Sophomore quarterback Max Paulus (Massillon, Ohio/Jackson) combined for 268 yards of total offense and four touchdowns as the Denison Big Red closed out their 2010 season with a 27-7 victory over Kenyon College from McBride Field in Gambier, Ohio.
After Denison's first two offensive possessions ended in a blocked field goal from 38-yards and a missed field goal from 32-yards, the Big Red broke through on their third possession of the game thanks to a 42-yard run by Sam Fioroni (Clarkston, Mich./Orchard Lake St. Mary's) that got Denison to the Kenyon 7-yard line. Three plays later Paulus would find Joe Lucking (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) on a 6-yard TD pass. Kevin Schneider (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington) added the extra point to give Denison a 7-0 lead.
Kenyon's ensuing possession would result in a 3-and-out and DU would take over on their own 35-yard line. Paulus went to work, going 6-for-6 on the drive with his final pass, a 9-yard strike to junior Greg Jones (Carnegie, Pa./Canevin), that gave his squad a 14-0 lead.
After a holding penalty on the kickoff would put the Kenyon offense under the shadows of their own goal post, the Big Red defense would turn in the play of the day when junior cornerback Drew Clanin (Circleville, Ohio/Circleville) picked off Kenyon quarterback Dan Shannon on their first play from scrimmage. Clanin returned the pass 28 yards before being tackled on the Kenyon 4-yard line. After three straight rushed got Denison to the Kenyon 1-yard line, Paulus would finish off the drive with a 1-yard TD plunge on fourth down to give his team a 20-0 lead heading to the locker room.
The score would remain 20-0 until the fourth quarter when Paulus led Denison on their fourth and final scoring drive to give the Big Red a 27-7 lead with just under eight minutes to play. Kenyon would avoid the shutout late in the fourth quarter when Dan Shannon found Derek Barbato for a 27-yard touchdown pass on third down.
Paulus finished the game 23 of 31 for 178 yards. He also led the team in rushing with 13 carries for 90 yards. Through the air, Paulus' favorite target was junior Braden Layer who caught six passes for 50 yards. Senior running back Dan Crawford (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington) caught five passes for 40 yards. He also finished with 39 yards rushing off 12 carries. Playing in his final game, Crawford ends his Denison career with 1,406 rushing yards.
The DU defense was led by Alex Sycher (Columbus, Ohio/New Albany) who posted nine tackles. Anthony Zarate (Powell, Ohio/Olentangy Liberty) posted five tackles including two tackles-for-a-loss and one sack. The defensive backfield also intercepted Shannon three times. Aside from Clanin's pivotal interception, senior Tyler Lambert (Ranger, Ga./Gordon Central) and junior Scott Baird (Shelby, Ohio/Shelby) also got into the act.
Kenyon's defense was led by senior Beau Calcei who posted a game-high 14 tackles and one forced fumble.
Denison's first season under head coach Jack Hatem comes to a close with a 4-6 record overall and a 2-4 mark in North Coast Athletic Conference play.