2015 Football Coverage

 

From HoyaSaxa.com game recaps. Links to other contemporary coverage may be out of date.

Game #1: St. Francis (Sep. 5)

Picked for fifth in the seven team Northeast Conference pre-season poll, the St. Francis Red Flash gained 520 yards on a shaky Georgetown defense, cruising to a 48-20 win in the 2015 season opener in Loretto, PA.

St. Francis scored on its first three drives and never looked back. The Red Flash opened with a seven play, 71 yard drive keyed by a 38 yard run by running back Khairi Dickson and a 20 yard Dickson run for the score, just two minutes into the game. The drive was placed on hold after junior LB Tyrell Williams was taken off the field in an ambulance following a tackle.

Following consecutive threes and out by the Georgetown offense, Dickson scored a second touchdown on St. Francis' next series: a 40 yard run to put the Frankies up 14-0 with 5:32 in the quarter. Another three and out from the Hoyas followed, and St. Francis took quick advantage: a five play, 50 yard drive led by a 37 yard run by RB Marcus Bagley to put SF up 21-0 with 1:52 in the quarter. Georgetown has not come back from a deficit of 21 or more points in the Patriot League era, and wasn't going to in this game, either.

Georgetown's first points of the game came from the defense, via a 36 yard interception returned by Ettian Scott for a touchdown, 21-6. The defense held St. Francis to field goals over its final two series of the half to end the scoring at 27-6 at intermission.

Georgetown opened the second half with promise, advancing to the St. Francis before a crushing 14 yard sack of Nolan put the Hoyas out of field goal position. Punting to the Red Flash two yard line, St. Francis responded with a methodical 12 play, 98 yard drive to extend the lead to 34-6, but on its next possession, a fumble at its 18 set up the Hoyas for its first offensive points of the season, as quarterback Kyle Nolan passed for nine yards and ran nine yards for the score, 34-13.

The score held steady until early in the fourth, where the Red Flash scored two touchdowns in 31 seconds, the first coming at the conclusion of a 5 play, 77 yard drive, the second on a Nolan interception returned for a touchdown, 48-13. Nolan added a 13 yard touchdown with 8:52 remaining, but reserve QB Tim Barnes was added for the final series of the game, where the Hoyas stalled at the St. Francis 10 with under a minute to play.

Georgetown's numbers were weak across the board. Nolan finished ended the game 14 for 29 for just 110 yards and two interceptions. Jo'el Kimpela managed just 60 yards on the ground, with Matt Buckman catching five passes for 45 yards. Bagley led all rushers with 19 carries for 147 yards (7.7 yards per carry), while Dickson had 22 carries for 129 yards and three TD's. Georgetown was outgained 281-129 on the ground, while Ty Smith's nine catches for 140 yards led the Flash to double the Hoyas' passing numbers, 239-114.

The 48 points is the most allowed by Georgetown in two seasons, and the most in a season opener since 2002. Overall, the Hoyas are Georgetown is 77-33 all-time in season openers, 6-8 since joining the Patriot League in 2001.

Next up for the Hoyas, a home game with Marist, who lost to Bucknell 17-0.

Game statistics:


                          GEORGETOWN      ST. FRANCIS
First downs                       15               29
Rushed-yards                  26-129           48-281
Passing yards                    114              239
Sacked-yards lost               3-14             3-24
Passes                       16-32-2          23-33-2
Punts                         7-39.0           2-37.5
Fumbles-lost                     0-0              1-1
Penalties-yards                 3-20             9-85
Time of possession             20:36            39:24
 
Additional links follow below. No local coverage was posted online.

 
 

Game #2: Marist (Sept. 12)

In an emotional follow-up from last week, the Georgetown Hoyas defeated Marist 34-7 in the home opener at Multi-Sport Field.

For the first time since the 1950 season, the Hoyas took the field without its signature gray helmets, but stripped the helmet design to a simple color and included just one number on the helmets: 2, the jersey number of injured teammate Ty Williams (C'17). It was a powerful message of team unity that served it well, scoring on four consecutive possessions to put the game away by halftime.



After an exchange of punts, Georgetown scored on its first major drive of the game: an eight play, 67 yard drive that resulted in a 33-yard field goal and an early 3-0 lead. On the ensuing series, Marist quarterback Ed Achziger was intercepted by DB David Akere, who returned the ball to the Marist nine yard line and set up QB Kyle Nolan to find WR Justin Hill in the back of the Georgetown end zone, 10-0.

The Red Foxes, who entered the game with just 21 yards on the ground in its opener with Bucknell, found little progress against the Georgetown defense, with a three and out that set up the Hoyas at its 40 early in the second quarter. Nolan responded with an eight play, 60 yard drive, capped by an 11 yard run by senior RB Jo'el Kimpela and a 17-0 lead, its largest lead in any game since it met the Red Foxes in the second game of the 2014 season.

Marist coach Jim Parady benched Achziger for sophomore Michael White, who had a rocky start. On his second play, DB Jelani Williamson read White's pass play and picked off the pass, racing 34 yards for a touchdown and a 24-0 Georgetown lead. White recovered to lead Marist (0-2) on its best drive of the day, an eight play, 86 yard drive to close to 24-7, but no closer. With its last drive of the first half, Nolan took advantage of a short field and guided the G-men on a seven play, 55 drive that took advantage of a key Marist penalty to extend the drive, whereupon runs by Kimpela and Isaac Ellsworth set up Nolan to find Hill for his second score of the evening, giving the Hoyas a 31-7 lead they took to halftime.

Marist managed just one drive of more than 11 yards in the first half, while Georgetown scored on five of its final six possessions of the half, taking advantage of defensive stops that gave the Hoyas a net 30 yard advantage of average field position.

198
Penalty yards,
both teams

56
INT yards,
Georgetown

14
Pts. off turnover,
Georgetown

2.5
Yards per carry,
Marist

3.3
Yards per carry,
Georgetown

5-1
GU home openers
since 2010

12-16
Remaining home games
since 2010

Georgetown opened the second half strong, driving 61 yards in nine plays for a 31 yard field goal and a 34-7 lead. Neither team scored thereafter, although Marist had two drives into Georgetown territory that fell short, with a fourth down stand by the Georgetown defense and a fumbled forced at its 21 midway in the fourth.

Kyle Nolan had a solid game: 21-34 for 200 yards, without a sack or interception. Jo'el Kimpela rushed for 57 yards as the Hoyas contributed only 117 yards on the ground. The ongoing story of the game was penalties, where Marist gave up 105 yards to penalties compared to its 263 total yards for the game. The setbacks contributed to just 4 of 15 third downs completed by the Red Foxes compared to 7 of 16 for the Hoyas.



Following interviews with the PL Network, head coach Rob Sgarlata had the game ball close at hand as he left Multi-Sport Field. He didn't say where it was being awarded, but there's a good chance it's headed to Ty Williams with the thoughts and prayers of his teammates.

Next up for the Hoyas, a home game with Dartmouth, making its 2015 season opener.

Game statistics:


                              MARIST       GEORGETOWN
First downs                       15               29
Rushed-yards                   26-65           35-117
Passing yards                    198              200
Sacked-yards lost                0-0             3-21
Passes                       22-44-2          21-35-0
Punts                         7-37.3           6-35.8
Fumbles-lost                     2-1              1-0
Penalties-yards               11-105             7-93
Time of possession             26:32            33:28
 
Additional links follow below.

 

Game #3: Dartmouth (Sept. 19)

A game that was within Georgetown's grasp was out of Kyle Nolan's reach, as the senior QB threw two interceptions that were returned for Dartmouth touchdowns and fumbled on the precipice of the Dartmouth goal line, giving the Big Green a 31-10 win in its season opener at Multi-Sport Field.

The Georgetown defense contained Dartmouth quarterback Dalyn Williams early in the game, as the first two series for the Indians Big Green netted no yardage. The Hoyas got on the board first, an eight play play, 56 yard drive that featured a 31 yard pass Nolan to Matt Buckman for an early 7-0 lead. Georgetown appeared to have contained dartmouth on a punt from its next possession, but Dartmouth returner Ryan McManus returned the kick 65 yards to the georgetown nine, setting up Williams for a nine yard run to tie the score.

Two critical mistakes by Nolan turned the game. Five plays into the next series, Nolan's sideline pass at the 48 was picked off and returned to to the Georgetown 13. It took RB Brian Grove just one play to give Dartmouth the lead, 14-7. After the Georgetown defense held Dartmouth to a three and out, the Hoyas were pinned inside their ten and there was one play they could not run...but Nolan did it anyway, with a pass at his eight that was intercepted and returned for the score, 21-7. Despite gaining only 48 yards in the first half, Dartmouth led 21-10 at the half and never looked back.

Dartmouth opened the second half with as 13 play, 72 drive that exceeded any offensive efforts to date, which was halted at the Georgetown three and Dartmouth was held to the field goal, 24-10. The Hoyas opened by driving into Big Green territory, but Nolan suffered a nine yard sack at the DC 39 which resulted in 36 yard punt and a 16 yard return, setting the table for a eight play, 72 yard drive where Williams was 5-5 for 65 yards, including a 27 yard TD pass to Dylan Mellor, 31-10.

Georgetown's only serious second half drive also ended in Nolan's hands, a 13 play, 77 yard drive early in the fourth quarter where, on fourth and goal at the Dartmouth three, Nolan fumbled at the goal line.

The veteran Dartmouth defense closed the door on Georgetown's running game, holding Jo'el kimpela to 29 yards and the team to 23 yards overall. With no consistent running game, Nolan accounted for most of the Georgetown yardage, 31 for 53 for 308 yards but with little effect on the final score. The Hoyas held a commanding lead in time of possession, but the turnovers were not to be ignored.

0
Dartmouth turnovers

3
Georgetown turnovers

14
Pts. off Georgetown turnovers

24.7
Avg. punt return,
Dartmouth

4-21-0
GU record vs.
Ivy League

It was the first game played between the schools since a 10-0 Georgetown win in 1916, and the Hoyas will return the series to Hanover in the 2018 season.



 
Next up for the Hoyas, a road game at Columbia where the Lions hope to end a 22 game losing streak, second longest in school history. This isn't the Columbia teams of old, as the Lions were within 28-24 to Fordham after three quarters and are now coached by Al Bagnoli, who won nine Ivy titles in 22 years at Pennsylvania.

Game statistics:


                           DARTMOUTH       GEORGETOWN
First downs                       14               22
Rushed-yards                  31-143            32-23
Passing yards                    155              308
Sacked-yards lost               3-22              1-0
Passes                       18-29-0          31-53-2
Punts                         7-42.0           6-47.5
Fumbles-lost                     0-0              3-1
Penalties-yards                 8-92             6-60
Time of possession             23:51            36:09
 
Additional links follow below.

 

Game #4: Columbia (Sept. 27)

Two Georgetown touchdowns in the final minute of the first half proved the difference as Georgetown defeated Colmbia 24-16 before 5,175 at Wien Stadium Saturday, capturing the initial game in the Lou Little Trophy series.

Columbia's home opener was deemed by many its best chance at ending a 22 game losing streak dating to November 2012. The Hoyas began the game with a steady drive, moving nine plays to the Columbia 30 and completing a pass to the eight yard line that was invalidated by offensive pass interference. The penalty and a pair of negative yardage plays forced the Hoyas to kick, whereupon the Lions drove the ball down the field behind Skyler Mornhinweg, a Florida transfer who started three games for the Gators in 2013. He led the Lions on a 10 play, 47 yard drive that stalled at the Georgetown 23, where kicker Cameron Nizialek missed from 40 yards out. After a brief drive, Columbia drove 50 yards in 11 plays, where Nizialek picked up a 29 yard field goal and an early 3-0 lead.

Georgetown answered on an eight play drive, where Georgetown quarterback Kyle Nolan completed on three straight passes to enter Columbia territory and set up Henry Darmstadter for a career long 46 yard kick, only the ninth field goal in Georgetown history beyond 45 yards.

The Lions continued to build momentum under Mornhinweg, moving the Light Blue on an 11 play, 79 yard drive that reached third down just once, A 22 yard pass to the georgetown two set up RB Cameron Molina for the score and a 10-3 lead with 4:35 to halftime.

The ensuing drive was perhaps the most important of Kyle Nolan's season. He opened with two passes to midfield, and following two Alex Valles carries, Nolan took it himself for 14 yards to the Columbia 26, where a Lion fouled advanced the ball to the 12. Georgetown advanced as close as the Columbia two yard line before the drive stalled, but on fourth down at the four, Nolan took it in himself to tie the score with 29 seconds in the half, 10-10. But on the ensuing kickoff, the Columbia return team lost track of the ball and fumbled it back to the Hoyas at the Lion 21. Two plays later, Nolan found Justin Will cutting across the defense and the hoyas had turned the game around with a 17-10 halftime lead.

Columbia opened the second half with its best drive to date, beginning at its 29. Consecutive gains by Molina pushed the ball to midfield, and Mornhinweg completed two pass plays to the Georgetown six. The Hoyas held on three straight attempts, and on fourth and goal, Mornhinweg found Cameron Dunn for the score, but the score was overturned for an offensive holding call. Settling for the field goal, Nizialek missed wide right from the 20.

Georgetown wasted no time in answering, as Nolan found Hill alone down the field with no defenders within ten yards, and Hill ran unabated to the end zone, 24-10. A Columbia score late in the fourth quarter ended the scoring.

"I think this was a winnable game," said head coach Al Bagnoli in post game comments. "It's one we would all like to play again if we could."

Columbia held leads in most statistics from the game but the two turnovers and two missed field goals proved the difference. The Hoyas were led by Kyle Nolan, who threw for 264 yards and 41 rushing yards. On the strength of the 80 yard pass from Nolan, Justin Hill led all GU receivers with 118 yards.

"The Hoyas played virtually error-free football while taking full advantage of almost every Columbia mistake," said Columbia blogger Jake Novak. "Georgetown QB Kyle Nolan had one of his best games ever, throwing and running well enough to keep the Hoyas in control. The Georgetown defense bent, but got tough in the red zone."

"The Lions made crucial errors at the worst possible moments. But Columbia's defense was also not able to play consistently enough to win. The Lions also lost too many points because of an inaccurate kicking game."

Game statistics:


                           GEORGETOWN        COLUMBIA
First downs                       21               23
Rushed-yards                   33-65           35-129
Passing yards                    264              232
Sacked-yards lost                0-0             2-18
Passes                       21-32-1          23-38-1
Punts                         5-32.2           3-43.7
Fumbles-lost                     1-0              2-1
Penalties-yards                 4-62             8-69
Time of possession             25:31            34:29