Then came the 2015 season and a 35-30 victory by DePauw that still stings Wittenberg.
“I remember all of our turnovers,” Wittenberg coach Joe Fincham said, “and I remember watching balls sail over our heads. They deserved to win, no doubt about it.”
DePauw picked off three passes and recovered one fumble. Wittenberg rallied from a 28-13 deficit to cut DePauw’s lead to 28-23 with 10:43 left in the fourth quarter only to see DePauw quarterback Matt Hunt throw an 83-yard touchdown pass to his brother Andy on the first play of the next drive.
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The teams meet again at 1 p.m. Saturday at Edwards-Maurer Field, and the winner will take a big step toward the NCAC championship. No. 15 Wittenberg shares first place with DePauw and Denison. Each team is 4-0 overall and 3-0 in the conference.
Wittenberg’s loss at DePauw a year ago has motivated it all season, much like its loss at Wabash a year ago inspired it to beat the Little Giants 24-14 two weeks ago.
“Anytime you lose, it’s hard and it should be hard if you’re at a good place,” Fincham said. “That loss was hard for us last year. Hopefully, we’ll play better this year.”
The Hunter brothers — Matt’s a senior and Andy’s a sophomore — lead DePauw’s offense again. DePauw ranks ninth in the country with 48.3 points per game. Matt throws for 292 yards per game and has 11 touchdown passes. He also rushes for 108.2 yards per game. Andy has 36 receptions for 414 yards and four scores.
Fincham called those scary numbers.
“It’s not every day you play a quarterback that not only leads the league in all those passing stats, but he’s also leads the league in rushing, too,” Fincham said. “It’s like playing the guy from Louisville (Lamar Jackson) or something.”
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