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Tigers use key performances from unheralded players to down Gettysburg GETTYSBURG, PA (September 13, 2008)–Expectations of the Tiger football team were both met and exceeded in Hampden-Sydney’s 45-40 victory over feisty Gettysburg College on Saturday afternoon. Hampden-Sydney fans have become rather accustomed to premier production from offensive stalwarts Corey Sedlar (Richmond, VA/Mills Godwin) and Josh Simpson (Richmond, VA/Mills Godwin). On Saturday at Musselman Stadium in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Sedlar turned in a mammoth performance, throwing for 424 yards and two touchdowns on 29-of-38 accuracy, while Simpson again was ultra effective with the ball in his grasp tallying 190 yards and four touchdowns on 36 carries in addition to corralling eight passes for 95 yards. Perhaps unexpected, but certainly not lost in the shuffle, were some clutch performances at key junctures by several Tiger role players. Down the stretch, the Tigers (2-0) needed three big plays from three lesser known members of their roster to hold off the Bullets (0-2). With Hampden-Sydney clinging to a 38-33 lead and needing a big play at its own 42-yard line with 7:53 remaining in the game, freshman wide out Kyle Vance (Onley, VA/Broadwater Academy) put the Tigers in prime position at the Bullets’ 11-yard line with a 47-yard, over-the-shoulder catch of a Sedlar bomb. Four plays later, the Tigers converted on fourth-and-one from the Gettysburg two-yard line when Sedlar faked to Simpson and found T.J. Morgan (Chesterfield, VA/Manchester) in the short flat. Morgan collected the Sedlar delivery and bullied his way into the end zone to extend Hampden-Sydney’s lead back to double digits, 45-33, with 4:45 remaining. On Gettysburg’s ensuing possession, junior safety Bill Doody (Fort Lauderdale, FL/Cardinal Gibbons) stepped in front of Bullets’ quarterback Matt Flynn’s toss down the right sideline for a critical interception, halting Gettysburg’s rebuttal at the Tiger 13-yard line. Those three plays exemplified the type of team effort utilized by the Tigers all afternoon, and were three big reasons that Hampden-Sydney now enters week three of the season unblemished. Hampden-Sydney appeared to be on their way to a rout in the early going, jumping out to a 14-0 lead with 14:35 to play in the first half courtesy of two short Simpson touchdown plunges. After Gettysburg closed within 14-7 following a Charles Curcio six-yard run with 10:38 to play, Sedlar committed his only mistake of the contest, throwing an errant swing pass in the direction of Simpson that was picked off by the Bullets’ John Dickerson and returned 43 yards for the tying score. Five minutes later, the Bullets used a page from Marty Favret’s playbook, perfectly executing a fake field goal that resulted in a 22-yard A.J. Perrotti touchdown reception from holder Billy Giannone, giving Gettysburg their only lead of the afternoon, 21-14. Hampden-Sydney regained possession of the football, trailing by seven, with 1:30 left before the half. Sedlar connected with Travis Wertz (Boyds, MD/Damascus) for 21 yards to the Tiger 44-yard line, then with Simpson for 23 yards several plays later to the Bullets’ 22 before capping the nine-play, 77-yard drive with an 11-yard TD toss to tight end Connor Oliver (Richmond, VA/Deep Run), knotting the score at 21 at half. The Tigers’ defense held Gettysburg on its first possession of the second half and Simpson added his third touchdown of the game by way of a one-yard rumble to put Hampden-Sydney back in front, 28-21, with 11:29 remaining in the third quarter. Gettysburg drew within one on a Jamel Matunga one-yard run three minutes later, but Hampden-Sydney responded with an impressive 12-play, 70 yard drive and took a 35-27 lead on Simpson's fourth and final touchdown jaunt of the contest, another one-yard plunge. A T.C. Stevens (Alton, VA/Halifax) 33-yard field goal extended the Hampden-Sydney advantage to 38-27 with 9:32 remaining in the fourth quarter, but Gettysburg answered quickly, going 60 yards in just five plays and 1:34 on its next possession, cutting the deficit to five, 38-33, following Flynn's nine-yard touchdown run. That set the stage for Hampden-Sydney's unsung heroics. Vance, who did not see action in Hampden-Sydney's opening week victory, came up huge when he outran single coverage and settled under Sedlar's pass on Hampden-Sydney's next possession, slowing down just enough to pull down the football and swing the momentum back into the Tigers' favor. Simpson tried unsuccessfully to reach the end zone on Hampden-Sydney's next three plays, and after a Gettysburg timeout before the fourth-and-one from the two, Morgan made his second reception of the game count in the pressure situation. Doody, who registered a team-high 11 tackles, read Flynn to perfection minutes later, ranging smoothly to his right and cradling the pass attempt to give Hampden-Sydney the all-important possession with 3:33 remaining and a 12-point lead. Hampden-Sydney amassed 643 yards of total offense and held a 5:08 advantage in time of possession. The explosive offensive performance was highlighted by the contributions of many, as 11 different Tigers registered at least one reception. Oliver hauled in four passes for 77 yards and that touchdown while junior Craig Warnement (Charlotte, NC/Charlotte Catholic) caught three balls for 61 yards. Defensively, Thomas Hovis (Richmond, VA/St. Christopher's) made seven stops in addition to a fumble recovery while Trevor Ikwild (Philomont, VA/Loudoun Valley) also notched seven tackles from his linebacker position. Flynn turned in a great performance for Gettysburg, completing 12-of-21 passes for 164 yards and rushing seven times for 59 yards and a touchdown. Mutunga led the way on the ground for the Bullets with 115 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries while Gavin Jablonski caught four passes for 76 yards. The Tigers will return to action in their home opener on Saturday, September 20 as they host the Monarchs of King's College. Kick-off is scheduled for 1 pm. Fans can tune into the live broadcast of Tiger football at 12:45 pm on 95.7 WFLO-FM or by accessing the live webcast at www.hsc.edu/athletics/football. www.hsc.edu/athletics |
