The season is winding down for Tufts football (4–3), with only two games remaining on the schedule. Tufts takes to the road on Saturday to take on the winless Colby Mules (0–7). The Mules are currently tied for last in the NESCAC, while the Jumbos rank sixth, just outside of the top half of the league.
Tufts most recently faced Amherst, led by sophomore quarterback Ollie Eberth. The Mammoths prevailed over the Jumbos 31–26, improving to 6–1 on the season and knocking the Jumbos out of contention for the NESCAC championship.The Jumbos trailed the Mammoths for most of the game, even facing a 21–7 deficit late in the second quarter. Tufts' defense was strong in the second half, and two of the team's top linebackers — sophomore Greg Holt and senior quad-captain Steve DiCienzo — each had 11 tackles in the game. The defensive unit held Amherst to only three points in the second half on a field goal in the third quarter.The Jumbos rallied in the fourth quarter on the heels of junior quarterback Ryan McDonald, and managed to get the ball back down by five with 1:11 remaining in the game. Then came the crusher. On the first play of their potential game-winning drive, McDonald was intercepted by Amherst sophomore defensive back John Ballard. The Jumbo comeback came up just short, and the Mammoths held on to win the game.
The Mammoth pass rush was strong in this game, as McDonald was consistently forced to scramble around the backfield to avoid the pressure. Amherst's defense totalled three sacks, five tackles for a loss and two QB hurries in the game.Despite the loss, the offensive line hasn't made any significant adjustments since the game against Amherst.
"We pride ourselves on our consistency," senior offensive lineman Liam Thau said of the offensive line unit. "We have a good group out there and I think we've been playing pretty well. So I don't think we look to change anything. We just look to stay consistent [and] keep doing what we're doing."
A scary moment in the Amherst game was the injury to Tufts junior linebacker Markus Edmunds in the third quarter. Play was stopped for a considerable amount of time, as the junior had to be taken off the field on a stretcher.Tufts coach Jay Civetti gave a brief update on Edmunds, a few days after visiting the player in the hospital.
"He's recovering well," Civetti said. "He's happy about the prognosis, but he's got a long road ahead."
Tufts will now focus its attention on its upcoming game against Colby.
"We're a bit uncommon," Civetti said of his football program, of which he has been the coach since 2010. "We had a 31-game losing streak, and we went three straight years having not won a game. We have a unique perspective on where Colby's at. It's senior day for them, they're at home and I'm pretty sure they're not going to roll over and just give it to us."
Thau echoed his coach's sentiment, adding that his senior class joined the team when it was at its worst.
"[The seniors of the team] came into a program that was a little different than it is now," Thau said. "It's a different mindset now. We've come a long way."
To its credit, Colby has shown some fight in its last two games. On the road against Hamilton (2–5) on Oct. 21, Colby lost 27–24. The Mules led by four but allowed the Continentals to score a touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Hamilton took a three point lead and held it for the remaining 10 minutes.Colby saw an identical score against Bates (1–6) at home on Saturday, losing 27–24. A blocked punt and a 28-yard return in the fourth quarter by junior running back Jake Schwern gave the Mules the ball on the Bobcats' three yard line, and the Mules were able to punch the ball in, bringing them within three. Schwern showcased his skills on special teams but also leads the team in rushing this season with 331 yards.
Colby got the ball back once more, with 1:21 left in the game, but couldn't convert on fourth down on their own 49 yard line. The Mules lost the close game by three, and remain winless on the season at 0–7.Colby is tied only with Bowdoin (0–7) at the bottom of the NESCAC. Next up for the Mules is a date with the Jumbos at home. The Jumbos come in as the favorite to win, despite being knocked out of contention for the NESCAC championship last week.
Civetti commented on the team's mentality, and accepting the fact that they won't be in the race for the championship going forward,
"There's a bit of a 'gulp' in it," Civetti said. "Just kind of accepting that reality. But it doesn't change our mentality, we're still gonna finish as strong as possible. That's why we talk about the championship culture, rather than just the championship."
Thau is confident in his team's ability to avoid its second straight loss.
"We don't lose two games in a row anymore," the lineman said. "Tufts football doesn't lose two games in a row anymore."
Colby and Tufts will kick off their game in Waterville, Maine at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.
Tufts most recently faced Amherst, led by sophomore quarterback Ollie Eberth. The Mammoths prevailed over the Jumbos 31–26, improving to 6–1 on the season and knocking the Jumbos out of contention for the NESCAC championship.The Jumbos trailed the Mammoths for most of the game, even facing a 21–7 deficit late in the second quarter. Tufts' defense was strong in the second half, and two of the team's top linebackers — sophomore Greg Holt and senior quad-captain Steve DiCienzo — each had 11 tackles in the game. The defensive unit held Amherst to only three points in the second half on a field goal in the third quarter.The Jumbos rallied in the fourth quarter on the heels of junior quarterback Ryan McDonald, and managed to get the ball back down by five with 1:11 remaining in the game. Then came the crusher. On the first play of their potential game-winning drive, McDonald was intercepted by Amherst sophomore defensive back John Ballard. The Jumbo comeback came up just short, and the Mammoths held on to win the game.
The Mammoth pass rush was strong in this game, as McDonald was consistently forced to scramble around the backfield to avoid the pressure. Amherst's defense totalled three sacks, five tackles for a loss and two QB hurries in the game.Despite the loss, the offensive line hasn't made any significant adjustments since the game against Amherst.
"We pride ourselves on our consistency," senior offensive lineman Liam Thau said of the offensive line unit. "We have a good group out there and I think we've been playing pretty well. So I don't think we look to change anything. We just look to stay consistent [and] keep doing what we're doing."
A scary moment in the Amherst game was the injury to Tufts junior linebacker Markus Edmunds in the third quarter. Play was stopped for a considerable amount of time, as the junior had to be taken off the field on a stretcher.Tufts coach Jay Civetti gave a brief update on Edmunds, a few days after visiting the player in the hospital.
"He's recovering well," Civetti said. "He's happy about the prognosis, but he's got a long road ahead."
Tufts will now focus its attention on its upcoming game against Colby.
The Colby attack relies heavily on the pass, as the team has thrown 265 times this season, the third most in the league. In contrast, the Mules have only run the ball 214 times, with the fewest rushing attempts of any NESCAC squad.
Colby has had a rough going this season, to say the least. On top of being winless, the Mules have allowed 33 points per game, while only scoring a league-worst 10.7 per game.They've allowed 412 yards per game to their opponents, while averaging a league-worst 219.4 yards per game themselves.Civetti noted that it may be tempting for most teams to count out an 0–7 team, but not for Tufts, citing the team's unique history."We're a bit uncommon," Civetti said of his football program, of which he has been the coach since 2010. "We had a 31-game losing streak, and we went three straight years having not won a game. We have a unique perspective on where Colby's at. It's senior day for them, they're at home and I'm pretty sure they're not going to roll over and just give it to us."
Thau echoed his coach's sentiment, adding that his senior class joined the team when it was at its worst.
"[The seniors of the team] came into a program that was a little different than it is now," Thau said. "It's a different mindset now. We've come a long way."
To its credit, Colby has shown some fight in its last two games. On the road against Hamilton (2–5) on Oct. 21, Colby lost 27–24. The Mules led by four but allowed the Continentals to score a touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Hamilton took a three point lead and held it for the remaining 10 minutes.Colby saw an identical score against Bates (1–6) at home on Saturday, losing 27–24. A blocked punt and a 28-yard return in the fourth quarter by junior running back Jake Schwern gave the Mules the ball on the Bobcats' three yard line, and the Mules were able to punch the ball in, bringing them within three. Schwern showcased his skills on special teams but also leads the team in rushing this season with 331 yards.
Colby got the ball back once more, with 1:21 left in the game, but couldn't convert on fourth down on their own 49 yard line. The Mules lost the close game by three, and remain winless on the season at 0–7.Colby is tied only with Bowdoin (0–7) at the bottom of the NESCAC. Next up for the Mules is a date with the Jumbos at home. The Jumbos come in as the favorite to win, despite being knocked out of contention for the NESCAC championship last week.
Civetti commented on the team's mentality, and accepting the fact that they won't be in the race for the championship going forward,
"There's a bit of a 'gulp' in it," Civetti said. "Just kind of accepting that reality. But it doesn't change our mentality, we're still gonna finish as strong as possible. That's why we talk about the championship culture, rather than just the championship."
Thau is confident in his team's ability to avoid its second straight loss.
"We don't lose two games in a row anymore," the lineman said. "Tufts football doesn't lose two games in a row anymore."
Colby and Tufts will kick off their game in Waterville, Maine at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.
