Bucknell University Athletics
Defenses Stellar as Blue Tops Orange 7-6 in Bucknell Football Spring Game
4/21/2007 8:00:00 AM | Football
April 21, 2007
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Todd Rinaldo's tackle on a 2-point conversion on the last play of the game saved the day for the Blue team in a 7-6 victory over the Orange in the annual Bucknell football spring game Saturday night at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium. The final play capped a thrilling finish to a game that was dominated by the two defenses for most of the night.
The game was scoreless into the fourth quarter until Blue defensive back Jay Harper returned a fumble 20 yards for a touchdown with 8:18 remaining. The Orange team came up with a big play when Josh Eden forced a fumble and Will Braaf recovered at the Blue 20 with 2:48 remaining. But one play later, Jon Salem intercepted Ben Bouffard's pass in the end zone to thwart the scoring threat.
Later, the Blue squad had the ball deep in Orange territory and was working on its two-minute offense in the final minute when disaster struck. They tried to run a reverse but the pitch was mishandled, and Brigham Farrand picked up the loose ball and sprinted 74 yards untouched to make it a 7-6 game with only five seconds remaining.
The Orange team elected to go for two points and the win, but quarterback Marcello Trigg was quickly swarmed by Rinaldo on the final play to preserve the win.
The contest was much shorter than a regulation game, with 12-minute quarters in the first half and 10-minute periods in the second half. Still, the offenses had a difficult time moving the football against the new defensive system of first-year defensive coordinator Andrew Cohen. The Blue team outgained the Orange 189-71, with Blue quarterbacks Trigg (7-14, 115 yards) and Andrew Lair (7-12, 71 yards) doing most of their damage through the air.
A.J. Kizekai had four catches for 81 yards, including a 55-yard grab and run in the fourth quarter, while Josh Lee and Cale Cadman also had four catches apiece for the Blue team.
The leading rusher in the game was Orange fullback Corin Erby, who ran nine times for 49 yards.
The two defenses combined for seven sacks, resulting in 45 lost yards. Rinaldo, in addition to his game-saving play, had a sack and a half for the Blue side. Orange linebacker Julius Hopson was the game's leading tackler with nine.
Defensive lineman Jason Kolodziej of the Orange team made all three tackles on a three-and-out on the game's first possession. He finished with four tackles in the game, including three for loss. Sam Williams saw action for both teams and was particularly impressive, finishing with a total of six stops, including one sack.
"I was real pleased defensively," said head coach Tim Landis after the game. "I thought they ran very hard to the ball all night. The defensive coaches have shown great patience throughout the spring as they have installed the new system, and that patience paid off tonight. Pressure on the ball is obviously something we needed to improve on, and we saw that tonight.
"Offensively, all the quarterbacks did some good things tonight, but overall the offenses struggled to move the ball consistently. What gives me comfort is that we have three guys who have played quarterback and been productive. That should make for some great competition in August."
The Bison will host the Ninth Annual Family FunFest from 1-4 p.m. Sunday at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium. Preseason camp opens in early August in preparation for the Sept. 1 season opener at Duquesne.
