Season Recap

With their victory over Elmhurst College by the score of 49-24, the North Central football team concluded its 2009 campaign on November 14th. With the victory, the Cardinals took home a share of the CCIW crown as co-champions with Illinois Wesleyan University. This CCIW title gave the Cardinals their forth consecutive title, something that has only been achieved twice before in the history of the CCIW. Despite being ranked in the top 20 in two final season polls, the Cardinals were left out of playoff contention by the NCAA.

The season itself was marked by a number of outstanding individual performances by a number of Cardinals. Senior quarterback Aaron Fanthorpe led the Cardinal offense with his outstanding play for the third year straight. Due to his and the rest of the offenses efforts, North Central was the highest scoring college football team in America this past season with an average of 49 points per game. During his career, Fanthorpe managed to climb high in the North Central record books in every passing category and finished with the highest career completion percentage in school history (60%). Last week, Aaron was named the Art Keller Offensive Player of the Year in the CCIW. This is his third time winning the award and he stands as the only player in the 63 year history of the conference to do so. In all, twelve Cardinals received All-CCIW honors. These players are:

Offense
Aaron Fanthorpe, SR, QB, First Team, CCIW OPOY
Butch Rossberg, SR, RB, First Team
Kyle Fiedorowicz, JR, TE, First Team
Steve Hlavac, JR, WR, First Team
Josh Delancy, SR, OL, First Team
Kyle Antos, JR, OL, First Team
Hank Johnston, SR, WR, Second Team
Zach Baldacci, SR, OL, Second Team

Defense
Joe Schneiderbauer, JR, LB, First Team
Josh McLeod, SO, DB, First Team
Robert Champion, JR, DL, First Team
Tim Janecek, SR, DL, Second Team

The Cardinals' nine First Team selections were the most in the conference this season and the largest haul in the history of the North Central program, topping the 2007 squad's eight First Team honorees. Congratulations to all of these players and to the entire team for their hard work and success this past season.

The team would also like to thank all of the fans, staff and faculty of North Central College for their continued support throughout the season. It was always comforting to know that whether the Cardinals played at home or on the road, the fans provided a great atmosphere that felt like a home field advantage. Please continue your support for the team as it looks to improve during the off season and the 2010 season.

Schneiderbauer Honored

North Central linebacker Joe Schneiderbauer was honored as a CCIW Defensive Player of the Week for his performance this past Saturday as the Cardinals defeated Augustana College 45-26. The junior from Sterling, Illinois recorded 11 total tackles with three of those tackles coming for a loss. Schneiderbauer is the first North Central Cardinal football player to win the defensvie player of the week honor for the CCIW this season. Congratulations to Joe!

Fanthorpe and Wild Honored

Senior quarterback Aaron Fanthorpe and junior punter Shaun Wild were both honored by the CCIW as players of the week for their performances against the Wheaton Thunder this past Saturday. Fanthorpe went 16-28 for 218 yards passing and four passing touchdowns. He also led the Cardinals in rushing with 88 yards. This is Fanthorpe's third offensive player of the week honor.

Wild punted six times for a 36.7 yard average and landed two punts inside the Wheaton twenty yard-line to give the Cardinal defense excellent field position all afternoon. This is his first player of the week award this season.

The Cardinals are currently preparing to face the Illinois Wesleyan Titans this Saturday.

Fanthorpe Honored

Senior Quarterback Aaron Fanthorpe received his second CCIW Offensive Player of the Week honor for his performance this weekend against the Millikin Big Blue. In the game, Aaron completed 12-19 passes for 229 yards and set a school record with six touchdown passes in a single game. Previously, Fanthorpe earned co-player of the week honors for his performance against Benedictine University, where he was 12-19 for 245 yards and 2 touchdowns. Congrats to Aaron!

Cardinals Honored

Four Cardinals were honored earlier this week as D3football.com announced thier annual Preseason All-American teams. Senior quarterback Aaron Fanthorpe was named a first team selection on offense and senior linebacker Matt Wenger was named a first team defense selection. Both Fanthorpe and Wenger were honored as CCIW players of the year for their efforts during the 2008 season. It was Fanthorpe's second consecutive year winning the award.

Senior defensive back Derek Sulo was picked as a second team defensive selection and junior offensive lineman Kyle Antos was also named to the second team on offense. Both Sulo and Antos notched places on the All-CCIW team last fall with Sulo earning a first team defense selection and Antos a second team selection on offense.

The Cardinals report to training camp on August 15th and open their 2009 season in Ada, Ohio against the Ohio Northern Polar Bears on September 5th.