Football Wins Overtime Thriller over RPI in ECAC North Atlantic Bowl
Framingham, Mass. – Senior safety Kevin Donahue (Norfolk, Mass.) came up with the tackle on fourth and goal from the eight in overtime en route to earning Most Outstanding Player honors as the Framingham State University football team defeated Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 42-36 in overtime in the 2014 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III North Atlantic Football Bowl Championship this afternoon at Bowditch Field.
With the win, the Rams finish the season at 10-1 having won nine straight games to close the season. The Rams last appeared in an ECAC Bowl game in 2010 when they defeated Norwich University in overtime. The Engineers see their season come to an end at 6-5.
RPI won the toss in overtime and elected to play defense first. Quarterback Matt Silva (Dracut, Mass.) completed a pass to junior Tevin Jones (Springfield, Mass.) for 12 yards and sophomore Bob Sivret (Auburn, Mass.) picked up 12 yards on three rushes putting the ball on the one yard line. Silva took over from there rushing in from a yard out for what proved to be the game-winning score. The Rams went for two, but Silva was tackled shy of the end zone giving the Rams a six point lead.
On the Engineers possession, junior Nick Schlatz rushed for 17 yards on the first play moving the ball down to the eight. Reggie Colas carried the ball on the next two plays for no gain and Tommy Morgan tossed an incomplete pass setting a fourth and goal from the eight. After each team called a timeout, Morgan completed a pass down the sideline to Colas, but Donahue came up from the secondary and made the tackle preserving the victory for the Rams.
Donahue, the 2014 MASCAC Defensive Player of the Year, led the Rams defense with 13 tackles including 11 solo stops with two for a loss and a forced fumble. Junior Matt Mangano (Winchester, Mass.) racked up 11 stops, all solo, while freshman Svenn Jacobson (Cumberland, ME) ended his rookie season with eight stops.
Senior Nick Borkowski led the Engineer defense with six stops, all solo, and two pass breakups, while junior Teague Florio chipped in with five, an interception and a fumble recovery. The Engineer defense forced four Rams turnovers including three recovered fumbles including one that was returned 64 yards for a touchdown by Philip Lanieri III that gave the Engineers their first lead of the day, 36-28, with 7:07 left in the game.
Silva finished the day 17-of-34 for 273 yards and four touchdowns including a 31 yard screen pass to Sivret that pulled the Rams back within two with just over three minutes remaining. Silva converted a pair of two point conversions on the day – one throwing and one rushing. Sophomore Jalen Green (Brockton, Mass.) was the Rams leading rusher with 162 yards on eight carries with a touchdown in just a half of work as he was limited by injury. Sivret rushed for 26 yards and made two catches for 41 yards and a score. Jones finished the game with five receptions for 90 yards with a pair of touchdowns, while junior Jared Gauthier (Dracut, Mass.) made four grabs for 96 yards with a touchdown.
Colas finished the game as the Engineers leading rusher and receiver. Colas rushed for 85 yards on 11 carries with a score and had four catches for 37 yards. Morgan completed 6-of-14 for 75 yards with a touchdown.
The Rams staked themselves a 14-0 lead with 12:26 left in the second after Silva tossed touchdown passes to Jones and Gauthier. Morgan cut the deficit in half for the Engineers when he scampered in from a yard out on third and goal. Two plays later, Green ripped off 72 yard touchdown run, but the extra point was blocked putting the Rams up 20-7 with 7:06 remaining before the half.
Morgan connected with Logan Gaddar on a 29 yard strike down the sideline cutting the deficit to 20-14. The Rams had a chance for more points before the half, but Silva was intercepted on the three yard line by Florio ending the threat.
The Rams fumbled on the opening possession of the second half giving RPI a short field. Colas capped the nine play, 35 yard drive with a four yard run. After a bad snap on the extra point, the game was tied at 20-20 with just under ten remaining in the third.
Silva and Jones would connect for the second time in the game, this one from 11 yards out, and connected on the two point try extending the lead to 28-20. Colas answered on the ensuing kickoff with a 90 yard touchdown return down the sideline. After the two point try failed, the Rams led by two heading into the final quarter.
Senior Andrew Franks gave the Engineers their first lead of the day when he knocked home a 26 yard field goal with just over 12 minutes remaining in the game. Lanieri extended the lead with his touchdown fumble return. Franks converted the extra point putting RPI ahead 36-28 with seven remaining. After a three and out from the Rams, Franks had a chance to make it a two possession game, but his kick from 45 yards out fell short.
On their next possession, the Rams covered72 yards in two plays to tie the game. Silva hit Gauthier down the middle for a 41 yard game and then connected with Sivret on a screen pass that went for 31 yards to pull the Rams within two. Silva converted the two point conversion with the quarterback keeper knotting the score at 36-36 with 3:09 on the clock. Both teams had their chances in the final three minutes of regulation, but neither team could find the end zone forcing overtime.
The Rams amassed 537 yards of offense in the game to 368 for the Engineers. RPI led in the running game with 293 yards on the ground to the Rams 264, but the Rams held the advantage through the air with 273 passing yards compared to 75 for RPI.