Macalester football has season to remember

It's highly unlikely the ride will last beyond Saturday, when Macalester finally takes a bow on the NCAA playoff stage in its 121st season of football. In fact, coach Tony Jennison readily admits his team might lose to Wisconsin-Whitewater — winner of 27 consecutive games and five of the past seven Division III titles — by 80 points.

If things play out that way in their first-round matchup at Whitewater's Perkins Stadium, it wouldn't spoil the finest season in the history of a program once known as a national punch line. Nor would it budge Jennison's conviction that this giddy week is not a freak occurrence. "Maybe I'm the idiot in the room," he said. "But I believe we will win a playoff game, whether it's Saturday or 10 years down the road."

If that sounds like magical thinking, consider the magic the Scots already have conjured. They completed their first season in the Midwest Conference as its champion, the first league title they have won since sharing the MIAC crown in 1947. At 9-1, they set a school record for most victories and established another mark with eight wins in a row. After beating a ranked opponent for the first time in history, they received their first-ever votes in a national poll.

All this from a program whose epic losing streak — 50 games, from 1974 through 1979 — remains a reference point for college football futility. With the help of an entire campus community, Jennison has remolded Macalester from an embarrassing trivia answer into a team bursting with pride and ambition, convinced that even better days lie ahead.

Defensive coordinator Marshall Mullenbach played at Macalester in the early 2000s, when rosters hovered around 40 players and the school considered dropping the sport. Last Saturday, he stood on the field and wept as the Scots rallied from a two-touchdown deficit on the road to beat Illinois College 30-27 and seize both the championship and the playoff berth.

"This has been a long time coming," Mullenbach said. "There was a time when football was looked at as an eyesore.

"The support now is amazing, and not just from football alumni. I've been getting e-mails from friends who weren't even athletes who have been following us. It's extraordinary."

By 2001, when school officials proposed dropping the sport, the roster had dwindled to 30 players. Students and alumni rallied to save football, but the program left the MIAC and wasn't in much better shape when Jennison arrived as defensive coordinator in 2006.

"It would be fair to say it was one of the worst college football programs in America," said Jennison, a Rochester native who became head coach in 2008. "I'd heard all the jokes. I probably made some myself. But I came here because the administration made a commitment to give athletes a great experience."

When President Brian Rosenberg arrived in 2003, he declared that if Macalester aspired to be among the top schools in the country, it needed to pursue excellence in all things — from the cafeteria food to the football program. It built the $45 million Leonard Center athletic facility in 2008 and increased the football budget to hire more full-time assistant coaches and expand recruiting.

Jennison still carefully selects players who fit the Macalester mold of individualism and intellectualism. Defensive back Konnor Fleming sings in an a capella group; offensive lineman Djoser Ramsey minors in women's, gender and sexuality studies. But the talent level has improved significantly, and players have deepened their commitment because of the fun and fulfilling atmosphere that now surrounds the program.

The Scots were picked to finish fourth in the MWC's North Division this season. They ran the table in conference play behind junior running back Zandy Stowell, a physics major who set a school record with 1,243 rushing yards; quarterback Samson Bialostok, who has thrown for 1,716 yards and 12 touchdowns; and brothers Konnor and Ryan Fleming, who lead the defense with a combined 148 tackles and four interceptions.

Wisconsin-Whitewater (10-0) is ranked No. 1 in Division III and has outscored its first-round playoff opponents 376-87 over its past eight appearances. Fleming said the Scots are exhilarated, not intimidated, by the opportunity to play one of the most accomplished programs in college football.

Even if they lose by 80 points, Jennison said, it still represents a step ahead for a program that isn't looking backward any more.

"I've been laughing to myself ever since [the bracket was announced]," Jennison said. "I see UW-Whitewater versus Macalester, and I just chuckle. This season has been magical. I could not have dreamed this up in my wildest dreams."