Carnegie Mellon Wins First Playoff Game Since 1979

Stats | Post Game Quotes

Nov. 18 – (PITTSBURGH, Pa.) – The Tartans of Carnegie Mellon exploded for 21 points in the second half and held their opponent scoreless for the third time this season, thanks to the 3rd ranked scoring defense in the nation, in a 21-0 first round playoff victory over visiting Millsaps (Miss.) College on Saturday afternoon. It was the first time Carnegie Mellon won a playoff game in 27 years.

Carnegie Mellon’s all-time leading rusher, junior Travis Sivek (Traverse City, Mich./St. Francis), scored two touchdowns and rushed for 108 yards to lead the Tartans heavy running offensive onslaught (260 yards rushing, 318 total yards). Junior running back Robert Gimson (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla./The Benjamin School) totaled 142 yards and compiled over 1,000 yards rushing for the season, becoming the third back in history to eclipse the century mark.

"They had a lot of people in the box. It was tough-going early on," Head Coach Rich Lackner commented after a slow rushing output in the first half. "It got to a situation there in the middle of the third quarter that we started to wear them down a little bit."

"The great thing about this football team is they are totally unselfish, they don’t care who runs the ball, who scores the touchdowns," Lackner added. "They care about one thing and one thing only and that's winning football games. They're the most unselfish group of young men I've ever coached in my life."

But it was the defense of Carnegie Mellon that told the story. The Tartans caused five turnovers, including three timely interceptions. Senior linebacker James Rogers (Battle Ground, Wash./Skyview) came up with the first INT of the day when the Majors were threatening on the Tartans 38-yardline with the score 0-0. However, the Tartans ensuing drive stopped on a missed field goal by senior kicker Nathaniel Greenstein (Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.).

After the Tartans took a 14-0 lead, sophomore defensive lineman Steve Curran (Somers Point, N.J./Mainland Regional) came up with the second interception for Carnegie Mellon, on a first-and-ten play from the CM 17 with 11:58 to go in the game. Junior cornerback Jonathan Scholl (Coraopolis, Pa./Pittsburgh Central Catholic) helped seal the deal for the Tartans on a diving catch with 10 minutes to go on the clock. The ensuing possession ended with a Gimson 17-yard touchdown run for a 21-0 advantage.

Also making big defensive plays for the Tartans was junior linebacker Trent Sisson (Novi, Mich.), who forced two fumbles, recovered one and finished with 10 tackles. His fumble recovery ended the Majors drive with 3:10 to go in the first quarter, when Millsaps quarterback Juan Joseph (Edgard, La./West St. John) connected with Burt Pereira (Bush, La./St. Paul’s) for a 48-yard pass. Sisson chased down Pereira and jarred the ball loose and fell on it for the recovery.

Prior to the Tartans second touchdown, senior defensive back Aaron Lewis (Englewood, Ohio/Northmont) defended a pass on fourth-and-three from the Tartans 22-yardline. The momentum from the turnover on downs propelled the home team and sophomore quarterback Doug Facemyer (Eastlake, Ohio/Eastlake North) used a giant gain in the third quarter to initiate the Tartans second scoring drive. Senior wideout Mark Davis (Loveland, Ohio) was the recipient of the 46-yard gain that put the Tartans on the Millsaps 24-yardline with a 7-0 lead. The drive ended on Sivek’s second TD of the day.

When asked about the defensive performance Lackner stated, "When you're able to shut out a playoff team, that's pretty special."

With Wesley defeating Dickinson 49-21, the Tartans will travel to Dover, Delaware to take on last year’s semifinal Wolverines.