As the sun set during Georgetown’s trip home from Lexington, Va. on Saturday evening, the Hoyas found themselves at the low point of a gloomy 0-4 season. After a 42-14 stinging by the Virginia Military Institute Keydets, the Hoyas were left to contemplate another week of missed opportunities and the possibility that the sun may also be setting on their opportunity to turn in a winning season.
Unlike their first three games, in which the Hoyas fell to their opponents by a combined 11 points, the Keydets took control of this game early. After shutting out the Hoyas on their first possession, VMI drove the field after a strong punt by Hoyas freshman punter Keith Allan. Five minutes into the game, the Keydets found the the end zone on a 42-yard touchdown pass from VMI slotback Kirk Monteleone, a former quarterback. The drive was a bad omen for Georgetown, who allowed seven of 10 VMI third downs to be converted for first downs.
“We obviously had a hard time on third downs, and we’ve got to improve there,” Georgetown Head Coach Bob Benson said. “The third down and longs [that we gave up] really hurt us.”
Senior strong safety Matt Fronczke echoed Benson’s frustration. “It’s all a mental problem, and we have to get better,” said Fronczke. “We can’t let people convert those plays and still expect to win.”
Fronczke started for the first time this season, recovering from an arm injury, and expressed optimism that his improving arm wouldn’t serve as a hindrance to his game in the future.
“It’s feeling better … getting better every day,” Fronczke said. “It’s nice to be back on the field instead of feeling antsy on the sideline.”
Fronczke’s presence was felt early and often as he recorded a game-high seven tackles.
“He’s healthy and had a good game,” Benson said. “We missed him a lot earlier.”
Still, the fact that Fronczke was called on so often to step up from his strong safety position was symptomatic of the success that VMI had all day. Keydet redshirt freshman quarterback Jonathan Wilson was a model of efficiency, completing 17 of 22 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns.
“He gets better every game,” VMI Head Coach Cal McCombs said. “When you have a live arm, you have a tendency not to take it off of some balls, but he’s getting better and putting some air under the ball. He will get better every week because he’s a very conscientious young man.”
The Hoyas’ defensive line bear some responsibility for the VMI success, as they were unable to put pressure on Wilson, giving him more time to find open receivers in the Keydets’ stunting, shifting offense. VMI’s passing success, combined with the struggles of the Hoyas’ cornerbacks, made stopping Mizzer and the Keydet rushing attack all the more difficult.
“The D-line had a rough game, and we’ve got to get better,” Benson said. “We gave up too many points, and our secondary (gave up) too many big plays.”
The loss marred a decent offensive day for the Hoyas, who racked up 388 total yards. Yet despite a 17-for-28, 268-yard passing performance from junior quarterback Andrew Crawford, it was his two interceptions and one fumble in the first half that hurt the Hoyas offense the most. Crawford’s fumble, which came in the VMI red zone with the team driving towards a tying score in the first half, eventually resulted in a touchdown for the Keydets, and a 21-7 halftime lead.
“The big play of the first half was the fumble by our quarterback.” Benson reflected. “The turnovers are really hurting us right now. We only converted two of six in the red zone, and that’s not good enough.”
Despite the miscues, there were other gleams of hope from among the ashes of the loss. First-year quarterback Alondzo Turner entered on the game’s second drive, his earliest appearance of the season, and was effective on the ground and in the air while leading the Hoyas to a game-tying first quarter touchdown, capping a 16-play, 83-yard drive with his one-yard sneak.
“He’s been a good change for us when he comes in,” Benson said. “It’s a nice tempo shift. We’re going to keep using him, going to him. You’ll see more of him in the future.”
The switch to first-year punter Keith Allan also improved the Hoyas special teams. Allan’s average punt distance rose to 44-yards, over 13-yards improved from sophomore Rob Smith. The struggles of placekicker Michael Gilman continued, however, as he had one field goal blocked and missed another, from 42-yards, four minutes into the fourth quarter.
“He’s finally healthy, and we think he’s going to kick better.” Benson said.
The four losses to start the season mark the first 0-4 start by a Georgetown team since 1989, and the Hoyas are looking forward to putting September behind them and moving on to a new month.
“September was a very hard month for us and we’re looking forward to October,” said Benson.
The Hoyas will get their first chance to turn the season around against Patriot League foe Lafayette (2-1). The Leopards beat Georgetown 35-17 last fall, and are coming off an impressive victory over Princeton last weekend.
“We’re expecting the same thing as last year,” said Fronczke. “They’re going to come out and try to establish the run, and we expect them to try some deep shots early, especially with the way our secondary’s been playing. We want to go out and win out the season, but we have to take them one-at-a-time. We have to think about getting to 1-4 or 2-4 before we can think about going 4-4 or 5-4. We’re just excited to get out there again this week and try to get a win.”
Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Fisher Field in Easton, Pa.
