By Max Prinz
Fordham football bounced back in a big way this past homecoming weekend, using 654 yards of offense, a pair of 100-yard receiving days and 231 rushing yards from freshman Chase Edmonds to soundly beat Rhode Island, 54-7.
This win, just one week after a very disappointing showing against No. 7 Villanova, was very important for head coach Joe Moorhead’s team.
“I saw the team that I’m used to seeing,” Moorhead said after the game. “They gave great effort during the week in practice and we earned the right to come out here and have a chance to win.”
The team bounced back in all aspects of the game. The running game, which gave a lackluster performance one week ago, was dominant. Edmonds broke his own freshman single-game rushing record, racking up 231 yards and scoring four touchdowns. Edmonds has turned in two spectacular games at Jack Coffey Field.
“This team always says that we never lose at home,” Edmonds said. “At home we have the great fans and the great momentum.”
The defense also turned in a great performance after a previous rough showing. Fordham recorded a defensive touchdown, a safety, picked off two passes and recovered three fumbles. Senior Ian Williams was the standout performer, picking off a pass and scoring a touchdown on one of the recovered fumbles.
“The defense played great today,” Williams said. “It was a blessing how well we did out there and we’ve got to keep it up and continue to work.”
Coach Moorhead, too, expressed pride in the job his defense did.
“I like our guys on the defensive side of the ball,” Moorhead said. “You can tell that they wanted to make a statement today.”
Fordham started the game with a prime display of sloppy play. Senior quarterback Mike Nebrich’s first pass of the day was intercepted. Nebrich threw another pick before the first quarter ended and that, coupled with a fumble by senior Brian Wetzel on a punt return, gave Fordham three turnovers before the first 15 minutes had elapsed.
After attempting to capitalize on the first turnover and driving the ball into the red zone, URI was poised to shock the homecoming crowd and take an early lead. However, a field goal attempt clanged off the upright and missed. That momentum swing turned out to be all Fordham needed to get back on track.
Edmonds scored his first touchdown of the day with 2:48 remaining in the first quarter and never looked back. Sophomore linebacker George Dawson made a brilliant defensive play, diving for an interception on Rhode Island’s ensuing drive that set up Edmonds’ second score, a run from 10 yards out. Just like that, the scoreboard read 14-0.
The second half was filled with more Fordham scores. Fordham scored its defensive touchdown on a sack that forced a fumble in the end zone. Williams tackled a URI ballcarrier in the end zone for a safety. Nebrich connected with senior Tebucky Jones for a 32-yard touchdown pass. Even Nebrich’s backup, senior Peter Maetzold, got in on the action, throwing a 39-yard touchdown to junior Tony Patrignelli late in the fourth quarter. It was a performance that delighted the home fans, but it was not, however, without blemishes.
“It certainly wasn’t perfect today,” Moorhead said. “But that’s the team that I know and that I recognize.”
One of those blemishes came in the form of penalties. Fordham was penalized 14 times for a whopping 153 yards. Many of those penalties led to stalled drives and punts.
“You’re always concerned about penalties,” Moorhead said. “Certainly 14 is 14 too many.”
Nebrich has yet to show some of the brilliant play he displayed last season. He has led the team very well through three games, but says he could still reach another level.
“I think it’s a work in progress still,” Nebrich said. “I still need to be better. I thought I threw the ball much better today, but there’s always room for improvement.”
Still, this win was a huge one for Fordham. Back-to-back underwhelming performances might have spelled doom for the season, something the Fordham players and coaches were clearly aware of.
“Obviously it got off the tracks a little bit last week and it was a performance that was unacceptable on every level,” Moorhead said. “We challenged them to hang our hats on the things we’ve been successful in two-plus years and that’s having a great practice week.”
Nebrich and Edmonds both spoke to the importance of keeping focused after the win.
“Our sense of urgency,” Edmonds said. “That was a problem for us last week. We have to stay on track and stay focused every day.”
“We lost track of the things that are right,” Moorhead added. “The lesson that we learned was a tough one. No one in that locker wanted to experience that loss again and we got back to doing the little things right.”
Fordham football’s next test comes this Saturday against Columbia in the annual battle for the Liberty Cup, a matchup the Rams have won each of the past three years.
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Max Prinz is the Sports Editor for The Fordham Ram.
