 yards on 15 plays in the fourth quarter, the game seemed lost. But the snap of the ensuing point after touchdown attempt was mishandled and the holder attempted to throw a pass for the conversion. The pass was intercepted by Kevin Duggan who returned it the length of the field for an apparent two-point conversion and a 37-37 tie. But the score was called back due to a questionable block in the back call and the Lakers would go on to win the game by a final score of 37-35.
Also considered: Brandon Monk Kickoff return for touchdown at Lock Haven. - Most frustrating moment - Failing to score after first and goal from the three at Mercyhurst.
West Chester held a 35-31 lead at halftime and the heavy rains of the second half led many to question if the offenses would score any more points in the game. Andrew Cohen's third-down sack forced the Lakers to punt from their own five yard line which gave the Golden Rams the ball at midfield. Pat Moriarty scampered 13 yards and Mike Class gained 33 to set up first and goal from the three yard line. Class's next carry got to the one, but his next two and Moriarty's fourth-down attempt did not break the plane and West Chester got zero points from the golden opportunity to extend the lead. - Best coaching decision - Deferring against Bloomsburg.
In the first seven games of the season, West Chester received the opening kick off six times (Millersville was the exception). In those opening possessions, the Golden Rams went three-and-out five times. The other opening possession? An interception on the second play of the season opener. So unlike last season, this year's offense was slow to open games. So on homecoming, when West Chester won the toss, it was the best move of the season to defer to the second half and let the defense set the tone. And it worked perfectly. Bloomsburg's first quarter possessions went for yards of 2, -14, -1 and 14 yards with two possessions ending on interceptions and one ending in a safety. Meanwhile, the West Chester offense scored 19 points in the first quarter on its way to a huge division win on homecoming. - Worst coaching decision - Scheduling Lenoir-Rhyne.
Still stinging from the 42-14 loss to the Bears in the 2013 NCAA Division II semi-finals, this was supposed to be a revenge game. Two years ago, West Chester did little to stop Lenoir-Rhyne's running game, but that was attributed to the quagmire field conditions instead of their offensive scheme. On the FieldTurf of Farrell Stadium, on Thursday night, in front of the home crowd, things were expected to be different. But Lenoir-Rhyne rolled up 442 yards on the ground and rode a 41-7 third quarter lead to victory. The expected worst case scenario was the potential playoff impact the game would have. It would be considered an in-region game and Lenoir-Rhyne finished 2014 11-1 and 13-2 in 2013, so their record would help West Chester's strength of schedule. But the Bears would go on to finish this season just 5-5 which would not have helped West Chester's postseason aspirations either. - Unsung offensive Golden Ram - Eddie Elliott
As noted after last season, Elliott often gets overlooked since he's a running back playing wide receiver. Last season, he had far more carries than receptions, but this year's distribution was very even. In ten games this season, Elliott picked up 258 yards on 29 carries and two touchdowns for a 8.4 yards/carry average. He was the Golden Rams' second leading receiver with 30 catches for 429 yards and two more touchdowns. And he could go back and return kickoffs if needed. Elliott received second team All-PSAC East again this season.
Also considered: Jim Hurley - Unsung defensive Golden Ram - Pete Galiano
Who? Exactly. Galiano doesn't play linebacker, a position which accounts for a bulk of a team's tackles. He's not even a starter, another attribute of accumulating big statistics. But as a reserve defensive back and special teams player, Galiano was still fourth on the team in tackles this past season with 43 and third on the team with 27 solo tackles. His most memorable game this season was against East Stroudsburg, when he had an interception which led to a West Chester touchdown and also recovered a fumble. - Most impactful newcomer - Tyler Karpinski
The true sophomore transfer from Temple made an immediate impact making three catches for 19 yards in the season opener against Lenoir-Rhyne. He finished the season with 25 receptions for 310 yards and three touchdowns with his top game coming against Kutztown when he had four catches for 72 yards and two scores. On special teams, he served as the holder and had West Chester's longest punt return this season - a 70-yard return for touchdown at Cheyney in his only return at West Chester.
Also considered: Brendan Paulison. - Special Teams MVP - Brendan Paulison
Paulison led West Chester with 67 points scored. On field goals, he was 11 of 13, including making at least one field goal in six consecutive games, with a long of 36. His 34 PAT's came on 39 attempts. Paulison also served as the punter, averaging almost 36 yards per punt with ten inside the opponent 20 yard line. He nailed 65 yards punts against Millersville and Slippery Rock. He also kicked off 19 times this season as well. - Offensive MVP - Jarel Elder
Elder had a monster game against Seton Hill, and for the season, he amassed 561 yards and five touchdowns on the ground. He also had 20 catches for 163 yards and a score. Elder was the Golden Rams' top kickoff return man with 25 returns for 588 yards. As a result, Elder led the Golden Rams in all purpose yards this season with 1,312.
Also considered: Brandon Monk, Tim Brown. - Defensive MVP - Andrew Cohen
Cohen capped a fantastic career with an equally successful season. Among his 57 tackles this season were 13.5 sacks, which was tops in the PSAC in sacks/game. And unlike some players on some teams that feast on weaker opponents to boost statistics, Cohen registered at least one sack in every game this season, including Lenoir-Rhyne which only attempted two passes in the contest. His 33.5 career sacks set both a West Chester and PSAC record. After this past season, Cohen was a Harlon Hill nominee, a Cliff Harris finalist and a finalist for the Gene Upshaw Award.
See you at the banquet on January 30 when the real team awards will be presented.
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