Sports
Football's first victory of the season
By Robert Fitzgerald ’20
October 20, 2016
Tags sports
There is nothing more frustrating than watching your team lose a game that they deserve to win. By the end of the first half in Hamilton’s bout against Bowdoin Saturday afternoon, it seemed like one of those days. The Polar Bears led 16-7, despite being thoroughly outplayed. However, the Continentals were able to fix their problems on scoring drives in the second half, thanks to the unlikely star performances of two backups, quarterback Kenny Gray ’20 and kicker Robert Morris ’17. Winning 26-25, Hamilton was able to celebrate their first win of the season.
The game started off with a bang as quarterback Cole Freeman ’18 hit wide receiver Alex Waugh ’18 for a 54 yard touchdown on the Continentals’ first play. Bowdoin could not get anything going against Hamilton on offense, being held to two three-and-outs and one interception (by Mickey Keating ’17) on their first three drives.
It was easy to tell that the home defensive unit was feeding off the energy that their offense had presented them, playing from ahead for one of the first times all year. Unfortunately, it was the Hamilton offense that spoiled the very energy it had created, as Freeman was picked off by Bowdoin’s Cameron Rondeau ’19 with 6:29 to go in the first quarter, who returned it 55 yards for a game-tying score. This was just the beginning of Hamilton’s unlucky errors. By the end of the first half, the Continentals had thrown two interceptions, had two punts blocked, and failed on two field goal attempts. However, Kenny Gray ’20 had entered the game by the end of the first quarter, and despite the fact that Hamilton had failed to score any points with him under center in the first half, it was clear that the Continentals were moving the ball very well.
After another long drive resulting in a missed field goal to start Hamilton’s second-half comeback efforts, the team turned to Robert Morris ’17 to handle their kicking duties. He finished the game two for two, including a clutch 38 yard kick with 3:48 to go in the fourth quarter. They were Hamilton’s first two successful field goals of the season.
However, the real hero was the first-year, Gray. Finishing with 303 passing yards and two total touchdowns, his performance was clearly game-changing. After Bowdoin QB Noah Nelson ’19 hit his wideout Liam Ford ’17 for a 49 yard streaking score, Hamilton faced a 25-20 deficit with just over three minutes remaining. Nevertheless, Gray remained calm, cool and collected, leading his team on 8 play, 42 yard drive that culminated in a five yard quarterback draw for the score with 33.6 seconds to go. He was named the NESCAC Offensive Player of the Week for his outstanding performance.
Bowdoin still had a chance to win following Gray’s run, but had their hopes dashed when Conor Powers ’17 knocked down a Hail Mary attempt with no time remaining. The final score was 26-25, pushing Hamilton to 1-3 and dropping Bowdoin to a lowly 0-4 start.
Other key performers for the Continentals include Marcus Gutierrez ’18, Joe Schmidt ’20, and Charles Ensley ’17. Going into the game, Hamilton had really struggled to establish any sort of rushing attack this season, but on Saturday, things were different. Heavily contributing to his team’s 116 rushing yards, Gutierrez carried the ball 21 times for 76 yards. Schmidt shook off a costly fumble in last week’s contest, bouncing back for a 7-93-1 receiving line. Ensley continued to demonstrate his consistent positive influence on the Continentals’ passing attack, recording four catches for 122 yards.
Hamilton deserved this one, out-gaining the Bowdoin Polar Bears 484- 182. The Continentals will look to cut down on their mistakes, while continuing to move the ball with great efficiency in their upcoming contests. Next week, Hamilton will be on the road when they face the 1-3 Colby Mules.