CMS Football falls to Occidental
November 2, 2011
The Forum

Post Game Coverage by Tristan Fitch
Another home game for CMS and another heart-breaking loss. Just three weeks after suffering a last second defeat because of a tipped Hail-Mary pass, CMS lost this one in the other end zone as Quarterback Peter Kimmey threw a pass that was picked off by Cornerback Aryton Bates with a minute and a half left in the game, sealing the victory for Occidental. There was a strange dichotomy through the game. Not just in the two teams; each one is radically different than the other, but also the play of the game. In the first four possessions, both teams scored two touchdowns; Occidental on a pair of mid-range passes and CMS on a pair of one yard runs. While neither offense could do no wrong, both defenses looked shaky; CMS began to switch to an almost 3-4 system, adding an additional defensive back in coverage and Occidental had one of its rush outside linebackers become a down linesman, giving them an almost 4-3 look. These changes, though, worked; in the second quarter, neither team had a touchdown and the only score was from a Chet Corcos kick with 15 seconds left. All of a sudden, a shoot-out had become a defensive battle, with both teams throwing something new at each other. CMS got both of its two sacks during the 2nd quarter; their defensive line looked dominant and Occidental, though giving up medium runs, wasn’t allowing CMS into field goal range. However, as fast as the game switched to defense, it switched back to an offensive clinic; in the third quarter, Kimmey got both a running and a passing touchdown on long drives of over 70 yards and Occidental took advantage of good field position from a kickoff return to trail 21-31 into the fourth quarter. And suddenly, the defenses were back on it. In the fourth quarter, there were 4 passes picked off; prior to that, both teams had 0 turnovers for the day. On a trick play, Kimmey handed off to the WR who handed it to RB Corey Bickler who threw a deep ball. Unfortunately, the corner back on the play, Ayrton Bates, wasn’t fooled, getting beneath the ball and picking it off. Occidental converted both this interception and a Kimmey interception into 14 points, giving them the lead by 4. Kimmey, with only a few minutes left, on 4th down, threw a deep ball down the right sideline, aiming for his favorite target, Kris Otterholt. Nate Proulx, Occidental’s leading tackler, got there first though, batting the ball down with both hands. Otterholt, however, somehow got underneath the ball, completing the 38 yard pass and giving CMS another chance with a minute and a half remaining and the ball on Occidental’s 12. However, after another interception by Bates, the game ended 3 kneels later, giving Occidental both the win and sole possession of the 3rd place standing in SCIAC.
Pre Game Coverage
by Tristan Fitch
This week we have two teams that could not be more different and yet are also tied for 3rd in SCIAC going up against each other. CMS’s MO is obvious; they’re a rushing team to the core, gaining over 200 yards a game on the ground (2nd in SCIAC) and only 110 passing(dead-last in SCIAC) while holding onto the ball for an average of 33:36 each game. Their defense is the epitome of a solid defense; they allow only 144 yards per game on the ground, have a 38.7% 3rd down conversion rate, and have allowed an average of 17 first downs a game; all of these are top 3 stats in SCIAC. They also have a clear advantage in the defensive line; CMS’s line has caused 13 sacks, almost twice as many as Occidental.
Occidental, on the other hand, is the epitome of a pass-first team with both a boom or bust rushing offense and defense. So far, Luke Collis has been arguably the best quarterback in SCIAC. Running a spread offense, he’s packed on 2186 yards with 21 Touchdowns and a 62.3 completion percentage. In addition, junior wide receiver Matthew Tuckness leads the SCIAC in receiving touchdowns and Ryan Rodriguez leads it in receptions. Their lead rusher, Wes McDaniel has had some amazing games and some very forgettable ones; in his 6 games he’s had 3 with under 40 yards rushing and 3 with over 110, including a massive day against Whittier where he gained 167 yards and 2 TDs on the ground. Occidental’s defense also has had their issues; despite being great against the pass, their run defense is one of the worst in SCIAC. However, they lead SCIAC in turnover differential (at +5) in part due to the 12 interceptions caused by their pass defense.
However, there are some similarities between these two teams. Both have strong Red Zone offenses; Occidental is 28/31 in the Red Zone, scoring 23 touchdowns and CMS has also had success in the Red Zone. Both have a strong line-backing core, led by seniors (Ben Salzman for CMS and Greg Holsworth on Occidental). And finally, both teams have a 2-2 record in in SCIAC play, something that will have changed by the end of today.
Live Broadcast
The live audio and video coverage will begin at 12:55 PM as play starts at 1 PM. You can catch all of the live action on this page! Today's broadcast will be brought to you by Tristan Fitch (HMC '15), Drew Beckerman (CMC '13), Zoe Stalnecker (SCR '14) and Jenny Phillips (SCR '12).
You can see the video on the embedded player below! or this link: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/cms-athletics
If you have any suggestions, comments, or questions about Sports Broadcasting at the Claremont Colleges, please email Broadcasting@ClaremontSportsConnection.com