Fans flock to Mules’ big game
Tailgaters feel excitement as team plays in Division III semifinal, falling 45-14
Pat Boyle, a 1994 Muhlenberg graduate, walked into Scotty Wood Stadium on Saturday with some of his old college friends.
They were all there to watch the Mules’ football team play in the NCAA Division III national semifinals for the first time.
“They just said, ‘It wasn’t like this when we were here,’” said Boyle, the longtime boys basketball coach at Notre Dame-Green Pond High School who played at Allentown Central Catholic, then Muhlenberg. “A lot’s changed in 25 years.
“We were terrible then and nobody went to the games.”
There were lots of Muhlenberg fans Saturday, most decked out in the school’s cardinal and grey colors, on the Allentown campus as early as 7 a.m. Saturday — and even a couple hundred North Central College fans, as well.
The excitement level prior to kickoff was palpable, as people tailgated outside the stadium and vendors sold souvenirs and standard game day cuisine inside the gates.
The hometown Mules ultimately fell to North Central, of Illinois, 45-14.
Carol Rooney, who was in attendance to support her grandson, Mules senior safety Joe O’Hagan, joined about a dozen family members at an amped-up pregame party. Rooney said her grandfather
graduated from Muhlenberg in 1934.
“It’s so exciting,” Rooney, of Hawthorne, New Jersey, said. “I don’t think any of us could sleep last night. And, oh my gosh, as soon as you walked onto campus this morning you could feel the vibrations. It’s incredible.
“We’re winning today. I can feel it.”
Another fan who had a huge rooting interest in the game was Kevin Cyphers of Phillipsburg.
His son, Zach, is a senior offensive guard for the Mules. Kevin Cyphers, who was wearing his son’s No. 64 uniform jersey, is part of a group of parents who tailgate before and after every home game. He said this one was special.
“It’s unreal today,” Cyphers said. “This is unprecedented. We’ve never been this far and it’s exciting to be one of the top four Division III teams in the country.
“We got here this morning at 8:30 and there were others already here. We’ve done this for four years now. The college is gracious enough to let us use this spot to meet with the kids and we don’t abuse it.”
Cyphers said if Muhlenberg was victorious in the semifinals he would take his first trip to Texas to watch next week’s D-III national championship.
The annual Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl is set for Friday night in Shenandoah, Texas.
“I’ve never been to Texas,” Cyphers said, “but I’m looking forward to it.”
Instead, it’ll be the North
Central contingent taking the trip to the Lone Star State.
There were a couple dozen Cardinal fans on the Muhlenberg campus prior to the game, including Tim Strba and Dave
Witken, who both have sons that play for North Central.
Strba took a flight to the Lehigh Valley, while Witken made the 742-mile drive from near North Central’s campus in
Naperville, Illinois, to Allentown.
“It’s very nice here, a very nice college campus,” Strba said. “We’re about 35 miles southwest of Chicago. We don’t have all the rolling hills where we’re at, so it’s kind of neat. We’ll travel pretty well. I’ll estimate we’ll have about 200 here.”
“We drove and stopped overnight,” Witken said. “It’s actually not our farthest trip this season. We went to Newport News in Virginia. I’d love to see this part of the country in the spring or fall.”
Though rain was sporadic on Saturday, temperatures peaked in the 50s on an overcast, dreary day for football.
Despite the tough seasonending defeat, the Mules’ postseason run — they finish with a 13-1 overall record — was both fun and beneficial to the college, said Muhlenberg President Kathleen Harring, who hosted a pregame tailgate party for alumni and fans.
“The football team’s accomplishments this season and in particular during the playoffs have really fueled an increase in spirit across the campus community and beyond,” Harring said. “I’ve heard from alumni from across the country who have been following the team all season.
“It’s hard not to get caught up in the excitement and anticipation,” she said. “I am so proud of the team’s successes and sportsmanship. It’s been so fun to see this community come together and cheer on the team each week.”