.png&width=24&type=webp)
Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
Colgate
Players Mentioned
No. 22 Football Rallies For Overtime Thriller At Colgate, Stays Perfect In '06
October 09, 2006 | Football
HAMILTON,
A missed Colgate field goal on the final play of regulation forced overtime, and
“At first, I thought it was a yard and a half,” Hughes said, “but Terrell told me it was only inches. I looked him in the eye as he promised me he would pick up the first down.
Terrell did pick it up, then hit Rob Toresco on a rollout pass to the 5-yard-line. Terrell kept on an option to pick up the first down, then called his own number on a keeper. He dragged one Colgate defender into the end zone with him, and the PAT by Connor Louden gave
Colgate came right back and scored in two plays. A swing pass to Jordan Scott scored from 26 yards out, and this time it was Colgate head coach Dick Biddle forced to make a decision. He sent out his offense to go for two and called a quarterback keeper of his own. Splitting most of his skill players out right, quarterback Mike Saraceno ran a draw play directly into the arms of Methvin, who stood him up on the spot to end the game.
“The coaches talk about staying home,” Methvin said. “I was just doing my job on that play. Anytime somebody goes for a two-point conversion, we see that as a challenge, and we were ready for anything.”
Princeton showed toughness and character again by overcoming its own miscues, especially turnovers and penalties, to gain the win. Terrell threw for a career-best 293 yards to move into 10th place on the all-time
R.C. Lagomarsino led the rushing attack with 39 yards. Although he had a pair of fumbles, he also had key runs at crucial times that helped the offense stay in flow. Toresco ran the ball seven times for 32 yards and scored on a 1-yard run in the third quarter.
The defense, which allowed only two of 14 third-down conversions to Colgate, was led by Tim Boardman's 12 tackles, including six solo stops. Brig
The opening of the game was not ideal for
Colgate got into the end zone anyway. Following an option run by Jordan Scott to the 1-yard-line, quarterback Mike Saraceno called his own number and scored on a bootleg to the right side. The five-play, 25-yard scoring drive gave Colgate a quick lead for the second straight season; in the 2005 rain-soaked battle at Princeton Stadium, the Raiders scored 13 points in three minutes and never trailed in a 16-10 win.
Princeton's offensive possessions resulted in punts the rest of the first quarter. Penalties and misplayed shotgun snaps hurt the Tigers throughout the quarter, but they were able to gain enough yards to get even in the field position battle. Sophomore Ryan Coyle took over the punting duties Saturday after three-time All-Ivy punter Colin McDonough was injured during the week of practice.
Freshman Mark Paski helped the Tigers avoid disaster on the final play of the first quarter. A tackle by Nate Johnson forced a Terrell fumble, which rolled back to the
Lagomarsino took the first handoff of the next drive 33 yards to the Colgate 47-yard-line, and Terrell followed with a 14-yard strike to Toresco. Running a no-huddle offense, Terrell found Circle directly down the middle of the field for a 33-yard score. The scoring drive went 80 yards in three plays and took 57 seconds off the clock.
Following a kickoff eight yards into the end zone by freshman Matt Lichtenstein, the defense built on the momentum with a quick 3-and-out. Consecutive tackles for loss by Jon Stem and Jake Marshall set the tone on the first two plays, and a screen pass to Scott was well short of the first down. Terrell quickly put the offense back in motion, hitting Brigham on an out pattern and then finding Circle on a similar seam pattern to the Colgate 17-yard-line. The Raiders held there, but Louden booted a 33-yard field goal to put
Scott, the 2005 Patriot League Rookie of the Year, carried Colgate on its next possession with several positive rushing attempts, mostly through the middle or right side of the line. Rob Anderson made a key third-and-short stop at the 21-yard-line, but Saraceno got the first down on a keeper off the right side of the line. Scott gained four yards on the next two carries, and Saraceno put them in another 4th-and-inches spot with a keeper up the middle. Saraceno surged forward to the 1-yard-line. Scott finished the run-heavy drive by going off the left side of the line for the touchdown. A strong rush by Foran off the left side of the line forced Jacob Stein to push his kick to the outside left of the uprights, and
Colgate moved down the field on its first drive of the second half, but
A defensive stand gave
After another defensive stop, Lagomarsino got the Tiger offense in motion with a shifty move through the line for a first down. Terrell hit Circle again in the middle of the field to get inside the red zone, and Lagomarsino carried five yards to the Colgate 12-yard-line. Toresco needed two rushes to earn a 1st-and-goal at the 6-yard-line, but Colgate stripped Lagomarsino inside the 5-yard-line and recovered the ball at its own 17-yard-line.
The defense needed a stand on this critical momentum shift, and it was helped by an illegal block call against the Raiders that set Colgate up with 1st-and-22 on its own 20-yard-line. Stem rushed a third-down pass and forced a Raider punt from the 38-yard-line.
The
Brigham returned the ensuing kickoff to the 35-yard-line, and
A good kickoff return and 15-yard penalty gave Colgate the ball at the
Princeton will begin the heart of its Ivy League season next Friday night at 7 p.m. against the Brown Bears. The game will be televised live on ESPNU, and tickets are still available at the