Shawn Jones is in his tenth season as the radio play-by-play voice of Mules football, basketball and baseball. In addition to his radio and television duties as host of Sportspage, he is UCM's Associate Athletic Director for External Relations in charge of marketing, promotions, media relations, fund-raising events and special events. Greg Hassler is in his ninth season as the sideline reporter and pre and post-game host for Mules broadcasts. He is the Sports Director of flagship stations 1450 KOKO and The Bar 98.5 FM. Joe Moore and Bob Jackson will provide color analysis this season and Moore will also contribute to this column. Jackson has been a part of the UCM broadcast team since 1981 and is UCM's Athletics Promotions Coordinator and Web Manager. Moore is a former Mules football player and UCM Athletic Media Relations Director. He is now an instructor in UCM's Department of Communication.

  by Greg Hassler
  Central Football Radio Sideline Reporter
  September 23, 2009

 

What a big time win by the Mules over Pittsburg State. The Mules beat Pittsburg by winning all 3 phases of the game. It all started with a 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Bobby Guillory to start the game. From that point on the Mules had momentum for the entire game. Anthony Stewart is a hard nose runner that doesn’t put the ball on the ground and we all know how Eric Czerniewski manages the game at the QB position.

The Gorillas are a great team with great tradition but Saturday belonged to the Mules. The Mules controlled the line of scrimmage and the result was a 23-14 win. Central controlled field position in the first half and the clock in the second half -- a perfect game for the Mules.

Central Missouri is now 4-0 and ranked 11th in the country. The stat that coaches look at is the turnover margin, and UCM just doesn’t turn the ball over, the Mules are +5 in turnover margin. The top teams in the league, Missouri Western, Washburn and Northwest Missouri, along with the Mules, are tops in the league in this category. The Mules will have to keep this stat intact as they head to play their toughest game of the year, and in my opinion, the biggest game in years for the Mules.

The Washburn Ichabods are good. No, make that great. 20 of 22 starters return from last season. They lead the league in scoring offense with 49 points and 462 yards of offense per game. Defensively, the Ichabods are middle of the pack, but when they put up the numbers they do on offense, middle of the road defense is good enough. Justin Cooper and Vershon Moore are very good at the tailback position for Washburn. Together they average 130 yards per game. It doesn't hurt that at QB there is Dane Simoneau, who averages 180 yards per game in the air.

The key again this week will be the Mules' defensive line. They have to stop the run and force the Ichabods to the air. If the Mules can do that and play well in all three phases of the game, they will have a chance against this highly touted team from Topeka, Kansas. Kick off is 1 p.m. on Saturday with airtime 11:40 on 1450 KOKO and 98.5 TheBar.

"View From The Press Box" is published every Wednesday throughout the football season.