CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. – A relentless offensive outing from the Wabash Little Giants handed the Gators their first road loss of the season on Saturday at Hollett Little Giant Stadium.  The Little Giants, ranked No. 12 in the most recent D3Football.com Top 25 Poll, shut out the Gators, 63-0, on their homecoming contest to remain unbeaten on the season.

The Gators were held to 105 yards of total offense, while the Little Giants rattled off 614 total yards, 354 on the ground and 260 in the air, over a decisive 30:02 of possession time.  Freshman Freddy Ruiz provided a highlight for Allegheny in the first quarter with the first interception of his career, but Wabash responded with touchdowns on six first half drives.

Sophomore John McFarland caught a pair of receptions for a team-high 33 yards, including a 19-yard reception in the third quarter, as fellow second year Jon Nigro went 15-of-24 for 103 yards behind center.  Senior Andrew Niklaus, the reigning Allegheny Athlete of the Week, caught five passes for 27 yards while junior Tyler Smith made both of his receptions count, averaging 9.0 yards per carry, including a 13-yard catch that put the Gators in Wabash territory during the third quarter.

Freshman Nick Murgo finished the game with four tackles, including a 12-yard sack on a third quarter 3rd and 5, forcing a Wabash punt with his fourth tackle for loss this season.  Junior Josh Zenkert recorded a team-high seven tackles, assisting on a tackle for loss with senior Will Kawalec.

Ruiz snuffed out a Wabash drive early in the first, picking off Putko on Allegheny's 3-yard line to put the Gators back on offense.  A six-play drive brought the Gators to the 41, but Allegheny was unable to crack the midfield line into Wabash territory after the Little Giants' Austin Brown intercepted NIgro at the Allegheny 48 and took it into the Allegheny end zone to give Wabash the early, 7-0 lead.

Putko gave Wabash an eventual 14-0 lead off of a two-yard scamper to complete a four-play, 32-yard drive for the Little Giants, as a 34-yard touchdown run from Tyler Holmes put Wabash up, 21-0, to end the first quarter. 

After a strike from Putko to Drake Christen put Wabash on top, 28-0, Allegheny responded with a six-play, 23-yard drive that started at the Allegheny 21-yard line.  The Little Giants entered halftime with a 42-0 lead, scoring on their first drive of the second half en route to three second half touchdowns.

Allegheny will return to Frank B. Fuhrer Field on Saturday, Oct. 4 to face off against NCAC opponent Ohio Wesleyan.  The Gators will return to friendly soil for three of their next four contests, welcoming Oberlin College on Oct. 18 for Homecoming Weekend before hosting DePauw on Oct. 25, the following weekend.