MILTON, Mass.—The 12th-ranked Hobart College football team scored 37 unanswered first half points, spoiling Curry College's Homecoming festivities with a 43-13 victory at Katz Field. The Statesmen defense kept the Colonels on the run throughout the first half, allowing the home team to gain just 34 first half yards.
Sophomore linebacker Marcus
Jemison was credited with three tackles, a sack, a
pass breakup and a quarterback hurry. However, his impact was much
greater than that. His speed off the edge often forced the Curry
passers to throw before their receivers had a chance to move off
the line of scrimmage. First-year free safety Tommy
D'Antonio led Hobart with seven solo tackles.
On offense, first-year wide receiver Brandon
Shed caught two passes, both touchdowns, for a
game-high 103 yards. Junior running back Conner
Hartigan rushed for a game-high 80 yards and a
touchdown on 16 carries.
Hobart's first scoring drive was set up by the defense, which had
a pair of takeaways in the opening 15 minutes. The offense was
unable to cash in on sophomore cornerback Todd
Collier's early interception, but did score off junior
defensive tackle Tucker
Gumkowski's fumble recovery at the Curry 28. The Colonels
were flagged for pass interference on first down then junior
running back Alex
Furtado got back-to-back handoffs, picking up 9
yards on first down and scoring from the 4 on second down. He
finished the day with 54 yards on 12 carries.
Later in the frame, Hobart used nine plays to go 43 yards, scoring
on a 1-yard plunge by junior fullback Christopher
Holoman for a 14-0 lead. The kickoff coverage team
pinned Curry back at its own 11 and three plays later, a bad snap
from center bounded into the end zone. The Colonels fell on the
loose ball for a safety and a 16-0 Hobart advantage.
With the offense back in control of the ball, Hobart engineered an
11-play march that covered 40 yards. Hartigan pounded it in from
1-yard out for the touchdown. Hobart added two more scores in the
final three minutes of the opening half. Senior
quarterback Patrick
Conlan completed a 20-yard pass to wide
receiver Brandon
Shed for the first-year's first career TD, capping a
3-play 55-yard drive. Then with 24 seconds left in the half, Conlan
connected with senior tight end Mike
Berkowitz for a 7-yard score, capping a six-play,
33-yard drive. Conlan was 6-of-15 on the day for 78 yards and two
touchdowns all in the first half.
In the first half, Hobart outgained Curry 232 yards to 34 yards,
as the Colonels had minus 25 yards rushing in the first 30 minutes.
The Statesmen also enjoyed a big advantage in time of possession
(20:16-9:44).
With Hobart's starters resting on the bench in the second half,
Curry was able to post a pair of third quarter touchdowns. The
Colonels got behind the Statesmen secondary for a 93-yard TD pass
from Mike O'Hearn to Alex Kershaw. The extra point was blocked by
sophomore defensive tackle Jake
Russell, leaving Hobart a 31-point lead.
A special teams miscue set up Curry's second touchdown. Hobart
tried to field a punt, but Colonels' gunner Jake Cawlina timed his
run perfectly and ripped the ball out of the return man's hands.
Five plays later, O'Hearn lobbed a pass over the Hobart coverage to
Cawlina for a 30-yard TD. This time the PAT was good to make it a
37-13 game.
Hobart wrapped up the day's scoring on an 83-yard pass play from
senior quarterback Kyle
Bayly to Shed with 2:40 remaining in the game. Shed
beat his defender, caught a perfectly thrown ball near midfield and
cruised into the end zone.
The victory was Hobart's 23rd consecutive regular season win. The
Statesmen will return to Boswell Field for Homecoming and Family
Weekend hosting Merchant Marine in the Liberty League opener for
both schools on Saturday, Sept. 27. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.