Coming into last Saturday's trip to Bates with two straight 16-point wins, the Wesleyan football team was put to the test down the stretch for the first time this season and the Cardinals came through in a big way to remain unbeaten. Trailing for the first time in the fourth quarter this season, Wesleyan took the ball trailing the Bobcats 24-20 with 12:09 remaining in front of Bates' Homecoming crowd and strung together a 13-play, 75-yard TD scoring drive to retake the lead 27-24. With over four minutes still left on the clock, the Wesleyan defense still had plenty of work left to do and they finished the job, forcing a pair of Bates turnovers on the Cardinal end of the field to cap a thrilling road win that moved Wesleyan to 3-0 on the season.
With the unbeaten start to the year, Wesleyan heads back to Corwin Stadium for their week 4matchup against Bowdoin which represents the 93rd all-time meeting between the two sides on Saturday. Wesleyan heads into this year's iteration with a 61-29-2 all-time record against Bowdoin and are currently riding an eight-game winning streak in the season series. Wesleyan has won six of those eight games in the current win streak by at least two scores while the Cardinal defense hasn't allowed Bowdoin to score more than 14 points in that span. Even with the win streak, Wesleyan was put to the test last season as the game was tied 13-13 deep into the third quarter until RB Glenn Smith '20 took a 31-yard rush to the house that put the Cardinals up 20-13 with 3:52 left. The Polar Bears then drove 40 yards down the field and had the ball 1st-and-10 from the Cardinal 18-yard line with over a minute left but a key 2nd-down sack from DL Nick Helbig '23 helped stop the drive and seal the Cardinal win.
In that 2019 meeting, Wesleyan did most of their damage on the ground as 215 of the Cardinals' 351 total yards came on handoffs. Smith went for 108 yards on 19 carries with the crucial go-ahead TD late while QB Ashton Scott '22 was efficient, going 11-for-16 for 125 yards with 1 TD and 0 INT in the win. Wesleyan's pass defense was stellar, allowing Bowdoin's QB Austin McCrum to throw for just 98 yards on 28 attempts (3.5 yards per attempt). LB Isaiah Miller '22 racked up 10 tackles (nine solo) while the Wesleyan defense generated 9 total TFL and 3 sacks as a unit to limit Bowdoin to just 13 points. The rush defense, however, was gashed for 217 yards on 31 carries (6.0 yards per rush) so the Cardinals will need to sure that up heading into this year's meeting with the Polar Bears.
A return to the friendly confines of Corwin Stadium as the home field advantage is a significant one in favor of the Cardinals over the years. Since the formation of the NESCAC in 2000, Wesleyan is 49-32 (.605) against league foes at home. In the 20 full seasons of NESCAC football, Wesleyan has sported a single-season losing record at home just three times, including just once since 2009. Since 2013, Wesleyan is 24-6 (.800) at home with three 4-0 single-season home records in that span.
Lending a huge role in the impressive win-loss record over the years has been the support of the Cardinal faithful. Home attendance numbers at Corwin Stadium have consistently been stellar but the 2019 season saw a huge uptick in numbers. In terms of home games, Wesleyan ranked eighth in the nation (NCAA Div. III) and first in the NESCAC in total attendance (20,188) despite having the fewest home games (four) of any program ranked in the Top 10 nationally.
Diving deeper, Wesleyan ranked fourth in the nation (first in the NESCAC) in average home attendance per game (5,047). Wesleyan's thrilling Homecoming/Family Weekend overtime win over Williams on November 2, 2019 not only sealed the Little 3 title for the Cardinals but the listed attendance number of 8,110 was the 10th-highest single-game home number in all Div. III collegiate football in 2019.
The 2021 campaign marks the 138th season of Wesleyan football with competition as the Cardinals look to conclude the fall with a ninth-straight winning season. Wesleyan went 8-1 and finished in sole possession of second place in the NESCAC standings in 2019, marking the third time in program history that the Cardinals won eight games in a season and the first time since 1969. Wesleyan posted thrilling wins against Amherst (31-28 2OT) and Williams (27-21 OT) to earn their third Little 3 title in the past seven seasons. The Cardinals saw 13 players earn a spot on the All-NESCAC Team, the most of any team in the conference.
The Cardinals (3-0) – At a Glance
Wesleyan heads into this Saturday's game with the third-ranked scoring offense (26 points per game) and the top-ranked scoring defense (13.7 points allowed per game) in the NESCAC. Through three games, the Cardinal defense has allowed opponents to rush for just 35.3 yards per game and a measly 1.4 yards per rush, easily the best in the NESCAC and seventh in all NCAA Div. III. Wesleyan's defense has forced 5 INTs through three games, snagging at least one in every game so far in the 2021 season while the Cardinal offense has yet to throw one. On offense, Wesleyan has strung together stellar QB play, as David Estevez '22 and Ashton Scott '22 have combined for 742 yards with 9 TD and 0 INT through three games. QB/WR David Estevez '22 won his second career NESCAC Offensive Player of the Week honor on Sunday after accounting for a ridiculous 224 total yards of offense (123 passing, 40 rushing and 61 receiving) while having a hand in all three Wesleyan TDs at Bates. K/P Daniel Yoon '24 took home the NESCAC Special Teams Player of the Week distinction on Sunday after going 2-for-2 on FGs and 3-for-3 on PATs as he hit from a season-long 37 yards in the 27-24 Bates win.
The Polar Bears (0-3) – At a Glance
Bowdoin has faced a gauntlet of an early season schedule as the Polar Bears suffered defeats to Hamilton, Trinity and Williams to sit at 0-3 through three games. Bowdoin's offense has struggled to point points up on the board, averaging just 8 per game which is last in the NESCAC. Bowdoin's ground game though has been a strength as the Polar Bears average 141.3 yards per game (3rd in NESCAC) and 4.1 yards per carry (2nd NESCAC). RB Andre Eden is the leading rusher in the NESCAC by quite a bit as he has 319 yards on 59 carries (5.4 yards per carry) with 1 TD as he is averaging 106.3 yards per game. The next-closest NESCAC rusher is nearly 100 yards behind Eden's three-game total. LB Drew Ortiz has 5.5 TFL to lead the NESCAC in that category.
