Jumbos earn best start to season since 2007

Tufts routed Bowdoin 43-24 to earn a 3-0 start for the first time since their 2007 season. Bowdoin never led throughout the game, and fell to 0-3 on the season after the defeat. Despite having lost their previous five meetings against the Polar Bears -- their last win came in overtime during a 2009 match-up -- Saturday's victory marks the Jumbos' second dominant homecoming victory in a row after last year's 42-24 thrashing of the Bobcats.

"Bowdoin’s gotten us five times in a row, and it feels like they always get those real close tight wins," junior running back Chance Brady said. "They’re always the ones giving us heartbreaks, so [we came into] Homecoming with everyone there, all the alumni, and just seal the deal and put it away and kind of put our stamp on the league that the ‘Bos are here."

This was Tufts' offense at its best. On the first offensive play of the game, junior quarterback Alex Snyder hit senior wide receiver Jack Cooleen, NESCAC's offensive player of the week last week, for a 20-yard gain. Brady capped a drive that saw only one incomplete pass with a 12-yard run up the middle to Bowdoin's 17 and a subsequent charge through the left side of the offensive line for his first touchdown.

Bowdoin appeared ready to respond in kind, as junior quarterback Tim Drakeley completed consecutive passes to three different receivers for a total of 19 yards. Yet on the Polar Bears' fourth play from scrimmage, sophomore Micah Adickes intercepted Drakeley from the right side of the defensive line for his first-ever college interception.

The Jumbos' next possession began on the Bowdoin 30, but Brady barreled through a sizable hole that was opened for him by the offensive line to make it all the way to Bowdoin's three-yard line. The next play was a run to the inside on the right, but Brady wisely bounced outside and beat Bowdoin's linebacker corps to the front right corner of the goal for his second touchdown.

"I love inside running," Brady said. "Outside is always where you have to hit the burners and have some speed. I’m not renowned for my quickness so usually, if I’m outside, something went wrong and I’m trying to outrun somebody, which is not a great look for me."

In a series of possession changes, senior co-captain Corey Burns forced a three and out for Bowdoin with two tackles against first-year running back Andrew Tichy on first and second down. Tufts gave the ball back when Snyder threw to the left sideline and senior defensive back Greg Thompson intercepted the pass. However, Adickes forced Drakeley to fumble just two plays later and Tufts recovered at Bowdoin's 16-yard line. The Jumbos were unable to punch in another score, but junior kicker Willie Holmquist split the uprights to make the score 17-0.

In the second quarter, Drakeley found sophomore Nick Vailas for a three-yard touchdown to put Bowdoin on the board. Tufts answered back with another Holmquist field goal on a drive that saw first-year running back Dominic Borelli rip off an 11-yard run and senior wide receiver Mike Rando move the chains with two receptions for 19 yards and 11 yards each.

Snyder was intercepted again in the second quarter by first-year defensive back Cameron Rondeau, but Bowdoin's ensuing drive ended in a punt.

Tufts' last possession of the first half began with 2:22 remaining. One minute and two seconds of regulation time later, the Jumbos had scored on a 17-yard connection between Snyder and junior wide receiver Ben Berey, and the Jumbos went into halftime leading 27-10.

"Half time felt quicker, it felt like everyone was like, 'Dude, get us out of this locker room and let us unleash hell for the next 30 minutes,'" Brady said.

Brady picked up right where he left off in the first half, running over Bowdoin linebackers for gains of 12, 7, -1, 18 and 6 on Tufts' first third-quarter drive. Brady flashed his characteristic evasiveness on the six-yard run, making his way through a gaping hole and getting through the second level virtually untouched for his third touchdown.

"I wanted to kill those guys," Brady said. "I wanted to put the game away and have the fourth quarter essentially just be watching the younger guys and seeing what they can do. Being able to help my team like that, I mean, that was huge. I could have brought my truck through the [offensive] line, they were unreal yesterday. They made massive holes every single time. Every time I went through the hole I was dealing with a one-on-one with a linebacker, which I’ll take any day of the week. I don’t think the D-line had a single tackle on me, I think only the linebackers hit me, which means they did their job perfectly."

With the game rapidly getting out of hand, Bowdoin aggressively challenged Tufts' defensive backs downfield. Tichy found Vailas for a 25-yard gain to bring the ball to midfield. Challenging first-year defensive back Tim Preston turned out to be a mistake for Drakeley, however, as he was intercepted and Preston returned the ball all the way to Bowdoin's goal line, almost vaulting a would-be tackler in the process.

"Tim Preston is excellent," Civetti said. "He’s still got a lot of things to learn, but he’s learning on the fly. He saw a lot of different things today. He saw fleaflicker, he saw speed pass, he got challenged deep and I thought he responded really well. I was really pleased with him."

Unable to convert in the red-zone, the Jumbos settled for another Holmquist field goal from 22 yards. The kick tied Holmquist with kicker Chris Wild's 1991 Tufts record of three field goals in one game.

Bowdoin's Tichy responded with a seven-yard run for a touchdown after senior wide receiver and captain Daniel Barone caught a 43-yard bomb to bring the offense within range, making the score 37-17 when the Tufts offense came back onto the field. With the game all but over, Borelli capped off another impressive Jumbo drive with a two-yard run for a touchdown -- the first touchdown of his college career. Holmquist missed the point-after attempt, which would have given Tufts 44 points.

The Polar Bears scored again in the fourth quarter, when the Jumbos began cycling in younger players in their runaway victory.

"As a coach, I always think there are areas [where] I can get you better, but the thing I was proud of was that we were able to continue the momentum," Civetti said. "We didn’t let up. We certainly didn’t change anything. We kept playing football the way we started the game. We try to focus on finishing how we started and being as consistent as we can."

The players and coaches appreciated the home crowd, including friends, family and alumni, and cited it as a major motivating factor.

"The crowd yesterday was awesome," Adickes said. "It just brings a whole different element. Instead of working against adversity you have the whole stands behind you and it just really pushes you to keep the momentum. It’s always special when you get to play in front of guys that have played before you in the same program."

The 3-0 Tufts football team takes on undefeated Trinity next weekend at home in a game that could decide which team sits atop the NESCAC standings at the end of the week.