Saturday, September 1
Lewisburg, Pa.
6 p.m.
Bucknell University
0-1
7
vs
14
William & Mary
1-0
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
William & Mary
7
0
0
7
14
Bucknell
0
0
0
7
7
Photo by: Marc Hagemeier
Bucknell Football Edged by William & Mary, 14-7, in 2018 Opener
9/1/2018 8:05:00 PM | Football
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell football team's defense stood tall all night, but William & Mary prevailed, 14-7, in the season opener for both teams on Saturday night at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium.
The Tribe entered the fourth quarter with a 7-0 lead thanks to an early touchdown. On the first play of that frame, Joe Schiano came up with a strip sack to give the Bison the ball at William & Mary's 36-yard line. Five plays later, Marquis Carter scampered 12 yards into the end zone; a good extra point by Jack Chambers made it a 7-7 game.
But the Tribe was quick to respond. On the second play of its next drive, Shon Mitchell connected with DeVonte Dedmon for a 75-yard score that proved to be the difference in a defensive battle played in front of 5,042 fans.
After Dedmon's go-ahead touchdown, Bucknell had three drives and advanced as far as William & Mary's 36-yard line. Near the middle of the frame, John Chiarolanzio led the Bison from their one-yard line to their 47 in 12 plays, but a fumble ultimately stalled that promising possession.
Bucknell later got the ball back with 1:14 left to play, and Chiarolanzio found Brandon Sanders for a 21-yard gain and Jared Cooper for a 10-yard gain on back-to-back plays to bring the Bison faithful to their feet. But the game ended when Cooper caught a pass over the middle and was tackled in bounds short of a first down. On that play, a Bucknell player was injured; because there was 10 seconds left on the clock and Bucknell was out of timeouts, the game came to an end on the 10-second runoff rule.
The Tribe controlled the first quarter, using a lengthy game-opening drive to build a 10:46 to 4:14 edge in time of possession. William & Mary's first touchdown came at the 6:13 mark, with Mitchell capping a 15-play, 68-yard drive that began 11 seconds into the game with a two-yard quarterback keeper score. Early in that drive, Albert Funderburke rushed for 14 yards and Owen Wright dashed for a 13-yard gain on back-to-back plays to bring the Tribe from its 44 to the Bison 29.
Bucknell had an opportunity to tie the game on its next possession after Chiarolanzio orchestrated a seven-play, 54-yard drive to William & Mary's 21-yard line. Isaiah Laster ultimately intercepted a Chiarolanzio pass intended for Stefone Moore-Green in the corner of the end zone to keep the Bison off the board.
During the second quarter, the teams traded possessions, one of which ended in a Tribe missed field goal, before William & Mary rattled off another long march. From the 10:54 to the 1:44 mark of that quarter, the Tribe traversed 55 yards in 16 plays, most of which were short rushes. But that drive came to an end at Bucknell's 10-yard line after Fisayo Oluleye forced Funderburke out of bounds for a loss of four yards and then picked off a Mitchell pass in the end zone.
After forcing a quick three and out, William & Mary got the ball back with 1:18 remaining in regulation. The Tribe had a 43-yard Dedmon touchdown catch called back due to an illegal block with 16 seconds left to play, and the Bison went to the locker room down by only a touchdown despite being outgained 226-93 and having the ball for just seven minutes and 17 seconds.Â
Chiarolanzio finished with 143 yards on 20-for-32 passing, connecting with eight different receivers. Sanders, a freshman, led all Bison receivers with 59 yards on four receptions. On the ground, Carter ran for a career-best 81 yards on 18 carriers; he also posted 13 receiving yards on three catches.
Defensively, Joe Lauro (11) and Bryan Marine (10) reached the double digits in tackles. Four Bison recorded a sack: Schiano, Blake Fletcher, Simeon Page and Nnamdi Unachukwu. Schiano and Unachukwu were both making their collegiate debut.
William & Mary held advantages in total offense (348-257), first downs (20-11) and time of possession (37:25-22:35). Bucknell chipped into its deficit during the second half; at halftime, the Tribe was up 226-93 in total offense, 15-3 in first downs and 22:43-7:17 in time of possession.
Mitchell and his favorite target Dedmon made the difference for William & Mary's offense. Mitchell finished the night with 267 yards on 21-for-32 passing while Dedmon recorded 125 yards on three catches. Arman Jones led the Tribe defense with 10 tackles, double the second-place players.
With the loss, the Bison had their winning streak in season openers snapped at seven games. They return to action next Saturday by hosting Sacred Heart at 3 p.m.
The Tribe entered the fourth quarter with a 7-0 lead thanks to an early touchdown. On the first play of that frame, Joe Schiano came up with a strip sack to give the Bison the ball at William & Mary's 36-yard line. Five plays later, Marquis Carter scampered 12 yards into the end zone; a good extra point by Jack Chambers made it a 7-7 game.
But the Tribe was quick to respond. On the second play of its next drive, Shon Mitchell connected with DeVonte Dedmon for a 75-yard score that proved to be the difference in a defensive battle played in front of 5,042 fans.
After Dedmon's go-ahead touchdown, Bucknell had three drives and advanced as far as William & Mary's 36-yard line. Near the middle of the frame, John Chiarolanzio led the Bison from their one-yard line to their 47 in 12 plays, but a fumble ultimately stalled that promising possession.
Bucknell later got the ball back with 1:14 left to play, and Chiarolanzio found Brandon Sanders for a 21-yard gain and Jared Cooper for a 10-yard gain on back-to-back plays to bring the Bison faithful to their feet. But the game ended when Cooper caught a pass over the middle and was tackled in bounds short of a first down. On that play, a Bucknell player was injured; because there was 10 seconds left on the clock and Bucknell was out of timeouts, the game came to an end on the 10-second runoff rule.
STRIP SACK! 💪
— Bucknell Football (@Bucknell_FB) September 2, 2018
In his first collegiate game, senior Joe Schiano comes up with a CRITICAL play to open the fourth quarter. #BandOfBison #rayBucknell pic.twitter.com/BivEuKxVvo
The Tribe controlled the first quarter, using a lengthy game-opening drive to build a 10:46 to 4:14 edge in time of possession. William & Mary's first touchdown came at the 6:13 mark, with Mitchell capping a 15-play, 68-yard drive that began 11 seconds into the game with a two-yard quarterback keeper score. Early in that drive, Albert Funderburke rushed for 14 yards and Owen Wright dashed for a 13-yard gain on back-to-back plays to bring the Tribe from its 44 to the Bison 29.
Bucknell had an opportunity to tie the game on its next possession after Chiarolanzio orchestrated a seven-play, 54-yard drive to William & Mary's 21-yard line. Isaiah Laster ultimately intercepted a Chiarolanzio pass intended for Stefone Moore-Green in the corner of the end zone to keep the Bison off the board.
During the second quarter, the teams traded possessions, one of which ended in a Tribe missed field goal, before William & Mary rattled off another long march. From the 10:54 to the 1:44 mark of that quarter, the Tribe traversed 55 yards in 16 plays, most of which were short rushes. But that drive came to an end at Bucknell's 10-yard line after Fisayo Oluleye forced Funderburke out of bounds for a loss of four yards and then picked off a Mitchell pass in the end zone.
After forcing a quick three and out, William & Mary got the ball back with 1:18 remaining in regulation. The Tribe had a 43-yard Dedmon touchdown catch called back due to an illegal block with 16 seconds left to play, and the Bison went to the locker room down by only a touchdown despite being outgained 226-93 and having the ball for just seven minutes and 17 seconds.Â
Chiarolanzio finished with 143 yards on 20-for-32 passing, connecting with eight different receivers. Sanders, a freshman, led all Bison receivers with 59 yards on four receptions. On the ground, Carter ran for a career-best 81 yards on 18 carriers; he also posted 13 receiving yards on three catches.
Defensively, Joe Lauro (11) and Bryan Marine (10) reached the double digits in tackles. Four Bison recorded a sack: Schiano, Blake Fletcher, Simeon Page and Nnamdi Unachukwu. Schiano and Unachukwu were both making their collegiate debut.
William & Mary held advantages in total offense (348-257), first downs (20-11) and time of possession (37:25-22:35). Bucknell chipped into its deficit during the second half; at halftime, the Tribe was up 226-93 in total offense, 15-3 in first downs and 22:43-7:17 in time of possession.
Mitchell and his favorite target Dedmon made the difference for William & Mary's offense. Mitchell finished the night with 267 yards on 21-for-32 passing while Dedmon recorded 125 yards on three catches. Arman Jones led the Tribe defense with 10 tackles, double the second-place players.
With the loss, the Bison had their winning streak in season openers snapped at seven games. They return to action next Saturday by hosting Sacred Heart at 3 p.m.
HERE. WE. GO.
— Bucknell Football (@Bucknell_FB) September 2, 2018
Marquis Carter rushes 12 yards for a BISON TOUCHDOWN! #BandOFBison #rayBucknell pic.twitter.com/dgPu49JwAM
Team Stats
WM
BUCKNELL
Total Yards
348
257
Pass Yards
267
143
Rushing Yards
81
114
Penalty Yards
80
30
1st Downs
20
11
3rd Downs
5
4
4th Downs
1
0
TOP
37:25
22:35
1st Quarter
WM 7, BUCKNELL 0
WM - Shon Mitchell 2 yd run (Kris Hooper kick), 15 plays, 68 yards, TOP 8:36
4th Quarter
WM 7, BUCKNELL 7
BUCKNELL - Carter, Marquis 12 yd run (Chambers, Jack kick), 4 plays, 36 yards, TOP 2:01
WM 14, BUCKNELL 7
WM - DeVonte Dedmon 75 yd pass from Shon Mitchell (Kris Hooper kick) 2 plays, 75 yards, TOP 0:58
Game Leaders
Passing Leaders
CMP
20
TD
0
YDS
143
INT
1
Players Mentioned
RB
/ Football
P/K
/ FootballQB
/ Football
RB
/ Football
DE
/ Football
CB
/ Football
RB
/ Football
CB
/ Football
LB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
DE
/ Football
DE
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