Tufts looking for first road win

The Tufts football team continued to prove its skeptics wrong with its seven point win over Williams on Saturday. This weekend, the Jumbos will face perhaps the best team in the NESCAC, the 5-0 Amherst Lord Jeffs.

One of the keys to Saturday’s game will be the success of the Tufts run defense. Prior to the victory over the Williams Ephs, the Jumbos had allowed over 200 rushing yards in consecutive weeks, but this past week, Tufts held Williams to just 46 yards on the ground.The Jumbos' coach Jay Civetti believes that his team’s defense is not only feisty, but constantly improving.

“I think the defensive staff continues to do a great job of preparing our guys," Civetti said. "At the end of the day it comes down to our leaders -- [senior tri-captain linebacker] Tommy Meade obviously does a great job inside, just sets the tone. I think, obviously, we need to continue to get better, because we are only 3-2."

While Amherst is 5-0, it is coming off its least convincing win of the season. The Lord Jeffs just managed to squeak by the Wesleyan Cardinals in overtime this past week.

Unlike most NESCAC teams, Amherst has had three separate quarterbacks take consistent snaps for the team. Senior Max Lippe started against the Cardinals and led the team to its three-point win, so he is the odds-on favorite to start against the Jumbos. Lippe, through two games, is 27-41 with 300 yards and two touchdowns.

Although quarterback play is always crucial, the Lord Jeffs offense is predicated on its ability to run the football. The Jumbos have faced three of the conference’s top four rushers over the past three weeks, and will face the NESCAC’s third leading rusher, sophomore running back Nick Kelly, on Saturday.

While Kelly is third in the conference in rushing yards with 478, he leads all qualifying NESCAC rushers in yards per carry with 6.2. And the sophomore is also tied for third in rushing touchdowns with five, so it is safe to assume he will be a major part of the team’s attack.

Despite the tough challenge of Kelly and the Amherst squad, Tufts remains very confident in its abilities.

“We come out every Saturday expecting to win. [Prior to the Williams game], the past two weeks did not go our way, but every Saturday we are lining up to beat the other team," Meade said. "We’ve got to be better with tackling and trying to get our hands on the ball, which we did a pretty good job of [last week], but there’s always room for improvement."

One of the areas that the Jumbos need to improve on is special teams. Although the return game has been a major strength for Tufts, the team's struggles in punting and kicking persist. The Jumbos are ninth in the NESCAC in yards per punt and have missed three extra points in addition to a botched snap on a PAT against Williams.

“I think some of the special teams things we can do a better job with, we’ve done a better job throughout the course of the previous games than we did [against Williams]," Civetti said. "There were a couple of miscues here and there. I mean the film kind of answers those questions more."

The 2014 Tufts team has continued to surprise the Div. III sports world, but the hungry Jumbos and coach Civetti are not going to be satisfied with just three wins. A win over Amherst would show the entire conference that Tufts can compete with anyone.

“I’ve always taken pride in how far we have come; I always have faith in how far we’re going," Civetti said. "I think we’re at a point right now where we will continue to learn how to win, continue to learn how to play together as a team. It’s something that I see day in and day out. Certainly it starts at the top, with our leadership, with our seniors and all the way down. They’ve really brought the group together. They just love playing for one another.”