While Christopher Newport looks forward to the return of intercollegiate competitions, our friends at TowneBank are partnering with CNUsports.com to spend some time throughout the fall semester looking back at a few of the more memorable moments in the storied history of the athletic department. Over the course of the next three months, the Captains will honor the anniversary of three dozen record-setting accomplishments, championship-clinching victories, and other historic events in order to celebrate the past while preparing for even more great moments in the future.

AT A GLANCE
Writing another chapter in the remarkable story of the 2001 Christopher Newport football team, the Captains claimed the program's very first Dixie Conference Championship after upending Ferrum, 14-11, during the regular season finale at Darling Stadium in Hampton. Claiming the championship in the program's first year of existence, head coach Matt Kelchner's crew became the first team in NCAA history to advance to the national playoffs during their inaugural campaign.
                        
BACKSTORY
When Matt Kelchner was named the head football coach at Christopher Newport on May 9, 2000, he became the head coach of a program that didn't exist yet. He was inherently the face of the team, because there was no other face. No players. No coaches. Just one man looking to build a program from scratch.
 
Sixteen months after Kelchner's introduction, the school's first football team took the field at POMOCO Stadium. They lost that day. In fact, they lost their first three games, because that's what new programs are supposed to do.
 
Take your licks. Learn. Regroup. Play again.
 
After their first month of action, the Captains were sitting at 0-3. But the learning curve was now over. On October 6, they beat Greensboro. One week later, they marched through Chowan. Blowouts against Methodist and Averett quickly followed. A winless September had morphed into an undefeated October. Entering the regular season finale, the Captains had flipped a three-game skid into a four-game winning streak.
 
Through seven contests, the Captains had developed an identity. The offense featured a mauling attack that chewed up yards on the ground. Christopher Newport ranked eighth in the NCAA in rushing with a 255.7 yards-per-game average. Kaveh Conaway sat 23rd on the individual charts, averaging 117 yards per contest, while Mario Marin, Thomas Thornton, and quarterback Eric Carlson added versatility in the running game.
 
On the other side, Christopher Newport brought the heat. Disguised blitzes and relentless pressure were the backbone of the team's defensive philosophy. Olando Holmes ranked among the league-leaders with six sacks, while four other players had at least two apiece. Also boasting the nation's 15th-ranked passing defense, the Captains forced 16 turnovers during their first seven games, including nine in their previous two outings.
 
After miraculously putting themselves in a position to challenge for a conference championship in their very first season, the Captains were finding their groove at the perfect time. But their biggest challenge stood in front of them.
 
OPPOSITION RESEARCH
Statistically-speaking, everything Christopher Newport did well, Ferrum did slightly better. Entering their match-up, the Captains ranked eighth nationally in rushing. Ferrum? Sixth. The Captains ranked 15th in passing defense. Ferrum? 12th.
 
In addition to being a favorite on paper, Ferrum also posed problems, stylistically. On offense, the Panthers molded together several different looks ranging from the Wing-T to the Wishbone. Their option-style of attack was an effective deterrent against blitzing defenses, giving opponents pause for fear of a runner breaking loose on the outside.
 
Meanwhile, on the other side, the Panthers were a force. Ferrum ranked 14th in the nation in total defense and 26th in scoring defense. Tormenting the rest of the conference, the squad had not allowed more than 10 points to any Dixie foe, including a 35-0 dismantling of Greensboro in their most recent league showdown.
 
Entering the regular season finale, Ferrum sat at 6-3 with a 5-0 mark in conference action. All that stood between the Panthers and their first NCAA playoff game since 1990 was the upstart Captains.
 
GAME RECAP
Continuing the team's improbable late-season run, Christopher Newport capitalized on an efficient rushing attack and five takeaways on the defensive side to claim the Dixie Conference Championship with a 14-11 victory over Ferrum during the Oyster Bowl at Darling Stadium in Hampton.
 
Christopher Newport's title-clinching victory was buoyed by a defensive masterpiece. Following the same script that worked in previous contests, the Captains pressured the Panthers with their patented blitz-heavy package. Refusing to let Ferrum settle in on the offensive side, the team used a combination of shifts and pressure on nearly every play to keep the opposition on its heels.
 
Leading the way on the defensive side, freshman safety Josh Horn was honored as the game's Most Valuable Player after coming through with two interceptions. He also recovered a fumble that set up the game's first scoring drive, which was punctuated by a 10-yard touchdown run by Kaveh Conaway in the second quarter.
 
Although the defense was stellar throughout the game, the Captains were especially effective when it mattered most. After the Panthers inched within three early in the fourth quarter, Ferrum had two more possessions with an opportunity to grab a lead. Preventing any hope of a comeback, Jason Flanigan ended the first drive with an interception before Matt Rogers and a blitzing William Blount hauled down Ferrum's quarterback with a clutch sack on fourth down to thwart the final attempt.
 
Blount eventually finished the game with a pair of sacks and helped lead a defense that limited Ferrum to just 188 total yards. Bottling up the league's top rushing attack, Olando Holmes, Ian Vincent, and the rest of the defensive line limited the Panthers to 129 yards on the ground, while the secondary surrendered only seven completions on 21 passing attempts.
 
Offensively, Conaway led the squad with 105 yards on 26 carries. In addition to his first-half score on the ground, he also added a 21-yard touchdown reception on a perfectly-scripted play-action pass from Eric Carlson in the third quarter.
 
Overall, Christopher Newport finished with 164 yards rushing and won the turnover battle, 5-0. With the victory, the Captains earned the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 
POSTSCRIPT
Building a championship-level football team takes time. Just look at Mount Union, arguably the standard-bearer at the Division III level. The Purple Raiders fielded their first team in 1893. They joined a conference in 1914. 71 years later, they won their first league championship.
 
71 years.
 
Christopher Newport played its first football game on September 1, 2001. 71 days later, the Captains won their first league championship.
 
71 days.
 
Putting the accomplishments of the 2001 football team into perspective is nearly impossible, because the accomplishments were unprecedented. Christopher Newport became the first football team in history to qualify for the NCAA playoffs in its first year of existence. In three months, the Captains accomplished what most programs struggle to achieve in three decades: National prominence.
 
Seven days after their victory against Ferrum, the Captains made their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament. In fact, they appeared in the national playoffs during each of their first four seasons and 10 total times during Kelchner's 16-year career.
 
For his efforts building the program, Kelchner was honored as the Dixie Conference Coach of the Year in 2001. Fittingly, 13 of his players also earned All-Conference accolades that season, including Conaway and Holmes, who were celebrated as the League's Offensive and Defensive Rookies of the Year.
 
For a full listing of the fall 2020 features published to date, click here.
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