Illinois Wesleyan’s Dermot Smyth is swarmed by WashU defenders during Saturday’s game at Tucci Stadium in Bloomington. (Photo courtesy: IWU Athletics)

NCAA Football – Oct. 7, 20231st2nd3rd4thFinal
WashU (5-0, 4-0)7321738
Ill. Wesleyan (1-4, 1-3)300710

Steven Millbrook
Staff Writer

BLOOMINGTON, IL — The Washington University football came into its Week 5 CCIW matchup with Illinois Wesleyan boasting one of the best offenses in the conference. The Bears were averaging more than 400 yards and 46 points per game.

But in the first half Saturday, WashU found itself stymied and unable to move the ball like it had before.

That all changed in the second half though, as the Bears scored four touchdowns to pull away in what became a 38-10 win over the host Titans.

The key was WashU’s ground game, which produced 128 yards and four of the five touchdowns scored. The Bears averaged 4.5 yards per carry, which would have been higher were it not for two quarterback sacks which counts as negative run yardage at the college level.

Primary ball carriers Kenneth Hamilton, Kenvorris Campbell, and Fred Ware all scored touchdowns for WashU, as did quarterback Matt Rush. The usually prolific WashU pass game totaled just 224 yards on the day, with Rush completing 13-of-24 passes and 214 of those yards.

The Bears got on the board first, by scoring on their first drive of the game. Hamilton capped that drive off with a 1-yard run to make the score 7-0.

The teams traded field goals and that was all of the scoring in the first half. WashU led 10-3.

The third quarter is when the Bears got going. First, the defense forced a turnover on downs. Then Rush hit tight end Gabriel Cirek for a 40-yard pass that set up a 1st-and-goal at the Illinois Wesleyan 4-yard line.

Two plays later, backup QB Levi Moore threw a 3-yard touchdown to Grant Hajicek to make the score 17-3 and give the Bears some breathing room.

Illinois Wesleyan was forced to punt on its next drive and that proved disastrous, as the Titans muffed the punt and gave WashU the ball on the 1-yard line. Rush scored on a QB sneak on the next play, and suddenly WashU was up 24-3.

The onslaught wasn’t over, as the Bears got the ball back quickly and needed just two plays to score again. Rush threw an 18-yard pass to Collin Goldberg. Then, Campbell broke free for a 25-yard touchdown run that made it 31-3.

Illinois Wesleyan scored its only touchdown of the day on its next drive, but WashU answered again following an interception by Joseph Norris. Ware capped a 50-yard drive with a 1-yard run that put the icing on a 38-10 victory.

With the win, the Bears are now 5-0 on the season and 4-0 in CCIW play. And they’ll get a chance to improve both those marks next week, when they’ll host Augustana College in a CCIW game at Francis Olympic Field.

That contest is scheduled for next Saturday, with kickoff set for 1 p.m.

SCORING SUMMARY

QtrTimeScoring PlayWASHUIWU
1st10:53WASHU – Hamilton,Kenneth 1 yd run (Muchnick,Ross kick), 8 plays, 74 yards, TOP 04:0070
1st05:20IWU – Junge,Kaden 36 yd field goal 12 plays, 44 yards, TOP 05:2973
2nd04:03WASHU – Muchnick,Ross 35 yd field goal 5 plays, 19 yards, TOP 02:48103
3rd10:27WASHU – Hajicek,Grant 3 yd pass from Moore,Levi (Muchnick,Ross kick) 3 plays, 44 yards, TOP 01:08173
3rd06:17WASHU – Rush,Matt 1 yd run (Muchnick,Ross kick), 1 plays, 1 yards, TOP 00:06243
3rd03:08WASHU – Campbell,Kenvorris 25 yd run (Muchnick,Ross kick), 2 plays, 43 yards, TOP 00:40313
4th12:33IWU – Albin,Seth 2 yd run (Junge,Kaden kick), 14 plays, 75 yards, TOP 05:353110
4th04:00WASHU – Ware,Fred 1 yd run (Muchnick,Ross kick), 7 plays, 50 yards, TOP 03:323810

2023 WashU Bears Football Schedule

DateTimeAtOpponentLocation
October 14, 20231 p.m.HomeAugustana CollegeFrancis Olympic Field
October 21, 20231 p.m.Away#1 North Central CollegeNaperville, Ill.
October 28, 20231 p.m.HomeElmhurst UniversityFrancis Olympic Field
November 4, 20231 p.m.Away#13 Wheaton CollegeWheaton, Ill.
November 11, 202312 p.m.HomeCarroll UniversityFrancis Olympic Field