It was a picture-perfect day for a Saturday afternoon of football. As the Hoyas took the field it seemed as though the football gods were smiling down upon them, making sure this home game would be played in the most perfect of conditions. Unfortunately for Georgetown, the end result that glowed on the Multi Sport Field scoreboard was an awfully ugly one. Arguably the most winnable game on the Hoyas’ schedule, the 10-3 loss to Davidson (4-6, 1-2) handed the Blue and Grey their 6th straight losing season. The Davidson Wildcats rained on the Hoyas’ parade a year after they suffered a 23-0 shutout at the hands of the padded G-men. Georgetown may have overlooked the Pioneer League team that is finishing two games below .500.
“We were a little bit flat coming out, there’s no doubt about that,” Head Coach Bob Benson said.
Right out of the gate the Wildcats were clawing at the Georgetown defense. They drove the field on their first possession and junior kicker Brad Smith booted a 39-yard field goal to end the drive. The Hoya defense tightened after that, but the offense could never muster a drive that resulted in significant points on the board. It was the same old story for the Hoyas whose defense, led by senior Julius Griauzde (8 tackles, 1 sack), played angry, while the nation’s worst division 1-AA offense seemed to have their collective heads in the non-existent clouds.
It was a battle of field position for much of the first half with the Hoyas rarely getting beyond the shadow of their goal posts to start a drive. The return of senior running back Marcus Slayton (20 carries, 88 yards), who had been injured with an ankle sprain, was not enough to spur a scoring drive. Several of those drives were killed by Davidson’s 5 sacks. The play of the Wildcats’ defense made their seniors’ last game all the more bright.
“The defensive coaches came up with a great game plan today, and our guys simply executed to a tee,” Davidson first-year head coach Tripp Merritt said in a statement. “It’s wonderful to end the season on a high note and send the seniors out with this victory.”
The pressure of the Wildcat defensive line eventually landed a truly fatal blow in the second quarter. Junior quarterback Nick Cangelosi attempted a handoff to Slayton with the defensive line looming right in front of them. But the handoff was botched and fumbled allowing Davidson to recover on the Hoya 29-yard line.
“Turnovers add to points,” said Benson said. “You have to create some for yourself, and you can’t give any away. That one was devastating.”
In this case Benson’s adage was right on, and after a Wildcat conversion on fourth and short, a pair of Davidson sophomores hooked up for a touchdown. Quarterback Ryan Alexander (19-27, 165 yards, TD) hit his running back, Ryan Hubbard, on a crossing pattern from 10 yards out to tally a score with just one minute left in the first half.
But in that one minute, the Hoyas put together an inspiring drive to get themselves in field goal range with only two seconds left on the clock. With a successful attempt the Hoyas would have had the edge in momentum coming into the second half. But even senior kicker Brad Scoffern, who has been lights out for most of the season, was not on his game as he missed a 38-yard field goal wide right.
For the remainder of the picturesque afternoon, it seemed as though the Hoya offense was stuck in the mud, though the defense tried desperately to keep them in the game. A blocked field goal by senior cornerback Brian Tandy, and an amazing goal line stand kept the Hoyas within range of a comeback.
But the Hoyas continued to slip up. They couldn’t hang onto a pigskin that they handled like it was covered in slop. A fumble by first-year wide out Sydney Baker and an interception thrown by Cangelosi in the fourth quarter seemed to drain Georgetown of any momentum the defense had built up for them.
Though Nick Cangelosi reached a season high in throwing yards (22-31, 190 yards, INT), a total of three points for his team was far from his view of a successful day.
“Against Davidson we showed we could pass the ball,” Cangelosi said. “But obviously us only putting up three points on the board after 31 pass attempts is something we don’t want to see anymore.”
The Hoyas registered their only three points of the game on a Cangelosi-led 70 yard drive that ended in a Scoffern 26 yard field goal with about three minutes left in the game. The ensuing on-side kick was recovered by Davidson, effectively ending the game.
Though the sun has set on Georgetown’s chances at a winning season, there is one ray of hope among what has been a gloomy end to the season. The Hoyas can still end the year at .500 in the Patriot League and achieve a school record???three Patriot League wins with a victory over Colgate next week. According to Cangelosi, it’s important for the underclassmen to help their senior teammates to one final, record-setting win at home and send them off on a high note.
“We’re going to try and send them out with a bang. They’re a great class, a great bunch of guys, and everyone is going to work as they can to get them a W. Hopefully they can tell their grandkids someday that they led the first Georgetown team that ever got three wins in the Patriot League.”
