By Jack McLoone
Fordham’s nightmare season continued on Saturday with a 38-12 loss on the road to the Colgate Raiders. Without graduate student quarterback Kevin Anderson, who was out with an injury, the Rams offense continued to underperform. The Rams are now 1-6 overall and 0-2 in the Patriot League, all but knocking them out of contention for the Patriot League championship.
Head coach Andrew Breiner’s feelings about the game mirror every Fordham Football fan’s: “You know, continued disappointment in the lack of results we’re seeing,” he told WFUV.
Colgate scored on back-to-back drives in the middle of the first quarter, which was enough for the Raiders. The two drives are snapshots of what Colgate was able to do on offense the entire game. During their first scoring drive, freshman quarterback Grant Breneman was able to pick apart the Fordham defense, while running back James Holland picked up big yardage on the ground.
On their second scoring drive, the Raiders started in great field position after a bad punt from freshman Andrew Mevis started them on Fordham’s 39 yard line. Two plays later, one a 33-yard completion, and Colgate was up 14-0.
Last season, a 14-0 deficit would not have seemed like a lot for the Fordham offense to overcome. It averaged over 40 points per game last season, fourth best in the FCS. This season, they came into the game averaging just over 28 points, 81st in the FCS.
At the end of the first half, senior quarterback Luke Medlock hit senior running back Chase Edmonds in the hands, but the ball popped out and gave the ball to Colgate deep in Fordham territory. Colgate was able to drill a 40-yard field goal to go into the half up 17-0.
Of Fordham’s seven first-half drives, five ended in punts. The other two were a turnover on downs and an interception. They had just 102 yards of offense.
Fordham’s defense did all it could to give the Rams a chance to start the second half on the right foot. It forced back-to-back punts, but the offense responded with a punt and another turnover on downs.
The turnover on downs was the result of a baffling play call. Facing a fourth and 6 on their own 49, Breiner called for a fake punt. But instead of getting it in the hands of a fast player or with a pass from Mevis, it was a direct snap to senior offensive lineman Anthony Coyle. He lost two yards.
After giving up another Colgate touchdown, Fordham finally got on the board courtesy of a pretty 20-yard throw and catch from Medlock to junior receiver Austin Longi. That play capped off a 12-play, 80-yard drive. They did not convert the two-point conversion, putting the score at 24-6 with 1:30 left in the third, a definitely manageable score – at least if the Fordham offense was performing up to its potential.
By this point, however, the defense was gassed. Colgate’s next drive was a seven-play, 75-yard gashing, including a 34-yard rush for Holland where he blew by multiple clearly exhausted Fordham defenders. The touchdown put Colgate up 31-6 with 12:22 left in the fourth quarter.
Both teams scored one more time before the end of the game.
The Fordham touchdown was courtesy of freshman running back Zach Davis, who came in for Edmonds once the game got out of hand, given Edmonds’ injury issues this season. It was set up by a circus catch by freshman wide receiver Hunter Harris for 40 yards.
“That is, quite frankly, what we’ve been missing offensively,” said Breiner. “That’s what you saw on that last drive. It wasn’t always perfect, but we went fast. Guys executed. Guys made plays. We got back onto the football after somebody made a play. Ripped another play off. You know, when you get the defense back on their heels a little bit you can have success, even if the picture’s not 100 percent perfect.”
The loss was maybe the worst game Fordham has played all season. The offense gained just 279 yards to Colgate’s 443. After holding Lafayette to -5 rushing yards last week, Colgate torched the Rams for 263 yards, averaging more than five yards per carry.
There were some positives on the defensive side, at least individually. Graduate student defensive lineman Manny Adeyeye had a career-high 10 tackles, while freshman linebacker Glenn Cunningham, the most for either side. Junior defensive back Dylan Mabin had four pass breakups, giving him an FCS leading 15 on the year.
On the offensive side, Edmonds came into the game just 61 yards short of the Patriot League career rushing yards record. He gained just 53 yards on 18 carries, including just five yards in the second half. He was pulled from the game with just eight yards to go for the record.
Medlock finished a pedestrian 16-32 for 215 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He was sacked five times.
Junior tight end Isaiah Searight left the game after a scary collision over the middle that left him looking dazed as he was helped off the field.
Of Fordham’s 12 drives, only two ended in points.
Fordham came into this season with high hopes, ranked in both preseason polls. It’s hard not to think about what this time would look like without the injuries to Edmonds, Anderson and the majority of the offensive line. They were among the favorites to win the Patriot League, but could now easily finish at the bottom of the conference.
“Obviously, no one is happy with the last several weeks,” said Breiner. “But the season is not over, and we have an opportunity to stick our foot in the ground, change the course of the season and finish it the way we want to.”
The Rams will look to right the ship in their final road game of the season at Georgetown on Saturday, Oct. 21. Kickoff is at 2 p.m.
