The past two years have seen the football team start off the season 3-0 after winning its annual contest against Bowdoin by a combined score of 37-19. This year, Tufts was again looking to improve to 3-0 against a weak Polar Bears squad.
So much for that.
The Jumbos fell to Bowdoin 28-26 in Brunswick, Maine on Saturday. Bowdoin freshman Ian Vieira ran for two scores, including what proved to be the game-winner with 11:29 left to play, while junior quarterback Oliver Kell threw for 224 yards with a passing and rushing touchdown. The Polar Bears also forced five turnovers on the game, while committing only one themselves. With the loss, Tufts falls to 2-1 on the year, while Bowdoin picks up its first win of the season to improve to 1-2.
"We all knew that we really let one get away and we weren't supposed to play like that," said senior wide receiver David Halas, who finished the game with three touchdown receptions to tie the Tufts single-game record. "We shouldn't have played like that. We all take on the responsibility, just knowing we didn't go out there and play our best game."
The contest started out poorly for the Jumbos, as two first-quarter turnovers led to a 14-0 deficit. A punt attempt by Bowdoin's Nolan McNair was deflected off of Tufts corner sophomore Pat Bailey, only to be recovered by sophomore James Lathrop for the Polar Bears at the Jumbos' 26 yard line. Seven plays later, Vieira powered past the goal line from the one for his first score of the game.
Two plays into Tufts' next possession, junior quarterback Anthony Fucillo was intercepted at the Jumbo 43. The Polar Bears needed nine plays this time, ending their drive with a 1-yard touchdown run, this time from Kell.
"It was pretty tough [being down early]," senior running back Will Forde said. "But I thought we did a good job battling back. I think we showed character coming back from that."
Tufts followed its messy start with a 10-play, 71-yard drive that carried into the second quarter, ending with Fucillo's first scoring connection to Halas of the day, a 14-yard touchdown pass.
When they got the ball back less than three minutes later, the Jumbos again had no problem driving it down the field, running nine plays for 74 yards, including a 23-yard burst from Forde that brought Tufts to the Bowdoin 30-yard marker. After the Jumbos scored on a 1-yard rush from Fucillo, however, freshman Adam Auerbach missed the extra point, keeping the Jumbos at a one-point disadvantage.
The Jumbos scored again before the half on a seven-play, 49-yard drive that ended with Halas' second touchdown reception of the day. With under two minutes to play, though, the Polar Bears executed their offense perfectly, driving 69 yards and scoring on a 10-yard touchdown throw from Kell.
After neither team put up any points in the third, the Polar Bears found pay dirt in the fourth quarter for what would be the game-winner. The eight-play, 64-yard drive included a 35-yard pass from Kell to classmate Matt Moran on third-and-five and ended with a 2-yard Vieira run, giving Bowdoin a 28-20 lead that they would not relinquish.
That said, the Jumbos did have opportunities to tie and win the game. Taking over with 7:53 left in the game, Tufts drove to the Bowdoin 20 on eight plays, including six rushing attempts. The Jumbos capped the drive as Fucillo found Halas for a 20-yard score, for the senior WR's third and final touchdown catch of the afternoon. Tufts failed to tie on the two-point conversion, but after a three-and-out from Bowdoin, the team had one more possession from its own 32 with 2:59 to play.
Five plays in, the Jumbos had made it to the Bowdoin 46 but faced a fourth-and-three to stay in the game. Fucillo completed a 5-yard pass to Steve Cusano to convert, but that play was followed by a key 10-yard sack and an incompletion on the next two plays.
On third-and-20, Fucillo again found go-to guy Halas, but Halas fumbled on a lateral attempt, which was recovered by Bowdoin sophomore Kevin O'Connor to seal the game for the Polar Bears.
"I just don't think we came out with the attitude that we needed to earn this win," Halas said. "We didn't deserve to win at the end of the game. We didn't earn it. I don't think people were really focused, I don't think people prepared themselves in terms of mindset and doing what we know. It wasn't the coaching; we [the players] didn't prepare ourselves mentally. There were just too many mistakes that shouldn't happen and it ended up costing us."
"I think it's a very disappointing loss for our team," Fucillo added. "I think that it's a missed opportunity for us. You have to give some credit to Bowdoin; they were able to make plays when they needed to. When it came down to it, they made the plays when it was important."
Tufts outgained Bowdoin 416-286 on the day, but the Jumbos simply could not overcome their five costly turnovers. Fucillo put up his biggest statistical day in Brown and Blue, completing 16 of 25 pass attempts for 240 yards, three touchdowns and one pick. All three touchdowns of those TDs went to Halas, who also reeled in eight catches for 124 yards on the day. His three scoring receptions tied a Tufts record set by Brian Von Ancken in 2005 and senior Steve Black last year.
"Obviously it's pretty bittersweet to have that type of game in a losing game," Halas said. "At this point it doesn't matter what type of game I had; we still lost. That's the bottom line. I could have had four touchdowns ... I feel like I didn't do enough."
Forde also had a fine day in the losing effort, totaling a career-high 175 yards on 32 carries. It was the third time in three games this season that Forde broke the century mark.
"I know how well my offensive line blocked all day," Forde said. "They were physical, and they gave me a lot of holes. But obviously the biggest thing was getting the win, and we didn't do that [Saturday]."
Next week, Tufts moves on to an away game against perennial powerhouse Trinity College, the only undefeated team remaining in the NESCAC at 3-0. The Jumbos need to win the game if they still want a reasonable shot at the NESCAC Championship.
"I think it's a 100 percent have to win situation," Fucillo said. "I think our team's going to do a hell of a job rallying back this week and we'll take this game and watch the film and bury it. We'll come back and we're excited to face Trinity on Saturday."
"We'll definitely get back to that mindset of being hungry and wanting to deserve it," Halas said. "There's still a lot up in the league. We still have many games to prove ourselves. We have another opportunity to win, that's how you have to look at tit. You have to take advantage of those opportunities."
