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Central Missouri Zach Zebrowski Dominates In Week 15 Video Game Numbers

Central Missouri Zach Zebrowski Dominates In Week 15 Video Game Numbers

Zach Zebrowski, Villanova's Brendan Bell, and more showed out in week 15 to deliver some of college football's hottest stats from the weekend.

Dec 12, 2024 by Briar Napier
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We’re almost four months into Video Game Numbers now and we’re still able to find some big-time performances that look like they belong in, well, a video game.

Such are the postseason rounds in NCAA Divisions I, II and III, which can more than often bring the best out of stars and contribute to some truly sensational statlines.

The FCS and D-III playoff brackets are in the quarterfinals while D-II is in the semis this weekend as Video Game Numbers is back yet to recap the past week that was in postseason college football, where the number of games is dwindling but the wild single-game outings aren’t stopping.

You know how this goes by now if you’ve followed along for this long. Let’s hop straight into it and cherish the playoff football we’ve been provided recently — and eagerly await whatever else may come.

Here’s a look back at some of college football’s craziest stats of Week 15 from all across the sport:

Brendan Bell, LB, Villanova (15 tackles, one forced fumble at Incarnate Word)

The last of the Coastal Athletic Association representatives in the FCS playoffs were knocked out this past weekend, including Villanova, which wasn’t able to get past Incarnate Word in a low-scoring, 13-6 affair in San Antonio.

Though it was a disappointing finish as a whole for the Wildcats, Bell was at least able to close his college career out on a strong note as the graduate student and former All-CAA selection tied his season (and career) high in tackles and did all he could to try and hold the Cardinals out of the end zone throughout the game.

Bell additionally had a forced fumble as he was an integral part of a ‘Nova defense that held a high-scoring UIW offense — which was held to 24 points below its season average — to its lowest point total in five years, though the Wildcats’ defensive unit was unable to get help from the offense as ‘Nova was only able to muster up a pair of field goals in a cold and rainy environment in the Lone Star State.

A 10-win season is nothing to be ashamed of in ‘Nova’s case, having clinched its third double-digit winning campaign in four years, but there’s undoubtedly a little bit of wonder about what could’ve been if it had been able to muster up a couple more scoring drives against the Cardinals this past weekend, too. Nonetheless, Bell did his best and flew all over the field trying to stop chances, and though the Wildcats’ season is over, it’s not due to a lack of effort.

Zach Zebrowski, QB, Central Missouri (20-for-47 passing, 262 yards, two touchdowns, 29 carries, 138 yards, three touchdowns vs. Texas Permian Basin)

It was well known by D-II diehards already that Zebrowski could sling the pigskin; he did win the 2023 Harlon Hill Trophy after throwing for over 5,000 yards and 61 touchdowns that season, after all.

But who knew that the superstar Mules quarterback had some wheels on him, too?

Shattering his previous single-game high for carries in his two seasons at UCM (previous high was 16), Zebrowski — now a two-time Video Game Numbers nominee after also being selected in Week 12 — had one last standout performance in the college game in his bag in front of plenty of pro scouts at the Heritage Bowl in Corsicana, Texas, where Central Missouri narrowly got past UTPB by a 39-37 margin in double overtime.

Zebrowski, once again nominated for the Harlon Hill Trophy, had an off game by his standards through the air, throwing for a season-low amount of completions with three interceptions on top of it. But he turned into a workhorse running the ball, scoring a rushing touchdown with 6:46 to play in regulation and throwing another with 35 seconds left to bring UCM back from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit.

Shared field goals in the first extra period meant a second overtime, and though UTPB struck first with a touchdown, Zebrowski ended the game for good by running in his third and final score of the day before throwing a successful two-point conversion pass to ice it and cap off a legendary two-year stint at UCM in style. 

Now, nearly 10,000 yards and over 100 passing touchdowns later, he might be an NFL defense’s problem soon.

Malik Baker, DB, Tiffin (11 tackles, one tackle for loss, one interception, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery vs. Truman State)

In a bit of an under-the-radar standout performance on the defensive end, Baker stood out despite the Dragons’ 29-10 defeat last Saturday in the America’s Crossroads Bowl in Hobart, Indiana, the annual bowl game between representatives from the Great Lakes Valley Conference and the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

The redshirt sophomore and Ohio native had by far his best game of the season for Tiffin in his team’s postseason game, posting a season-high for tackles (with 10 of them being solo stops) while also nabbing his first interception of the season and second of his career. 

That takeaway was a crucial attempt to give the Dragons a boost late in the third quarter as a Tiffin rushing touchdown followed on the ensuing possession to cut down what had been a 13-point second-half deficit to 16-10. He also had a fumble forced and recovered in the first quarter that eventually led to a Dragons field goal, meaning that all of his team’s points came immediately following Baker creating a turnover.

After only playing in two games during his freshman season in 2023, Baker’s breakout second season with the Dragons (in which he finished with 58 total tackles) should set him up to be a top returning talent in the G-MAC going forward as Tiffin will try and make it back to the playoffs next year for the second time in three seasons.

Rahshan La Mons, RB, Susquehanna (29 carries, 176 yards, three touchdowns, seven catches, 55 yards at Saint John’s)

It’s more than reasonable to expect an adjustment period to the college game for true freshmen as they get used to the speed of the next level.

And then there’s true freshmen like La Mons, who are good enough to where they become one of their team’s top options in a playoff game at one of the most established names in D-III football.

On fire over the past month and change as he’s had four consecutive games in which he’s rushed for 121 yards or more, La Mons had his best game yet of his still-budding career in a River Hawks jersey as he was crucial to Susquehanna’s third-round playoff win (41-38) at Saint John’s — and bringing SU back to the national quarterfinals for the first time since 1991.

Even in an intimidating playoff atmosphere at SJU well known to be one of the toughest places to play in D-III, La Mons was unfazed by the pressure and helped to continue the River Hawks’ historic season with a hat trick of touchdowns on the ground and plenty of effective plays in the receiving game, as well.

La Mons had a 30-yard touchdown run, his longest of the day, early in the fourth quarter to put the River Hawks up by 14 points, and while the Johnnies did all they could to try and engineer a late comeback effort, a game-winning field goal as time expired from SU sent them through and made sure that La Mons’ efforts didn’t go without reward.

With another Minnesotan team in Bethel now coming to Susquehanna this Saturday with a spot in the national semifinals on the line, La Mons will be looking to run it back and keep the program’s best season in 33 years going.

Aaron Syverson, QB, Saint John’s (37-for-46 passing, 466 yards, five touchdowns vs. Susquehanna)

It’s about time that we give some kudos to Syverson for his phenomenal season under center for the Johnnies as D-III’s passing champion finally gets his first nod in Video Game Numbers this year.

Though his appearance on this week’s list came in a season-ending loss, that defeat was by no means due to Syverson, who became against SU the first (and so far only) D-III quarterback to break the 4,000-yard mark this season as well as only the second to break the 50-touchdown threshold, of which he became D-III’s leader in that category after Saturday, too.

Just about unstoppable in the pocket, Syverson threw for a season-high amount of yards when his team needed them most as well as for at least five scores for the sixth time this season — all while harboring a completion percentage of over 80%. He and top wideout Riley Schwellenbach were completely in sync, connecting for nine catches, 167 yards, and two touchdowns between them as he was one of four different receivers who caught both at least six balls and had at least 70 yards receiving.

He also never quit when SJU’s back was against the wall; the Johnnies were down 38-24 with under seven minutes left in the fourth quarter, but Syverson engineered two scoring drives that ended with passing touchdowns to Joey Gendreau and Marselio Mendez to tie it up before the River Hawks ended it with a walk-off field goal.

It wasn’t the end to the season that the Johnnies wanted, but it was a lot of fun for SJU fans to watch Syverson turn into D-III’s undisputed top gunslinger along the way.

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The FCS playoffs begin on November 30, 2024.

The 2024 Division I FCS College Football Championship game will be played on January 6, 2025, at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.

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