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(LEBANON, Ill., Oct. 31)—The McKendree University football team was clicking on all cylinders on Saturday in a 65-0 win Saturday afternoon at home against Lincoln University.
 
It was appropriate that on Halloween at Leemon Field the Bearcats put up some scary numbers on both sides of the ball. Offensively, McKendree rolled up 587 yards of total offense against the Blue Tigers. The 65 points scored by the Bearcats is the most by a McKendree team in the program's NCAA Division II era (which dates back to 2012) and is the team's highest single-game scoring effort since a 66-0 home shutout of Waldorf College back in 2009.
 
The Bearcats' defense matched a season-high with eight quarterback sacks while allowing a season-low 265 yards of total offense. McKendree even collected a special-teams score for a touchdown off a blocked punt early in the third quarter.
 
McKendree also notched its first shutout in more than five seasons in Saturday's win. The last time the Bearcats held an opponent scoreless came in a 41-0 victory at Leemon Field over Olivet Nazarene University back in September 2010.
 
The Bearcats improve to 6-2 overall and 4-2 in Great Lakes Valley Conference play. McKendree will close out the home portion of its 2015 schedule next Saturday (Nov. 7) by hosting Quincy University in another GLVC tilt. Kickoff for the Senior Day match-up is set for 1 p.m.
 
"We wanted our guys to bounce back in a positive way following the loss last week (at Missouri S & T)," said McKendree head football coach Mike Babcock. "They really came out and played well in every phase in the game. Offensively we clicked early and were able to sustain that throughout the game. The defense swarmed to the ball, constantly put pressure on the quarterback and produced some big plays. Even on special teams we had solid efforts all-around. This was a true team victory and was proud of the way they played from whistle to whistle."
 
Senior quarterback Isaac Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington) showed the way offensively by putting up nearly 400 yards of total offense against Lincoln. Fisher completed 26-of-30 pass attempts for 308 yards with three touchdown tosses while rushing for a game-high 82 yards on 11 carries. He completed his first 16 pass attempts in the contest and was 22-of-24 in the first half. Fisher threw a pair of TD passes to senior wide receiver Cameron James (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) and another to freshman tight end Skylar Paulson (Lanark, IL/Eastland). In all, 11 different players caught at least one pass for the Bearcats, including a team-leading seven by James.

With his three touchdown passes on the day, Fisher pushed his season total to 19. That matches the Bearcats' single-season record that he first set in 2013 and matched last season. Fisher also surpassed the 2,000-yard mark in the passing department, boosting in 2015 yardage total to 2,300. 
 
Sophomore defensive lineman Darion Simmons (Peoria, IL/Peoria) and freshman defensive end Brad Wyss (Gardner, IL/Seneca) each had two sacks on the day for McKendree. Junior linebacker Jeremiah Wilkins (St. Louis, MO/Pattonville) made his first career interception for the Bearcats a memorable one as he returned it 30 yards for a touchdown just before halftime.
 
The special teams unit posted the first points of the second half when sophomore linebacker Carter Vance (Secor, IL/Eureka) blocked a Blue Tigers' punt, and sophomore defensive back Jordan Osborne (Quincy, IL/Quincy Senior) scooped up the loose ball and raced 15 yards for a touchdown.
 
McKendree scored on its first four possessions in building a 28-0 lead. The Bearcats took the opening kickoff and marched 67 yards in eight plays, capped by a five-yard scoring run from Fisher. Junior kicker Steven O'Block (Libertyville, IL/Carmel Catholic) tacked on the point after for an early 7-0 advantage. Junior running back Kevin Witcik (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) finished off a 75-yard scoring drive with a three-yard TD burst. Fisher closed out a 21-point first quarter for McKendree with his first touchdown pass of the day, a two-yard strike to Paulson with 1:48 left in the period.
 
Fisher and James combined for the first two scores of the second quarter for McKendree. First, James made a leaping catch in the left corner of the end zone on a 30-yard pass from Fisher to extend the Bearcats' lead to 28-0. Midway through the period, Fisher found James alone in the back of the end zone for a five-yard TD pass.
 
Two plays following a McKendree turnover, Wilkins stepped in front of a Blue Tigers' pass and weaved his way down the left sideline 30 yards for a touchdown and a 42-0 Bearcats' lead with 3:16 remaining until halftime. That score stood until the Vance's blocked punt and subsequent touchdown, which came following Lincoln's first possession of the second half.
 
Sophomore running back Shayeen Edwards (East St. Louis, IL/Cahokia) then sandwiched two rushing touchdowns around a 21-yard field goal by O'Block to close out the scoring on the afternoon. Edwards finished the day with 67 yards on 11 carries. O'Block's field goal was his 11^th of the season, which is a new career-high for the Bearcats' kicker.
 
Junior linebacker A.J. Wentland (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) led a balanced defensive effort for McKendree with nine tackles, giving him 106 on the season. Wentland is the first player in Bearcats' history to have two seasons with more than 100 tackles. He posted a school-record 132 stops last season.