Five huge plays on defense in the first half led the Hope College football team past Kalamazoo.
HOLLAND - When Hope College's Liam Danitz lines up at defensive end, he has an advantage - no matter who lines up against him.
If the offensive tackle lining up against him is average size, Danitz's 6-foot-5 frame allows him to see over and go high.
If the opposing lineman is bigger, Danitz is just 227 pounds and has quick feet and can get around the blocker.
So Danitz is getting to that quarterback, whether it is up and over, or around and low.
Danitz proved that very quickly in Hope's 56-21 win over Kalamazoo College on Saturday, Oct. 18.
No. 20 Hope improved to 5-1 and 2-1 in the MIAA - one game behind Alma and Adrian for first place.
"That was huge," Hope coach Peter Stuursma said. "I was pretty anxious because we were coming off the bye, but the way our defense came out was huge."
No. 0 let zero blockers stop him. He had three sacks in the first two Kalamazoo possessions, forcing two punts.
"It is huge for the whole team because those plays get the offense the ball and affects everyone in a positive way," Danitz said. "It was a huge momentum shift and set the tone for the whole game right away."
The third sack was emphatic up the middle as he flattened Kalamazoo quarterback Brayden Ledin for a 12-yard loss.
"Liam can flat-out fly. He is playing with a great level of confidence right now and offenses have to account for where he is because he is that dominant," Stuursma said. "He just goes about his business to make himself better. I am so proud of that."
The rest of the defense was on point, too.
Safety Owen Graham had two interceptions in the first half.
"It is about trusting his defense and getting to his drop," Stuursma said. "When you are 5-11 like he is, offenses can lose track of his orange helmet, but he shows up and makes a spectacular play."
Kalamazoo did get in the end zone three times but it was after the Hope starters were out and the Flying Dutchmen already led 42-0 late in the third - all in front of a season-high crowd of 3,839.
"We really wanted to start hot after a bye week. That was a big emphasis for us," Graham said. "But it all starts with the pressure by the defensive line, that makes it easier for us in the secondary."
Oh yeah, Hope's offense was strong, too
While the Hope defense was dominating the line of scrimmage, the offense transitioned all of those stops into points.
AJ Martel broke three tackles to score a 13-yard touchdown run up the middle. He capped the half with a 5-yard score.
Quarterback Alex Thole scored on a 2-yard run then threw a 28-yard strike to Travis Myers and a 20-yard touchdown pass to Jack Goldie.
Hope had 224 yards passing in the first half, then took to the run in the second half with more than 200 yards as Hope finished with 544 yards of total offense.
Efficiency was key as Hope went a combined 8-for-11 on third- and fourth-down conversions. Hope scored in all seven trips to the red zone and had just one turnover.
"When you can capitalize off of every time our defense makes a big play, that is huge. When you have 27 first downs, that is huge," Stuursma said. "And what else can you say about Alex Thole? He was 17-for-20 and he just extends plays. He is a magician sometimes."
HC grad gets under center
Kalamazoo freshman Evan Abberger entered the game midway through the second quarter.
The Holland Christian graduate was third on the depth chart this season, but with starter Dawson Skupin injured, he was second on the chart behind Brayden Ledin, who started the game.
Abberger, a lefty, was an honorable mention all-state quarterback as a senior at Holland Christian.
He played one series and ran for four yards and was 0-for-1 passing.
Wooden Shoes history
Hope has played Kalamazoo more than any other opponent int its history - for more than a century.
The game has been dubbed the "Battle for the Wooden Shoes" and the team that wins get the wooden shoes that have a Hope logo and a Kalamazoo logo on them.
Hope came into the game on an eight-game win streak in the battle for the wooden shoes after Kalamazoo had put together two consecutive wins nearly a decade ago.
Hope leads the all-time series 63-35-6.
The Stuursma file
The win was the 70th for Hope coach Peter Stuursma as head coach.
In his ninth season, Stuursma is 70-19, a stunning win percentage of .700.
Hope has averaged 51.6 points against Kalamazoo during Stuursma's era.
Next showdown
Hope travels to Adrian for a battle. The Bulldogs are unbeaten and completely revamped with a new roster and new coach.
They made an immediate impact, beating Valparaiso, an Division I Bowl Subdivision team.
The Bulldogs beat Calvin 48-17 on Saturday.
"It is a very good football team and very different from what we faced," Stuursma said. "We are in for a dog fight, no pun intended."
Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’[email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Hope College football beats Kalamazoo for Wooden Shoes
Category: General Sports
