Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Pennsylvania
Bison Gridders Fall Just Short at #15 Penn, 14-13
10/11/2003 8:00:00 AM | Football
PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Sam Matthews ran for 106 yards and scored twice as Penn held on for a 14-13 victory Saturday over Bucknell, extending the nation's longest home winning streak to 16 games.
Bucknell (3-3), starting from inside its own 1-yard line with 2:00 left after stopping the Quakers on fourth-and-goal, drove to the Penn 22, but Ryan Korn's 39-yard field goal attempt with 20 seconds remaining fell just short.
Pat McDermott, playing in place of injured All-Ivy quarterback Mike Mitchell, passed for 136 yards and one touchdown for the Quakers (4-0), who have won their last 10 games.
Bison quarterback Daris Wilson kept Bucknell in the game by completing 12-of-14 passes for 130 yards and also ran for 113 yards, including a 31-yard touchdown in the opening half.
A career-long 40-yard field goal by Korn gave Bucknell an early lead, but Matthews' 3-yard run put the Quakers ahead 7-3, with 4:04 left in the first.
Wilson's run put Bucknell ahead 10-7 with 12:11 left in the first half, but McDermott's 20-yard toss to Matthews gave the Quakers a 14-10 halftime edge.
Korn's 28-yard field goal with 8:47 left in the game was the only scoring in the second half. The Bison drove as far as the Penn 9 but were slowed by a false start penalty on first-and-goal.
Penn appeared to be in good shape for some insurance points after driving to Bucknell's 17-yard line, but Joe Glenn thwarted the chance with his league-leading sixth interception of the season at the Bucknell 8.
Three plays later Bucknell handed the ball right back, however, when Wilson and fullback Blamah Sarnor misconnected on a handoff exchange and Kevin Junge fell on the loose ball at the BU 18. The Quakers took the ball all the way to the 1-yard line, but Zach Richards stopped Matthews literally inches from the goal line on fourth down, giving the Bison life.
After an incompletion -- his first of the day after eight straight completions -- Wilson connected with Albert Marquardt for 11 yards, then hit Raphael Darrington out of the backfield for a 44-yard gain to the Penn 44. Later faced with a 4th-and-6 with 46 seconds remaining, Wilson hit Tim Johnson for a 10-yard completion and a first down at the Penn 30. After Wilson's 8-yard scamper moved the ball into field goal range at the 22, Wilson spiked the ball to stop the clock, and Bucknell elected to try a 39-yard field goal on third down with 20 seconds remaining.
After Penn called two successive timeouts, and Korn's kick fell just short of the goal post.
Bucknell was attempting to knock off a top-15 team for the second time in as many weeks, having defeated No. 14 Fordham 31-10 on Oct. 4.
The two teams were virtually identical on the stat sheet, with Bucknell holding a 224-220 rushing edge and Penn a 136-130 edge in passing yards.
With a five-game road trip now behind them, the Bison return to the friendly confines of Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium next Saturday for a Homecoming Day tilt with Patriot League rival Towson. Kickoff is at 1 p.m.
