Football: Mills’ century mark ends 10-game skid

Ten straight games. It had been 10 straight games since the football team had tasted victory on the field. But on Saturday night, the Tigers fell no more, as Princeton took down Columbia 24-21 in the finale of a three-game homestand and its Ivy League opener.

Behind a strong ground game, led by sophomore tailback Brian Mills’ 117 rushing yards, and a stout defense anchored by junior linebacker Andrew Starks, Princeton (1-2 overall, 1-0 Ivy League) avenged a 42-14 loss to the Lions (0-3, 0-1) in Manhattan last year and ensured that its losing streak would not go to 11. Instead, the Tigers hope it is the start of a better streak, as Princeton now has an unblemished record in Ivy League play after its first conference victory since 2009.

“It’s a great feeling to start play in the Ivy League with a win, especially against someone who dominated the game last year against us,” Mills said. “It’s a great feeling on all the players. We just played hard, stuck with what we knew, and we played our game and it brought us through.”

Returning to the field following halftime, when the score stood 10-7 after two fairly even quarters, senior quarterback Tommy Wornham exploited both his own legs and those of his running backs. During the Tigers’ first drive after the break, Mills scored on a two-yard touchdown run, capping off a drive highlighted by a bruising 45-yard rush by freshman tailback Chuck Dibilio, who broke a tackle and raced down the left sideline.

The Lions scored in the third quarter, but Wornham later took advantage of good field position following a short punt and a good return by freshman receiver Matt Costello. After several runs from his backs, Wornham completed a 12-yard pass to junior wide receiver Tom Moak in the left corner of the endzone, putting Princeton up 24-14. Though Columbia eroded that lead, it held for the rest of the game.

“We run a smash route and the official actually came over to me and said, ‘That’s one of the best executed plays from the quarterback to the receiver on that route,’ ” head coach Bob Surace ’90 said of Moak’s touchdown. “And I just said, ‘Thank you, I’ll let those guys know that.’ ”

The game started off in a familiar fashion for the Tigers. With several tough runs from Mills and Dibilio, Princeton entered the red zone. Like many times before, the Tigers were called for holding, stalling the drive, and Princeton went up 3-0 following a successful 27-yard kick from senior kicker Patrick Jacob. The defense held steady at the other end, highlighted by junior defensive lineman Caraun Reid’s forced fumble and recovery on Lions quarterback Sean Brackett.

But miscues were a problem early in the game for the Tigers as well, echoing last week’s six-turnover performance against Bucknell. Wornham, starting the offense from Princeton’s own 8-yard line, forced a short pass into coverage that was picked off by safety A.J. Maddox. Maddox, with an open field, returned the interception nine yards for a touchdown, putting the Lions up 7-3.

Wornham and the offense responded in a fashion rarely seen this season. The senior marched his team down the field, completing a huge 37-yard pass to senior wideout Isaac Serwanga along the left sideline and an equally important 12-yard strike to junior receiver Shane Wilkinson.

“He’s the fastest receiver we have,” Wornham said of Serwanga. “I was out here with him all summer, three times a week, four times a week, working on those. Every time I see press man on him, I’m going to give it a shot, and he came down with it.”

With the end of the first quarter approaching, the Tigers finally finished a drive in the red zone. Wornham rolled out to his right, turned and lofted a touchdown pass to junior tight end Mark Hayes, who ran a drag route to the left on a misdirection play. Princeton took the lead, 10-7, and never gave it up.

“One play at a time. That was the message,” Surace said. “We didn’t take it one play at a time on the pick for a touchdown, but we handled everything after that.”

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The second quarter was a defensive struggle, as both sides traded possessions without allowing either team close enough to kick a field goal. Columbia defensive back Ross Morand forced a Serwanga fumble, but Starks stopped Brackett on fourth-and-one on Princeton’s 37-yard line.

“If they’re going to go for it on fourth down, the defense has to take that kind of personally and step up the intensity a little bit,” Starks said. “So I’m sure I was fired up and I just did all I could to make a play and get that stop on fourth down so we can change field position. You always just want to get off the field on defense as soon as [you] can.”

Opening the second half, Princeton’s offense started to get into a rhythm, using the ground game to great effect. By the end of the game, four backs had gained double-digit yardage — 117 from Mills, 70 from Dibilio, 55 from Wornham and 18 from junior tailback Akil Sharp. Those yards were a testament to an offensive line that really stepped up in the victory.

“I spoke to the team beforehand, and the offensive line was so pumped up for this game,” Wornham said. “[Offensive line] Coach [Eddy] Morrissey got them ready to go. And they took it upon themselves that they really wanted to turn this thing around. Everyone was just playing their hearts out, and you could tell we wanted it.”

After Maddox recovered a bad Princeton snap, recorded as a fumble, Brackett completed a 28-yard floater over the middle to wide receiver Paul Havas, cutting Princeton’s lead to three points. However, the Tigers quickly recovered with Wornham’s touchdown pass to Moak late in the third.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Brackett completed several passes, moving his team downfield. On his fourth pass of the drive, he found tight end Hamilton Garner — who dove in past the left pylon for a 29-yard touchdown — and again slashed Princeton’s lead to three.

The Tiger defense allowed no more, however. Starks and senior linebacker and tri-captain Steve Cody combined for a tackle on Brackett on fourth down with two minutes to play, causing a turnover on downs. The Lions had one last opportunity, but senior defensive back Harrison Daniels picked off Brackett, clinching the game.

Princeton will go on the road for the first time next weekend, traveling to Virginia to face non-league opponent Hampton on Saturday.