Football: Colgate ekes by Tigers in double overtime

Sometimes, even your best is not enough.

That’s what the football team (1-3 overall, 0-1 Ivy League) learned last night against No. 23 Colgate (6-0). The Tigers showed no signs of despondence coming off their 38-0 loss to Columbia and went toe-to-toe with the Red Raiders for 60 minutes and two overtime periods before falling, 21-14.

“With all the adversity we had, I’m really proud of how our kids played tonight,” head coach Roger Hughes said. “If we can play like that, we have a chance to win every game.”

The Tigers moved the ball at will for much of the game, but as has been the problem all season, they struggled to find the end zone. Princeton had two field goals blocked and, having lost confidence in its kicking game, attempted five fourth downs, converting on only one of those.

Princeton was held scoreless through three quarters and seemed to be in danger of extending its scoreless streak to two games. But early in the fourth quarter, that all changed. Princeton stopped the Red Raiders on fourth-and-19 from its own 34. On the next play, sophomore quarterback Tommy Wornham hit junior wide receiver Trey Peacock for a 26-yard pass. After a couple of rushing plays, the Tigers were flagged for holding on the Colgate 33-yard line.

After Wornham threw an incomplete pass on the next play and rushed for two yards on second down, it appeared that the drive was doomed to end without any points. But on third-and-18, Wornham showed great pocket presence in facing down the rush and found Peacock for a 31- yard touchdown strike. It was Princeton’s first offensive touchdown since Wornham scored on a 68- yard run against Lehigh.

Princeton stopped the Red Raiders on downs on the ensuing possession, but Colgate ran 12 plays and ate five minutes, 24 seconds off the clock. The Tigers went three and out on their next possession, giving the ball back to Colgate with 2:35 left. The Red Raiders were forced to punt after picking up only one first down, and the Tigers ran out the remaining time to send the game to overtime.

Colgate won the opening toss and elected to defend first in the extra period. Wornham found junior fullback Matt Zimmerman for eight yards on the first play, but freshman running back Akil Sharp was tackled for a six-yard loss on the next play, bringing up a third-and-eight. Just as he had done in regulation, Wornham showed poise in the pocket and found junior wide receiver Andrew Kerr over the middle for a 23-yard score.

“[Tommy]’s growing up,” Hughes said. “Our success is going to be on how his learning curve gets. Tonight, it got steeper, he got a lot better, felt more comfortable, and each week he continues to see that kind of progress. For some reason we had this glass ceiling that we couldn’t get in the end zone. And I think all of us were feeling that when we scored that first touchdown, you could just see a monkey was off our back. Tommy felt great, and hopefully that leads to more scores when we’re down there.”

The Red Raiders then took over and ran five consecutive running plays. Running back Nate Eachus did the honors, scoring from two yards out on first-and-goal. In the second overtime, Colgate started out with the ball and employed the same strategy. The Red Raiders ran nine consecutive times, and though none of their runs netted more than five yards, the strategy was effective. Eachus once again scored on a two-yard run.

Princeton only managed one yard during its second overtime possession. Wornham ran for one yard on first down, then threw incompletions to Peacock and Kerr. On fourth down, Wornham was flushed from the pocket and was forced to throw on the run. His throw for Peacock was inches too far for the receiver, and it bounced off of his fingertips.

Early in the game, Princeton’s defense exerted its will on the Red Raiders on their first drive. After quarterback Greg Sullivan rushed for five yards on the first play of the game, the Princeton defensive line stonewalled Colgate on consecutive running plays and forced a punt.

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On Princeton’s next possession, it crossed midfield, but the drive stalled on the Colgate 19-yard line. Placekicker Ben Bologna was brought on to attempt a 37-yard field goal, but a bad hold led to a low kick that was easily blocked.

On Colgate’s next possession, a long Sullivan pass intended for wide receiver Pat Simonds was intercepted by senior strong safety and co-captain Wilson Cates. On their ensuing possession, the Tigers again failed to reach the end zone.

On their ensuing possessions, the two teams were unable to score. After Colgate turned the ball over on downs, Wornham gave the ball right back by throwing an interception. The Red Raiders finally scored on their next drive, after converting on a fourth-and-seven from the 20-yard line. Sullivan hit Simonds to convert on that play, then ran it in himself on the next to make the score 7-0.

The Tigers quickly drove down into Colgate territory, but again found themselves facing fourth down. Wornham completed a pass to McCray, who appeared to be tackled for a loss, but a surprising spin move allowed him to drop his tackler and sprint for the necessary yardage. The Tigers were finally stopped at the seven-yard line when Wornham’s fade intended for Peacock pulled him out of the back of the endzone. Bologna’s field goal was once again blocked.

The second half started in a very similar fashion to the first. Wornham drove the team down the field, but on fourth-and-three from the 31, he fumbled. The Tigers recovered but turned the ball over on downs.

Wornham finished 19-of-34 for 215 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Peacock finished with six catches for 83 yards and a score, while Kerr added five catches for 73 yards and a score. Junior running back Meko McCray led the way on the ground with 74 yards on eight carries, and Sharp finished with 58 yards on 17 carries, as well as a reception for 13 yards.

Defensively, Princeton was led by its middle linebackers. Junior Steve Cody and senior co-captain Scott Britton each finished with 16 tackles.

Sullivan finished seven-of-23 for 100 yards and an interception. He added 52 yards on 19 carries. Eachus finished with 98 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries.

Princeton now enters a tough stretch of Ivy League play. The Tigers play Brown and Harvard on the road in consecutive weeks.