Bulldogs beat Michigan City 41-13 to deliver best record since 1997
A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith

Friday, Oct. 18, 2002   48 degrees,  light rain in Michigan City

Scoring Summary:

1st Q: MICHIGAN CITY (0-7) John Novak (3rd TD catch), 14-yard pass from Matt Buell (1st TD pass). 74-yard drive, 9 plays - 8:57 left.

CR0WN POINT (6-7) Chris Kutanovski, 1-yard run (2nd TD). Kick wide. 63 yards, 9 plays - 4:34 left.

2nd Q: CR0WN POINT (13-7) Bobby Rutherford, 71-yard pass (1lth TD, 6th TD catch) from Matt Jensen (2nd TD pass). 75 yards, 2 plays. Chris Kutanovski kick.

CR0WN POINT (20-7) Chris Kutanovski, 1-yard run (3rd TD). 11 yards, 3 plays after Adam Hilliard recovered a fumble by MC’s Matt Buell at the Wolves’ 11-yard line. Chris Kutanovski kick. 7:57 left.

CR0WN POINT (27-7) Steve Etter, 52-yard interception return (1st career TD). Chris Kutanovski kick. 5:55 left.

3rd Q: CROWN POINT (34-7) Chris Kutanovski, 1-yard run (4th TD). 59 yards, 7 plays after MC’s failed onside kick started the second half. Chris Kutanovski kick. 8:56 left.

4th Q: MICHIGAN CITY (34-13) Shawn Lee, 6-yard run (3rd TD, 2nd rushing TD). Kick blocked by Eric Gulbrandsen. 87 yards, 13 plays including a 20-yard pass from Matt Buell to John Novak. 6:21 left.

CR0WN POINT (41-13) Jordan Struebig, 43-yard TD run (1st career TD) Chris Kutanovski kick. 64 yards, 8 plays. 2:35 left.

MICHIGAN CITY - Coach Chip Pettit didn’t actually claim to have said it. But he did say it. I was there. During preseason practices, before the scrimmage with Griffith in August, Pettit said that there’s only two team on our schedule (Portage and Valparaiso) we don’t match up with. He said that not only could his Bulldogs (who were 1-9 in 2001) play with everyone else, they can beat everyone else and that he’d be disappointed if they didn’t win these games. So it is said, so it was done. With Crown Point’s 41-13 victory over Michigan City in the rain Friday night, the Bulldogs (7-2, 5-2 DAC) met their coach’s expectations.

Except for a close 19-13 loss to Portage and a not-so-close 43-10 loss to Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) champion Valparaiso in September, CP, with a little luck and a lot of skill won every other game to finish with their best regular season record since 1997.

“I told you that that (7-2) was a best case scenario,” smiled Pettit after the game. “What did I say was the worst case scenario? We talked about 7-2 before the season. You can ask any of them. I can’t say enough about these seniors. I wouldn’t want to single any one of them out. They are fun to coach as a group. I am really proud that they accomplished what they set out to do. Now, we can set that aside and get ready for the playoffs.”

To beat a weak Michigan City team is no big deal, but it made the trip worthwhile for about 200 Bulldog fans in rainy weather. After giving up a surprisingly quick score after the opening kickoff (MC had been outscored 232-9 in the other six league games) Crown Point rallied quickly. Freshman QB Matt Jensen, a 6-foot-1, 160-pound left-hander, started in place of Matt Cowan, who was in street clothes. (On the first drive of the game, Jensen hit senior Bobby Rutherford, who completed a 19-yard pass-run down to the MC 1-yard line. Chris Kutanovski scored on a one-yard run with 4:34 left in the first quarter. After Michigan City again drove down the field, only to have junior Jeff Edinger’s 40-yard field goal attempt came up short, Crown Point took the lead when Jensen spun up a long, fading pass towards the home sidelines, which Rutherford caught and ran away to the end zone for a 13-7 CP lead with 11:13 left in the second period.

“Was that first touchdown a wake-up call for us?” Pettit repeated a post-game question. “I hope so. They went right down the field. I hope so. Bobby made some nice plays for us to get us started.”

Kutanovski, who has played four positions (offensive tackle, tight end, fullback, halfback) an the last two seasons for Crown Point, filled in at halfback for Dave Swenson on this night and scored three short yardage TDs, scoring a total of 23 points. “He’s our all-purpose man,” said Pettit. “He can play anywhere. We’re going to miss him when he’s gone but we’re glad we’ve got him now.”

Jensen, who threw a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter at Valparaiso last month, had a nice debut, hitting 5-of-5 passes for an unofficial 183 yards. The tall left-hander showed promise for the future but that future is not this coming Friday when Cowan will be back over center against Chesterton in the Bulldogs’ home playoff game.

“Matt and Dave were banged up a little,” said Pettit, “so we decided to sit them out. They’ll both be back next week. We had a couple of injured tonight with (linemen) Riste Jakimoski and Steve Ellingsen. But we don’t think it’s anything major. I think they’ll be okay next week.”

D0G NOTES: Heavy rains before the game eased up to allow the first half to be played. Rain returned to soak the Michigan City band at halftime but again disappeared when the third quarter began. Moments after the fourth quarter clock ran out, it began to rain again. The Michigan City playing surface is amazing. Rain water disappeared almost immediately and the field was slick but playable all night. The Bulldogs finished with 242 regular season points, an average of 26.8 per game. Michigan City’s 13 points were the most that they scored against a DAC team this season. Some of the Wolves problems stemmed from coach Bob Holmes’ decision to scrap their option attack two weeks into the season and attempted a pro-set offense with multiple wide receivers. That surely contributed to five shutouts in the next seven weeks. But with first-time starter Matt Buell (10 of 23, 157 yards) at QB, the Wolves looked good at times.

The final game at Michigan city did not have the intensity of the 35-21 win over Chesterton a week earlier and the Bulldogs seemed to be in a hurry to get out of town after the game. Cowan and Swenson are not significantly injured and could have played if this was a playoff game. Jakimoski has a leg or knee problem. Ellingsen received a concussion.