ITHACA, N.Y. – The nationally ranked No. 20 Ithaca College football team jumped out to a 17-point lead against No. 8 Johns Hopkins University in the 2024 season opener at Bertino Field at Butterfield Stadium, but the Blue Jays scored 20 unanswered points to take the lead and held on to top IC, 27-23.
Ithaca came out on fire and scored two touchdowns in the opening 7:20 of action to build a 14-0 lead. On the first drive of the game, IC marched 71 yards and was capped off by a 16-yard touchdown run by Colin Schumm with 10:21 on the clock.
After a three-and-out by Hopkins and a 15-yard punt, Schumm connected with Nicholas Matos for a 48-yard completion down to the 1-yard line and Schumm did the rest with a sneak to make it 14-0 with 7:40 to go in the quarter.
Hopkins threatened to get on the board in the first quarter but turned the ball over on downs near the red zone.
Midway through the second quarter, Derek Baldin extended IC's lead to 17-0 with a 45-yard field goal with 7:28 remaining, but Hopkins quickly got back into the game with a 56-yard touchdown pass from Bay Harvey to Cole Crotty. The ensuing point after was blocked by Ryan Reilly to make it 17-6 less than a minute later.
The Bombers gave the ball back just two minutes later and Hopkins threatened again. After a forced fumble at the 20, which was scooped up by the Blue Jays, IC forced another turnover on downs inside the 10-yard line to preserve the 17-6 advantage heading to halftime.
It was all Hopkins in the third quarter as the Blue Jays rode the arm and legs of Harvey. With 11:22 left in the third quarter, Harvey scored from 1-yard out to make it 17-12, but the ensuing two-point try failed.
Harvey finished the game with 132 yards rushing and two touchdowns, to go along with 243 yards passing on 17-of-28 with two more scores.
The Bombers moved up to midfield on their first possession of the half but had to punt. A decent return spotted JHU at its own 43, and a few plays later, Harvey scored from 22 yards out to take the lead for the first time in the game at 20-17 with 6:34 following a successful two-point conversion.
IC's defense would hang tough after a sudden change two plays later on an interception to force a punt with 3:31 left in the quarter. The Bombers used that stop and raced down the field on a 49-yard completion from Schumm to Jalen Leonard-Osbourne in the waning moments of the period.
As the clock expired with IC facing a 3rd and 6 on the JHU 7-yard line, IC moved to the other end of the field and took a 23-20 lead on the first play of the fourth quarter on a 7-yard touchdown grab by Jake Williams. The PAT would be blocked.
Hopkins regained the lead at 27-23 with 8:44 to go as Harvey hit EJ Talarico for a 15-yard score.
IC turned the ball over on downs on the next two possessions and received a lucky break as
Hopkins fumbled with less than two minutes to play as Jake Connolly forced the fumble and Sam Tourangeau recovered at the IC 21-yard line.
Two plays later, Schumm was intercepted to end the game.
Schumm threw for 250 yards on 17-of-34 attempts and rushed for 48 yards. Leonard-Osbourne had 38 yards rushing and 64 receiving, while Matos finished the game with 97 yards on four catches.
Defensively, Tourangeau and Darren Brunner led the way with 13 tackles each. Ryan Burns finished with 10 tackles.
Hopkins outgained IC, 442-359, and held a slight edge in time of possession.
The Bombers are back at home next weekend, September 14 against No. 18 Endicott at 1 p.m.