Fresh off a big Homecoming win, the 1-1 Jumbos travel to Brunswick, Maine to take on the 0-2 Bowdoin Polar Bears tomorrow.
Winless records normally scream out futility, failure and lack of execution. But for the Polar Bears, who have slumped their way to a 2-32 record under coach Dave Caputi over the last few years, the assessment of their start this year is that of hope.
Last Saturday, the Polar Bears fought NESCAC power Amherst tooth and nail to double overtime before eventually falling 34-28.
This loss had been preceded by another game performance in a 31-17 loss at Middlebury the week before. Them's the facts, as they say, and they certainly are not lost on Tufts' coaches and players.
"They've done a great job recruiting up there," Jumbos defensive coordinator John Walsh said. "They have experienced players now and they're going to be very tough to beat."
Among those experienced players is junior quarterback Ricky Leclerc, who in last week's shootout set three school records with 32 completions, 64 attempts and 395 yards.
He had two touchdown passes and a touchdown run in the final six minutes to knot the game up against the traditionally stingy Amherst defense and send the game to overtime.
"He is a very talented quarterback," Walsh said. "He moves so well and is effective at creating plays when there is defensive pressure on him."
Leclerc is currently second in the NESCAC in all-purpose yards.
The Polar Bears are more than just an all-out aerial assault. Behind what Walsh calls "a big offensive line," senior Rob Patchett has amassed 168 yards on the season. In addition, junior Mike Boyd has had two touchdowns.
"From watching film they look like they have a real good running game," senior quad-captain and defensive tackle Chris Lawrence said. "They're scrappy, and if we take them lightly they will be running all over us."
Lawrence, sixth in the NESCAC in tackles with 18, was a major part of last Saturday's fourth quarter stand against Bates, in which the Jumbos, already having surrendered 12 points, made a huge stop on fourth and one to give the ball back to the offense.
"It is great to stuff them on fourth and one, but we have got to be better by not putting ourselves in those situations," Walsh said. "There is definitely a lot of room to improve."
On the offensive side of the ball, the Jumbos' running game has yet to blossom as it has in the past. Senior Steve Cincotta has been held to 77 yards on 28 carries.
Facing a Bowdoin squad that has already given up 449 yards on the ground in two games could be just what the doctor ordered to jumpstart the Tufts rushing attack.
"We have to be able to control the ball, and that starts with the running game," Cincotta said. "We can't just go three and out like we have been doing at times the past couple of weeks."
Besides the running game, the passing game that flat-lined against Wesleyan showed signs of life on Homecoming.
Senior quad captain Jason Casey returned to form, going 14 for 28 for 185 yards and two scores in last week's 14-12 triumph over Bates. Senior Kevin Holland (six catches for 78 yards) and sophomore Brian VonAincken (four catches for 73 yards) were the recipients of Casey's TD strikes.
But the fact of the matter is still that Tufts is last in the NESCAC in total offense with only 222.5 yards per contest.
In what is still a young season, the Jumbos, who haven't lost to Bowdoin since 1998, hope to use this game to get their offense in gear and keep what has been a potent Polar Bears offense in check.
