Bucknell University
0-6 , 0-2
Yale
4-1 , 2-0
Five Takeaways Not Enough in Football's Loss at Yale
10/15/2022 3:41:00 PM | Football
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Bucknell defense came up with five takeaways, including four interceptions, but it wasn't enough as Yale went on to win 29-9 at the historic Yale Bowl on Saturday. Bucknell trailed by just a touchdown heading into the final quarter at 16-9 before the Bulldogs added a safety and two touchdowns late in the game.
It was the first time since Sept. 30, 2000 that Bucknell intercepted four passes in a game.
Bison running back Rushawn Baker put together a strong game on the ground, rushing for 113 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries. Quarterback Ethan Grady completed 13 of 26 pass attempts for 102 yards, and Damian Harris hauled in four catches for 38 yards.
Brent Jackson led all Bison with 12 tackles and grabbed the first interception of his career. Alex Smith Jr., Jonathan Searcy, and Gavin Pringle also ended up with picks, and John Schlendorf finished with seven tackles, a sack and a forced fumble. Bucknell last forced five total turnovers against Penn in 2018.
Baker's 75-yard run in the opening quarter set up kicker Matt Schearer for a 39-yard field goal that gave the Bison an early 3-0 lead. The Bulldogs then scored 14 unanswered points before Baker rushed for a 13-yard touchdown in the third quarter. The Bison were unable to find the end zone again.
Yale quarterback Nolan Grooms ran for 95 yards and three touchdowns on 14 carries. He also threw for one more.
The Bison ended up with 260 yards of total offense while the Bulldogs picked up 433.
"They forced some turnovers, which is great. They were stopping a very good rushing attack. We just have to come up with the critical plays at a critical time," said head coach Dave Cecchini. "We're still missing those critical plays that need to be made to get us off the field. We made some today. We got off the field. We made some turnovers today. There were steps in the right direction, but we're still not playing at a level on offense, or defense or special teams that we need to be at to have consistent success."
The defense forced Yale to punt on its first three drives and forced the fumble on its fourth drive. As the defense came up with stops, the offense scored first in the game for the first time this season. On Bucknell's second possession of the opening quarter, Baker caught a pass out of the backfield and ran for nine yards to set up a 3rd-and-1 at the Bison's 14-yard line. Baker found a hole on the third down attempt and rushed up the middle for a career-long 75-yard gain to the Yale 11. From there, Schearer drilled the first field goal of his career.
There goes BAKER! The 75-yard run sets up a 39-yard FG for Matt Schearer. Bison lead 3-0. @ESPN | @PatriotLeagueTV
— Bucknell Football (@Bucknell_FB) October 15, 2022
Watch: https://t.co/RIigZnDnn6 pic.twitter.com/0YLJ4G3Fkg
The long run, as well as a 36-yard scamper by Danny Meuser, helped the Bison rack up 123 of their 158 rushing yards in just the first 15 minutes.
Bucknell had a chance to take a two-score lead after Schlendorf forced a fumble while sacking Groom and Patrick Quinlivan recovered at the Yale 16-yard line. The Bison drove down to the three, but they were unable to punch it in and turned it over on downs with 8:34 to play in the half.
2Q | Bucknell 3, Yale 0
— Bucknell Football (@Bucknell_FB) October 15, 2022
Schlendorf with a big sack fumble! 💥 @ESPN | @PatriotLeagueTV
Watch: https://t.co/eLeEAeVPtI pic.twitter.com/vLQvoDUqtL
Yale capitalized drove the length of the field on 12 plays as Groom threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to give the Bulldogs a 7-3 lead. Jackson intercepted a pass on Yale's next possession with 1:11 to go, giving the Bison a chance at a hail Mary as time expired, but the four-point deficit remained as the team's entered the locker rooms.
Yale drove 70 yards on nine plays to open the second half, and Groom finished it off with a three-yard touchdown run to grow the deficit to 14-3. The Bison responded immediately, however, going 55 yards on eight plays running Baker up the middle for a 15-yard touchdown. Grady was 3 for 4 for 38 yards on the drive.
Searcy grabbed his interception on Yale's ensuing drive, picking a deep ball out of the air on 4th-and-10 down at Bucknell's two-yard line. Backed up at their own end zone, Grady was flagged for intentional grounding for a safety, giving Yale a 16-9 lead.
Bucknell got the ball right back two plays later with Pringle's interception on the first play of the fourth quarter, but the Bison were unable to take advantage.
The Bulldogs went on to score touchdowns on their next two possessions, going 90 yards on 10 plays to make it 23-9 and 28 yards on three plays to get it to 29-9.
"There's lots of positives that we have along this football team. We have a very winnable game against Lehigh coming up here back in the Patriot League," Cecchini said. "They're a team that's a little bit closer to us in terms of the age and experience of their football players, going through some growing pains like we are as well. The team that can prepare and work hard enough is going to win that game."
Bucknell visits the Mountain Hawks next Saturday, Oct. 22 for its third straight road game.
Team Stats
BUC 3, YAL 0
BUC - Schearer,Matt 39 yd field goal 7 plays, 73 yards, TOP 02:47
BUC 3, YAL 7
YAL - Pantelis,David 13 yd pass from Grooms,Nolan (Bosman,Jack kick) 12 plays, 97 yards, TOP 05:20
BUC 3, YAL 14
YAL - Grooms,Nolan 9 yd run (Bosman,Jack kick), 9 plays, 70 yards, TOP 03:51
BUC 9, YAL 14
BUC - Baker,Rushawn 15 yd run (), 8 plays, 55 yards, TOP 03:31
BUC 9, YAL 21
YAL - Grooms,Nolan 14 yd run (Bosman,Jack kick), 10 plays, 90 yards, TOP 04:36
BUC 9, YAL 27
YAL - Grooms,Nolan 21 yd run (), 3 plays, 28 yards, TOP 01:34
