Whitworth prepares for ‘well-coached team’ in Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

Whitworth made the most of its fourth quarter last weekend. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps didn’t need to.

Teams coming off one-sided victories meet up Saturday at the Pine Bowl when the Pirates host CMS in a nonconference football game at 1 p.m.

Whitworth (1-1) found the end zone three times in a 7-minute stretch of the fourth quarter to punctuate a 33-7 blowout of Eastern Oregon. Meanwhile, the Stags (1-0) carried a six-touchdown lead into the final quarter of a 42-0 rout of Whittier in Claremont, California.

“They’re a well-coached team, smart players,” Whitworth coach Rod Sandberg said of the Stags in an interview posted to the school’s YouTube channel this week. “They kind of relate a little bit to Carnegie Mellon (which beat Whitworth 35-17 on Sept. 2). They’re big and physical. Offensively, they’re just huge and very talented.”

Sandberg made note of CMS running back Justin Edwards, who rushed for 117 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries against Whittier. The Stags amassed 239 rushing yards in the victory and finished with 446 yards of offense.

“Our defense has a real big challenge,” Sandberg said.

Whitworth’s coach said the Pirates were eager to get back on the field against Eastern Oregon after the first-week letdown at Carnegie Mellon.

“I thought we really complemented each other on offense, defense,” Sandberg said. “When the other side needed a pickup, they were there, and that was really encouraging to see. … Executionally, (we were) a lot better. A lot less mistakes, a lot less key penalties. Although we had some, they weren’t as key.

“And I felt like we tackled a lot better on defense, which I felt was a huge improvement.”

When CMS hosted the Pirates last year, Whitworth scored the first 31 points in an eventual 31-15 victory.