Springfield, Ohio – In recognition of his dominating performance against Hiram College on Oct. 4, Wittenberg University senior linebacker Nick Gibson (Marysville, Ohio/Fairbanks) has become the second Tiger in three weeks to earn a spot on the Team of the Week from D3football.com.
Gibson was the catalyst for a tremendous defensive performance as the Tigers overpowered Hiram by a 48-0 score. On the fifth play from scrimmage, Gibson stripped a Hiram ballcarrier, recovered the fumble, and ran 34 yards for the touchdown. After Wittenberg made it 14-0 on a fumbled punt recovered in the end zone, Gibson nearly duplicated his earlier feat, stripping a Hiram ballcarrier, recovering the fumble and returning it 10 yards, leading to a field goal. Gibson finished the game with a team-best 11 tackles.
For the season, Gibson ranks second on the team with 28 tackles. In addition, he has one sack, one pass broken up, two forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries, which is tied for first in all of NCAA Division III. A year ago, Gibson finished third on the team in tackles with 75, including 6.5 for loss. He intercepted a pair of passes, returning one for a touchdown, and he broke up six passes, forced a fumble and blocked one kick.
Ranked 14th nationally by D3football.com and 22nd by the American Football Coaches Association, Wittenberg stands 3-1 on the 2014 season, including a mark of 3-0 in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC). Following a 22-16 loss to NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision powerhouse Butler, the Tigers bounced back to defeat DePauw, Oberlin and Hiram. Next up for Wittenberg is a road trip at Denison on Saturday, Oct. 7.
Written By: Ryan Maurer