HOME OF BULLDOG FOOTBALL - 28 SCIAC Championships, including 10 since 1990

With excellent leadership and impressive depth, the University of Redlands football team rallied for a 7-2 record during the program’s 100th season. Although the Bulldogs came up short in their quest to recapture the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) championship, they competed at a high level throughout the season, finishing third in the standings with a 4-2 record while gaining various awards and records.

The Maroon and Gray opened the 2009 campaign as the No. 22 team in the nation, according to the D3football.com poll. Redlands defended its ranking with a 36-3 thrashing of East Texas Baptist University in the teams’ inaugural meeting. Although the Tigers drew first blood with a field goal midway through the first quarter, the Bulldogs erupted with 36 unanswered points, revealing its diverse offense. The team capitalized on two receiving touchdowns, two rushing touchdowns and two field goals, which included junior kicker Joe MacMillan’s career-best of 46 yards.

Despite a fourth-quarter surge by Whitworth University (WA), Redlands pulled out a 29-24 victory on the road over a capable Pirate team on Sept. 19. This gave Whitworth only its second loss to a California opponent in school history, both of which have come at the hands of the Bulldogs. The Maroon and Gray controlled the first half, holding their opponents to a mere 64 yards of total offense, as senior defensive lineman Josh Cunningham (Phoenix, AZ) racked up three sacks. In the team’s final possession, junior running back Daylan Swedlow (Lake Arrowhead, CA) gave the Bulldogs quality field position with a 28-yard run to the Whitworth 45-yard line. He played an instrumental role in these waning minutes, continuing to move the ball down field while taking time off the clock. By the final whistle, he had racked up a season-high 133 rushing yards on 27 carries.

After moving up a spot to No. 21 in the D3football.com poll, the Bulldogs opened SCIAC competition with a high-scoring triumph over the University of La Verne to improve to 3-0 on the season. On the heels of five passing touchdowns by senior quarterback Dan Selway (Villa Park, CA), the Maroon and Gray ran away with the 51-24 victory at Ted Runner Stadium. Junior defensive back Mike Nicolini (Novato, CA) provided his first-ever punt-return for a touchdown by taking the ball 30 yards into the end zone. In addition, senior wide receiver Brian Putman (Bakersfield, CA) provided the fourth-best total in receiving yards for a single game at Redlands with 212 yards on 11 catches.

The following week Redlands headed to Eagle Rock to take on No. 24 Occidental College in a classic SCIAC showdown between two talented teams. Despite holding a 14-point lead at the start of the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs suffered a heartbreaking 24-27 overtime loss, spoiling their hopes of an undefeated conference run.

Although disappointed, the Bulldogs quickly rebounded with four consecutive wins by out-scoring opponents, 165 to 78. This span included conference victories over Whittier College, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, and Pomona-Pitzer Colleges, to go along with a non-SCIAC tilt against Chapman University.

In the 44-13 dismantling of Whittier on Homecoming, Selway found Putman, his favorite target of the season, on 10 occasions for 137 yards and three touchdowns en route to the Bulldogs’ 41 first-half points. On defense, Redlands racked up 12 tackles for a loss of 48 yards, with Cunningham leading the barrage with three tackles for a loss of nine yards.

Riding a 36-point offensive explosion in the second quarter, the Redlands football team ran away with a solid 53-27 victory over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in its next conference game. Aided by four defensive takeaways, the Maroon and Gray overcame a slow start and eventually returned to its powerful style of play en route to this important SCIAC win. Six different players made touchdown catches, including two for senior wide receiver Evan Reuter (Cameron Park, CA).

On Halloween night, the Bulldogs took charge with a 21-point third quarter to defeat the visiting Sagehens of Pomona-Pitzer by a score of 41-14. Selway posted a season-high 405 passing yards while senor wide receiver Brenden Barkate (Bakersfield, CA) made eight catches for a game-high 136 yards. On the other side of the ball, sophomore linebacker Ian Sluss (Vista, CA) made 10 total hits while pushing back the opponents for a loss of 26 yards. He also forced two fumbles for the Maroon and Gray. Sophomore defensive back Josh Herrera (Vista, CA) nabbed two interceptions, doubling his season output at the time.

Against Chapman, Redlands staved off a valiant comeback effort by the Panthers and eked out a 27-24 victory in non-conference action. Following a 23-yard scoring bomb to Putman, the Bulldogs held a 27-10 at the start of the fourth quarter. However, a costly red-zone fumble and a successful onside kick by Chapman quickly made it a three-point game. With just over a minute to play, the Panthers attempted a second onside kick, but Redlands recovered the ball on the out-of-bounds play and successfully ran out the clock for the victory.

This four-game win streak set up a familiar face-off with conference rival Cal Lutheran University in the final regular-season game. With a win, Redlands would force a share of the conference title while keeping their playoff hopes alive. However, costly first-half turnovers put the Bulldogs in an early hole. Despite their late 14-point rally, the Maroon and Gray came up on the losing end of a 21-30 decision to the Kingsmen, forcing the Maroon and Gray to settle for a third-place finish in the conference with a 4-2 record.

Although the Bulldogs must wait another year for a chance to recapture the coveted crown, the 2009 football team garnered a variety of accolades, which illustrate its success. Putman broke the school record for receptions in a season with 77, surpassing Chad Hustead’s ’00 mark of 72 from 1999. Putman also gained First-Team All-SCIAC honors and a College Sports Information Director of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-America nod for stellar academic and athletic prowess.

Selway, Sluss, Cunningham, Nicolini, and senior offensive lineman Travis McBride (Long Beach, CA) joined Putman on the First Team. Cunningham also earned Redlands’ second-ever John Zinda Award for his performance, leadership, integrity, sportsmanship, positive attitude, and academic success.

Furthermore, McBride garnered D3football.com All-West Region honors.

Junior running back Daylan Swedlow (Lake Arrowhead, CA), senior offensive lineman Rick Albrecht (Yorba Linda, CA), Herrera and Nicolini also warranted spots on the Second Team.

In addition to Putman, Swedlow and Cunningham earned CoSIDA Academic All-District First-Team accolades.

Finally, the Bulldogs gained national recognition by landing among Division III’s finest for rushing defense (3rd – 54.44 yards allowed per game), sacks (3rd – 3.67 sacks per game), and total defense (5th – 244.56 yards allowed per game), according to the Dec. 13 posting of NCAA statistics. Individually, Putman came in 10th in the nation for receptions per game at 8.56 and receiving yards per game at 114.78.

While the Bulldogs’ finish to the season left a bitter taste, they exude promise and excitement for the 2010 campaign. With Head Coach Mike Maynard looking forward to his 23rd season, Redlands anticipates additional opportunities for success at the national and SCIAC levels of Division III football.