ASHLAND, Ohio — The young Ashland University fans waiting to get Adam Shaheen’s autograph after Saturday’s 45-7 win over Northwood ought to take good care of the prized signature.
There’s no telling how much it might be worth.
An All-America tight end and NFL prospect, Shaheen matched AU’s single-game record with four touchdown receptions as the Eagles delighted a Homecoming crowd of 4,027 at Jack Miller Stadium.
In AU’s past two games, Shaheen has 17 catches for 274 yards and seven TDs. He already has 11 receiving touchdowns on the year, just one off Joe Horn’s 2010 single-season record of 12.
“He’s a warrior out there. He makes me want to throw him the ball,” said AU quarterback Travis Tarnowski, who matched AU’s single-game record with five touchdown passes. “We just have a really good connection. It’s almost like he knows what I’m thinking before I’m thinking it.”
The 6-foot-6, 277-pound Shaheen hauled in a pair of 32 yard touchdown passes in the second quarter as AU built a 24-0 halftime lead. He added a 5-yarder in the third and a 7-yarder in the fourth.
“Like everyone else, they struggled to cover the big tight end. That’s just the reality of it,” AU coach Lee Owens said. “Travis isn’t afraid to throw it to him and coach isn’t afraid to call his number, which works out pretty good.
“Every play call we make, he’s going to be a decoy or he’s going to be the duck. Defensively, they’ve got to know where he’s at and they’ve got to account for him.”
For the season, Shaheen has a team-high 42 catches for 701 yards. He had 70 receptions for 801 yards and 11 touchdowns last fall.
“I’m just trying to do my job every play and open it up for everyone else,” Shaheen said. “Me and Travis, I don’t know how many games we’ve had together, but we’re starting to just start to click. Some of those plays out there are like backyard football. Just go to the ball and go get it.”
Stingy Defense: The AU defense, which surrendered 449 yards in last week’s loss at Tiffin, limited Northwood to 184 yards. The option-based Timberwolves managed just 120 yards on the ground on 40 attempts.
“We thought it might take us a while to adjust to their offense but honestly I thought our guys, from the very beginning on defense, had a great bead on what they were doing,” Owens said. “It kind of surprised me a little bit. I expected us to maybe struggle, but after the first half we felt pretty good about the plan defensively.
“Any time you get ahead of an option offense by a couple of scores, it kind of puts them in a tough situation. They’re not geared up … to make a big comeback.”
Wake-Up Call: After last week’s loss at Tiffin, Tarnowski said the Eagles had perhaps their best week of practice leading up to Saturday’s game.
“We had a really bad taste in our mouth,” Tarnowski said. “We needed to get back on track. We did a really good job of preparing … and it really translated to the game.
“The coaches said all week that every game now is a championship game. We can’t afford another screw-up.”
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