The Ithaca College football team shook off a string of offensive woes from the first few games to overwhelm the undefeated University of Rochester in a 24-0 victory on Oct.12 for its first home victory.
The Bombers came into the game looking to improve after a 16-7 loss to Hobart last week saw suboptimal offense from both squads. The trend continued in the first quarter against Rochester. The Bombers’ offense, looking to change things up, gave sophomore quarterback Matthew Parker the start, but his best drive of the quarter resulted in a missed field goal. The Yellowjackets, meanwhile, failed to even possess the ball in field goal range.
The Bombers defense stepped up to inspire their offense in the second quarter. While the Yellowjackets marched down the field into Bomber territory, senior lineman Owen O’Neill clawed the ball out of the grasp of senior quarterback Ryan Rose. The ball rolled toward the sideline, and senior linebacker Darren Brunner landed on the ball to give his Bombers another opportunity.
On Rochester’s next possession, first-year student linebacker Joe Spirra made a perfect read on Rose and picked the ball off near midfield. The Bomber defense continued to make the quarter a nightmare for the Yellowjackets as a lurking senior defensive back Tommy Moran, jumped in front of an out route for his first interception of the season and the third consecutive turnover for the Bombers’ defense.
Bombers head coach Michael Toerper commended his defense’s consistent standard of greatness, and the stability they’ve provided when the offense has struggled in the past.
“It’s all about how they prepare,” Toerper said. “They play together, most importantly, they play ‘11 as one,’ and with any type of defense, that’s what you look for.”
The offense, finally clicking with Parker in the driver’s seat, capitalized on its advantageous field position on the Yellowjackets’ 37-yard line. Senior running back Jalen Leonard-Osbourne ran the South Hill squad down to the seven-yard line, where senior kicker Derek Baldin chipped in a field goal to end the half 3-0 in favor of the Bombers.
After trading punts to open the third quarter, the Bombers’ defense kicked things into high gear. Parker fired the ball over the middle on a quick slant to sophomore wide receiver Nicholas Lang, who turned on the jets to make his way 68 yards down-field and into the end zone, untouched.
The long touchdown signaled a turnaround for the Bombers’ offense, which looked unrecognizable from the slow first half.
“We stuck with the game plan,” Toerper said. “We felt good about our adjustments as far as what we thought they were going to do. At the end of the day, it really just comes down to the guys up front and their willpower in pushing those guys back.”
On the other side of the ball, the offense was continuously haunted by a defense that was rapidly heating up. Sophomore lineman Carson Ciancuielli sacked Rose to ensure that the Yellowjackets remained scoreless.
The fourth quarter started with Leonard-Osbourne using a 25-yard rush to both score a touchdown and surpass 2,000 yards in his Ithaca career.
“[Leonard-Osbourne’s] always been incredibly talented, but his football IQ has gone through the roof over the years, as well as his emotional intelligence and his ability to take what the defense gives him and not try to press for big plays over and over again,” Toerper said. “I’m really proud of his effort and who he’s become as a man.”
With the Bombers up big, the defense continued to play with the motivation of a potential shutout. Rose and the Yellowjackets made their way to the goal line to put that idea in jeopardy, but senior defensive back Jake Connolly met graduate student running back Daniel Papantonis in the backfield to force a turnover on downs on the doorstep.
Bombers’ senior running back Jake Williams got his team out of their own end zone by breaking off a 69-yard run to flip the field. Leonard-Osbourne, not satisfied with the career milestone, started working towards 3,000 with a 28-yard rushing touchdown to finish the drive and ultimately the game.
The victory puts the Bombers at 2-3 on the season. They’ll have the opportunity to make it a winning streak when RPI comes to South Hill on Oct. 19 at 1 p.m.
