Shannon Welch/Staff Photographer

Through two weeks of play, Colby sported the most effective rush defense in the NESCAC, only allowing an average of 37.5 rush yards per game. But after surrendering 266 yards on the ground to Wesleyan football on Saturday, Oct. 5, the Mules must be suffering a grave identity crisis.

Andrus Field was the site of yet another trashing this weekend as Wesleyan dropped Colby 41-0. The shutout marks the Cardinals’ first since 2006 and their first against Colby since 1980. With the win, Wesleyan moves to 3-0 on the year, continuing to punish opponents with an average margin of victory of 38 points.

The Cardinals had a bit more difficulty than usual getting their passing game to function, but quarterback Jessie Warren ’15 still managed to connect on two touchdowns to receivers Jon Day ’15 and Jay Fabien ’15. Warren ended the day with 12 completions on 22 attempts and 88 yards through the air. With his two endzone strikes, Warren leads the conference in touchdowns with eight on the year. He is also the only NESCAC starting QB who has yet to throw an interception this season.

The backfield tandem of LaDarius Drew ’15 and Kyle Gibson ’15 willed the Cardinals to the end zone repeatedly behind a staunch effort from the offensive line. Both Drew and Gibson broke the 100-yard mark running with 135 and 110 yards, respectively, as well as chipping in a touchdown each. Both tailbacks are among the hottest runners in the ’CAC; Drew leads the conference in yards per game with 116.7 and in touchdowns with five, while Gibson sits at third in yards per game with 96.7.

“We can actually play as many as four running backs in a varsity game that are all in my opinion all-league type caliber backs,” said Head Coach Mike Whalen. “There are not a lot of teams that can do that. Certainly the two main guys are LaDarius and Kyle. And if both those guys are fresh in a game, its inevitable: they’re going to break a run.”

After Wesleyan easily tore through two lesser defenses against Tufts and Hamilton, the Mules presented a greater challenge with their defensive tenacity. Certainly the Birds could not afford to be complacent with their efforts leading up to this matchup. As they*

would find out, the only way to solve the Mules’ stubborn defense would be through constant pressure.

“I wouldn’t say we handled them easily; we wore them down,” Whalen said. “One of those things that’s really challenging for defenses that are playing against us is dealing with both backs. Certainly when you’re playing that many snaps, because Colby’s offense couldn’t get anything going, their defense got worn. Colby has a good defense. I was encouraged by the fact that our offense matched their intensity.”

As the score indicates, the Cardinal D flattened Colby. By limiting Colby’s time on offense to just 24:09 and forcing eight punts, Wesleyan forced Colby’s defense to constantly be on the field and did not afford the Mules even a moment of rest.

“Our defense I think played certainly the best defensive game in my tenure here and I think one of the most dominating performances the NESCAC has seen in a number of years,” Whalen said. “We’re talking about a team that’s a pretty good offensive football team that only got two first downs in the first half and didn’t cross the 50 until the last drive of the game when we had taken all of our starters out. It’s a pretty dominating performance, and our defense just gave us field position; they had two big turnovers, and they seemed to be playing at a very high level.”

Linebacker Alex Daversa-Russo ’16 anchored the defensive effort with five tackles, including a monster sack for a 12-yard loss. The Cardinals wrought havoc on Colby’s starting quarterback, Justin Ciero, nailing the signal-caller three times for a loss of 23 yards and forcing two interceptions by lineman Mitch Godfrey ’15 and linebacker Myers Beaird ’14.

Next Saturday, Oct. 12, the Cards face another test at home from the Bates Bobcats, whom Whalen believes will pose a unique threat to his team due to their creative scheming on both sides of the ball.

“Bates is a good football team,” Whalen said. “They run the option on offense, which is something we haven’t seen. It’s very hard to simulate in practice, so our defense is going to be challenged. They run a 3-5 defense, which is something we haven’t seen before. We’re seeing totally different schemes we haven’t seen all year, so that’s going to take some preparation.”

Given how Wes has annihilated its opponents in its first three games, Whalen and his team are feeling as confident as ever. That said, he does not want his players to allow cockiness to squander their incredible start to the season.

“If we don’t focus on this game, and we start looking ahead to what’s going on down the road, that’s when we’ll fall,” Whalen said. “If we look any further ahead than them, we’re going to be talking next week about why we’re 3-1.”