Yellow Jackets invade Mount Union
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BEREA -- There is a lot on the line when unbeaten Baldwin Wallace (8-0) visits Mount Union (6-2) at 4 p.m. Saturday. There’s a good chance area football players will play key roles.
Eight area players are on the Yellow Jackets roster -- sophomore running back Boston Mulinix from West Branch, senior linebacker Jackson Johnson from Salem, senior defensive back Donnie Oesch from Salem, Salem sophomore offensive lineman David Manges of Salem, sophomore receiver Tristan Toy of South Range, sophomore defensive lineman JD Crouse from South Range, sophomore linebacker Jack Flickinger from West Branch and senior receiver Seandelle Gardner from Springfield Local.
A Baldwin Wallace victory will give the Yellow Jackets (6-0 OAC) the Ohio Athletic Conference title outright, their first OAC football title since 1994, and an NCAA Division III playoff berth.
Mount Union (5-1 OAC) has to win against Baldwin Wallace and Otterbein to secure the OAC’s automatic bid for the NCAA playoffs. The Purple Raiders have been in the NCAA playoffs every year since 1992.
Mount Union has won 30 straight games over Baldwin Wallace, with its last loss coming on Oct. 15, 1994. If Baldwin Wallace wins this year, local players will be in on it.
Mulinix is Baldwin Wallace’s second-leading rusher with 628 yards and six touchdowns on 107 carries (5.9). Has has rushed for 1,139 yards in 18 collegiate games past two seasons.
Johnson has played in eight games this season, collecting 23 tackles with 10 solos, 1 1/2 sacks and two quarterback hurries.
Oesch, a starter, has played in eight games, totaling 24 tackles with 16 solos and a 52-yard interception return for a touchdown.
Manges has seen action in six games on the offensive line.
Toy has four catches for 100 yards and a touchdown and two punt returns for 82 yards, including a 56-yard return for a touchdown last Saturday. He had a 63-yard touchdown on his first collegiate reception in the season opener.
JD Crouse has played in seven games, getting 24 tackles, with 14 solos, seven tackles for loss and a 20-yard interception return for a touchdown.
Gardner is the Yellow Jackets leading receiver with 32 catches for 527 yards (16.4) and 12 touchdowns. He has scored a team-high 72 points.
Baldwin-Wallace senior quarterback Charlie Bubonics is the son of Ed Bubonics, the star receiver on Mount Union’s first NCAA Division III national championship team in 1993.
Charlie Bubonics has completed 143 of 217 passes (65.9%) for 1,888 yards and 31 touchdowns with four interceptions. He also has ran for 151 yards and three touchdowns on 43 carries (3.5).
It is the first NCAA Division III football game to be televised on Amazon Prime Video via the FloSports channel.