Dec. 15, 2007
2007 National Championship Trends
• Carroll's Gabe Le picked up the game's first, first down after a 14-yard run at the 8:13 mark in the first quarter. His carry came on the 16th play of the game and the game's fifth possession.
• Carroll's Bubba Bartlett gathered the first completion of the game, the sixth combined attempt, at the 5:51 mark of the first quarter.
• With the wet conditions, there were three fumbles within the first six minutes of the game. Combined, there were nine fumbles with five of those lost.
• Carroll had six fumbles on the day - the Championship record is 10 by Trinity (Ill.) in 1994.
• Sioux Falls picked up its first, first down on a 12-yard rush by Erik Cimpl, at the 9:14 mark of the second quarter. That occurred on the Cougars fifth possession of the day.
• The first completion for Sioux Falls came with 2:03 remaining in the second quarter - a 3-yd pass to Josiah Fenceroy.
• Sioux Falls was shut-out in the first half - the first team since Northwestern Oklahoma State in the 2000 Championship (against Georgetown).
• Carroll's Gabe Le went over 100 yards at the 3:59 mark of the third quarter. He finished with 116 yards on 34 carries.
• The 21 combined first downs were the fewest since 2000 when Georgetown (Ky.) and Northwestern Oklahoma State combined for 21.
• Gabe Le is the first 100-yard rusher since Patrick Crayton (Northwestern Oklahoma State) posted 179 against Carroll in 2003.
• With a combined zero interceptions, that marked the first time since 2005.
• With 34 rushing attempts, Le is the first running back to have 30 or more since Patrick Crayton (Northwestern Oklahoma State) had 31 against Carroll in 2003.
• Having two rushing touchdowns, Le becomes the first to do so since Georgetown's (Ky.) Payne back in 2001.
• There were a combined 13 punts (7 for Sioux Falls) - the most combined since 2000 when Georgetown (Ky.) and Northwestern Oklahoma State did the same.
• Sioux Falls' Trevor Holleman compiled 12 total tackles - the first defender to have 10 or more since the 10 by Tim Farrell of St. Francis (Ind.) in 2005.
• With the loss, Sioux Falls has its 27-game winning streak snapped including an eight-game streak in the playoffs.
2007 National Championship Quick Facts
• Savannah, Tenn., holds the distinction of hosting the longest continuous Championship - this was the 12th straight season.
• The program (Carroll) that won the most consecutive titles (4) won all in Savannah from 2002-05.
• Since 2002, the national champion has either been Sioux Falls (S.D.) or Carroll (Mont.) with Carroll claiming five of the last six and Sioux Falls one.
• For just the second time in the last nine Championships, the winner scored fewer than 20 points - Carroll was a 15-13 winner in 2004.
• Carroll is appearing in its 16th overall Championship Series while Sioux Falls is in its 13th overall.
• Overall, Carroll owns five Championships (2002-05, 2007) while Sioux Falls has claimed two (1996 & 2006).
• In Championship action, Carroll improves to 5-0 while Sioux Falls drops to 2-2 (lost in 2001, 2007).
• With both teams undefeated heading into 2007, both participants had a perfect record heading into the last three Championships.
• Carroll (Mont.) is the first 15-0 team since 2003 when it accomplished the feat and won its second Championship.
2007 National Championship Players of the Game
• Offense: Gabe Le (Carroll) - 34 carries, 116 yards, 2 TDs
• The award is the fifth overall for Carroll and the third offensive player to win it.
• The first Carroll player since Tyler Emmert won it three straight years from 2003-05.
• Defense: Owen Koeppen (Carroll) - 3 solo, 3 assists, 1.0 TFL's, 1 FF
• The award is the third overall for a Carroll defensive player.
• The first Carroll player since Matt Thomas in 2005.
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