The No. 4-ranked St. Thomas football team will have its hands full with a dominant running back this Saturday when it squares off with unbeaten Wabash College in the national quarterfinals at O’Shaughnessy Stadium.

Running back Mason Zurek was named the North Coast Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year after he totaled 1,430 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns in the regular season. He was also the only NCAC running back to surpass 1,000 rushing yards on the year. Coach Glenn Caruso called Zurek “phenomenal.”

“He’s absolutely the total package. He’s among the country’s elite backs,” Caruso said. “He gets a lot of credit for what happens when he gets into the open, but I don’t think he gets enough credit for the agility and footwork he displays when he’s in the hole.”

In No. 7-ranked Wabash’s 33-27 overtime victory over Thomas More College last week, Zurek rolled up 183 yards and one score on 35 attempts. This was an impressive performance against the No. 9-ranked Saints, but a more superb showing came the two weeks before last Saturday when he broke the school rushing record in back-to-back games.

In the first round of the national playoffs, Zurek chalked up 331 yards and four touchdowns on 39 attempts, which ousted his original record of 278 yards set in the regular season finale against DePauw University. A crucial advantage for the senior is his 6-foot, 220 pound frame, which gives him the ability to break weak arm tackles at the line of scrimmage. Defensive end Anthony King-Foreman said fundamentally sound tackling is crucial in taking down Zurek.

“He’s probably the biggest back we’ve faced so far this year, but our approach will stay the same,” King-Foreman said. “Tackling low and driving our feet on contact is what our coaches preach every week, so if we stay true to who we are, the results should be the same as the last couple weeks.”

Aside from Zurek, quarterback Connor Rice has been steady this season as well and delivered quality starts despite showing a couple signs of weakness. The junior hurled two or more touchdowns in six games but is coming off his worst performance of the season. He tossed four interceptions and one touchdown against Thomas More, completing 19 of his 41 passes. Caruso called Rice a “strong-armed kid that keeps defenses at bay.”

Rice doesn’t have one main target, but he has three steady wide receivers that have had their fair share of success. Drake Christen leads the team with 577 yards and is the co-leader with five touchdowns. Oliver Page is second with 441 yards and is the other co-leader in touchdowns. Sammy Adams has 403 yards and three touchdowns. King-Foreman said getting early pressure will fluster Rice.

“We are going to stop them by bringing pressure and relying on our lockdown defensive backs, just as we have all season,” King-Foreman said. “Rice is probably the biggest QB we’ve seen all year, so we have to make sure to hit him early and often.”

The Tommies are conceding just under 80 rushing yards per game, placing them ninth in the nation. The defense features five players with over five sacks, including team-leading outside linebacker Jesse Addo. If St. Thomas is able to contain the run game and win the battle in the trenches, there’s a good shot Wabash’s offense could crumble Saturday.

The defensive line will have its hands full with Zurek, but the offensive line will face a tough test with defensive tackle Tyler McCullen, the NCAC defensive player of the year. In the regular season, he led the conference with 8.5 sacks and was tied for second in tackles-for-loss with 15.5. Just like Zurek, McCullen wreaks havoc on opposing offensive linemen with his 6-foot-5-inch, 265 pound frame.

The scariest part about Wabash’s defense is that McCullen is not even the team’s leading tackler this season; he’s sixth. Outside linebacker Connor Ludwig leads the team with 83 total tackles, including 18.5 for a loss and seven sacks. He shared the team lead of 10 tackles last week with inside linebacker Evan Hansen. Hansen himself is third in tackles with 58, including four sacks.

Safety Austin Brown and cornerback Delon Pettiford will be patrolling the secondary, a duty they’ve performed masterfully this season. Brown is second in tackles (81) and leads the team with six interceptions. Pettiford is sixth in tackles (51) and tallied five picks. The defense even scored the game-winning touchdown against Thomas More in overtime when outside linebacker Ethan Buresh scooped and scored on a 75-yard fumble return. Offensive guard Zach Brennan knows the Little Giants will execute on defense.

“I think a lot of people look at a 2- or 3-yard carry, and they don’t think it was a very good play,” Brennan said. “But they are a fantastic unit, and they are going to make plays.”

This week, however, the Little Giants’ defense will have to worry about running back Jordan Roberts, quarterback John Gould and a plethora of wide receivers that have propelled an offense tied for first in the nation in points scored (54.9) and fourth in the nation in total yards per game. Brennan and his fellow linemen are holding teams to under one sack per game. Brennan said it’ll be a grind-it-out type of game plan.

“We just have to be consistent with our techniques and continue to wear on them throughout the game because eventually those carries could break, and we could hit a big gain,” Brennan said.

Wabash coach Erik Raeburn guided his defense to fifth in the nation in total yards, allowing just 229.2 yards per game; it is also ranked seventh in the nation in sacks, averaging just over four per game. This stubbornness propelled Raeburn to his second NCAC coach of the year honor. During his eight-year tenure with the Little Giants, he’s compiled a 76-12 record, including five appearances to the national playoffs and a trip to the quarterfinals in 2011. Raeburn and his staff have been on Caruso’s radar since the Little Giants reached the elite level.

“Truly excited to play this team,” Caruso said. “This is one of those we’ve been looking forward to playing for several years and just very fortunate to have the opportunity to play them in round three of the playoffs.”

Jesse Krull can be reached at krul7386@stthomas.edu.