TROY, N.Y.—The eighth-ranked Hobart College football team got six sacks and an interception returned for a touchdown on the way to a 35-3 Liberty League win at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute today. Sophomore linebacker Marcus Jemison led the charge into the Engineers' backfield with three sacks, while sophomore cornerbackTodd Collier's 31-yard pick six kick started a 21-point third quarter for the Statesmen.
The Statesmen (7-0, 4-0) defense rang up a season-high six sacks
on the day, the most by Hobart since logging 11 at Utica in 2012.
In addition to Jemison, senior defensive end Tyre
Coleman, senior linebacker Nolan
Toran, and junior linebacker Jacob
Stanley also hauled down the RPI quarterback. For
Coleman, it was the 43rd career sack, moving him into a tie for
fourth place in NCAA Division III history. The Statesmen limited
the Engineers to 218 yards of total offense, including just 64
passing.
Hobart got on the board first when junior fullback Christopher
Holoman lined up as a tailback, ran around the left
end and down the sideline for a 33-yard touchdown with 5:13 to play
in the opening quarter. The extra point was missed and the visitors
held a 6-0 lead after the first frame. The Statesmen doubled their
lead at 9:59 of the second quarter when senior fullback Dominque
Ellis pushed his way into the end zone from 3 yards out for a 12-0
advantage. It was his team-leading seventh touchdown of the season.
Hobart again missed the extra point, leaving their lead at a
dozen.
The Engineers (4-4, 2-3) attempted to capitalize on a pair of
first half interceptions, including the fifth of the season by
junior cornerback Philip Lanieir III. The second pick, by Nick
Borkowski, came deep in Hobart territory and was returned to the
13. After a pair of unproductive runs, RPI called a pass play, but
Stanley sacked the passer and stripped him of the ball. The
Engineers were able to recover the loose ball, but the 40-yard
field goal attempt was no good. RPI finally got on the board when
senior kicker Andrew Franks made a school record 54-yard field goal
to cut the deficit to 12-3 as time expired on the first half.
Hobart finished the first half with a 197-72 advantage in total
offense, including 127-50 on the ground. The Statesmen had four
sacks in the first 30 minutes.
Collier's big moment in the spotlight came on the third play from
scrimmage of the second half. He picked off a pass lofted down the
left sideline and returned it to the house. His 31-yard score was
the first interception return for a touchdown by Hobart his season.
RPI turned the ball over on downs on the ensuing possession. Six
plays later, junior running back Conner
Hartigan scampered 21 yards for a touchdown to make
it a 26-3 game.
Holoman went 55 yards up the middle with 54.8 seconds left in the
quarter for the third touchdown of the frame for the
Statesmen. Will
McCool added his third straight extra point for a
33-3 lead.
Hobart made it 35-3 when senior Nolan
Toran blocked a punt that rolled 50 yards, out of
the back of the end zone for a safety early in the fourth
quarter.
Stanley had a team-high nine tackles for the Statesmen, while
Toran and Jemison added six stops apiece.
Hobart had 379 yards of offense, including 295 on the
ground. Holoman finished with a career-high 91 rushing yards
on only three carries, while Hartigan ran 15 times for 83 yards.
Senior quarterback Patrick
Conlan completed 8-of-16 passes for 84 yards with
two interceptions. Six of his completions went to
senior Elvin
Souffrant, who had 61 receiving yards.
RPI junior running back Nick Schlatz led all rushers with 93 yards
on 18 carries, while Matthew Gilman had 69 yards on eight carries.
Starting quarterback Tommy Morgan completed 6-of-18 passes for 55
yards and an interception.
The Statemen are home against Union College for a Liberty League
contest on Saturday, Nov. 1. Kickoff is scheduled for noon.