Following a frustrating loss to Marist (1-2, 0-0 Pioneer) a week ago, the Georgetown football team (1-3, 0-0 Patriot League) endured another torrid day against Brown (1-0, 0-0 Ivy League) in a 45-7 loss at Brown Stadium.
“[It was] a disappointment,” Georgetown Head Coach Kevin Kelly said. “It’s not just the three hours on the field, it’s all the work that you put in prior to.”
Brown set the tone early in the game as the team moved the ball efficiently down the field on the opening possession, not facing a single third down on a 92-yard drive that lasted four minutes. The drive culminated in an 8-yard touchdown pass to Brown senior wide receiver Alex Phelan to give Brown a 7-0 lead.
The Hoya offense then took over, but could not give their defense any rest since they were forced to punt after a quick three and out. Brown then added to their lead with a 32-yard field goal following a 38-yard drive kept alive by a key fourth down conversion. Georgetown’s second drive was no better than their first, as a personal foul penalty negated the small gains they had made on first and second down and they were again forced to punt.
“Offensively we didn’t play up to our potential,” said redshirt senior quarterback Isaiah Kempf, “[its] frustrating in a lot of ways” he added.
Brown closed out the first half with their third scoring drive in three possessions. Brown drove 55 yards for a touchdown to make the score 17-0. Brown senior running back John Spooney carried the load on the drive, accounting for 33 of the yards including an 8-yard touchdown run to cap off the drive.
The second quarter began with three short drives that resulted in punts, two by Georgetown. The Hoyas’ second punt took place from their end zone. As a result, Brown took over with excellent field position, starting at Georgetown’s 37-yard line. Brown capitalized on the favorable field position with a 24-yard touchdown reception by Spooney to give Brown a 24-0 lead.
Georgetown responded with a promising drive. However, Kempf fumbled on a fourth down attempt at Brown’s 22-yard line. Brown again took advantage and concluded a seven-play 58-yard drive with a 7-yard touchdown run from Spooney to put Brown 31 points ahead of the Hoyas.
Georgetown took over with just under 4 minutes left in the half, in desperate need of a spark. The Hoyas appeared to find the spark in Kempf, who accounted for 59 yards in a combination of passes and rushes. Kempf’s attempt to convert was intercepted and thus the half, and the Hoya’s most promising drive so far, came to an end with Brown leading 31-0.
Brown added touchdowns in in the third and fourth quarters, but the Hoyas did not quit and finally got on the scoreboard with a touchdown pass from Kempf to cap a 77-yard drive, topping the score at 45-7.
While the first half was disappointing and essentially decided the game, Georgetown did show some fire in the second half. “It shows the character of these young men… they aren’t going to quit” Kelly said. “We had a bad [first] half.”
After struggling against both Marist and Brown, Georgetown takes on Princeton (0-1, 0-0 Ivy League) this Saturday.
