Football gears up for Homecoming against Bates

The statistics say this: Not since 1985 has a Bates football team defeated a team from Tufts. Last season, Bates was outscored by opponents 275-110, allowed 216 rushing yards per game, was out gained by opponents by over 1000 yards, and was on the losing end of seven of eight ballgames.

If games were played on paper, the Jumbos would have this Saturday's matchup against the Bobcats in the bag. But games are played on grass, and that's where coach Bill Samko likes to focus.

"I'm not a big believer in statistics," he said. "Statistics don't win ballgames."

But the statistics do tell the story of last season, when the football team traveled to Bates for the second game of the year, and decimated a severely outmatched Bobcats team by a score of 41-12.

The Jumbos thoroughly demolished the perennial NESCAC doormats last year, out gaining the Bobcats 437-256, and possessing the ball for nearly 11 more minutes. So dominant was Tufts' effort that it built up a 27-0 lead before Bates was able to get on the board with 3:27 remaining in the second quarter.

The victory improved Tufts' record to 2-0 on the season, and sent the team on its way to one of the school's best seasons in recent memory. Bates meanwhile, dropped to 0-2, and finished the season at 1-7.

This Saturday Bates will no doubt be looking to exact a bit of revenge, as the Bobcats visit the Jumbos as part of Tufts' annual homecoming weekend

But if visions of last year's drubbing are dancing in the heads of any of this season's players, no one is showing it.

"We try to approach every game the same way," senior defensive back Evan Zupancic said. "Once we start underestimating our opponents, that's when they'll sneak up and beat us."

Bates looks to field a much improved team this year, returning 18 of 22 starters from last year's squad, including 11 seniors. Most notable of these seniors are tailback Sean Atkins and quarterback Kane Jankoski, both of whom ranked third in the NESCAC in rushing and passing, respectively. Jankoski threw for 1115 yards last season and ended the year with an efficiency rating of 106.5

Joining Jankoski on the Bobcats offense is junior wide receiver Owen Miehe, who was ranked in the top ten in the NESCAC among receivers last year.

Last week in its season opener, Bates was shut out by Amherst, but managed to hang with the Jeffs at 6-0 until the end of the third quarter. Despite the shutout, however, the Bobcats displayed flashes of a solid offensive core. Against an Amherst defense that was ranked number one in the nation last year, allowing just 6.1 points per game, Jankoski threw for 188 yards and just one pick, and Miehe hauled in 11 catches for 99 yards.

With this offense, it appears that the Bobcats may be ready to climb out of their position as the conference cellar dwellers.

"They look pretty good, to be perfectly honest," Samko said. "They threw the ball extremely well last week, and it will definitely be a challenge."

To meet this challenge, Tufts will have to show the efficiency it displayed in the first half against Hamilton last weekend, when the offense scored on its first four drives. If the team plays like it did in the second half when it was plagued by poor execution and turnovers, the Jumbos could be in for a long afternoon.

"You have to play to what your capabilities are," Samko said. "I think sometimes when you get way ahead like that you start to play down to your opponents level. Whether or not that happens against Bates, we will find out on Saturday."

Indeed, the biggest challenge for the Jumbos in preparing for this weekend may be the mental aspect. With 16 consecutive victories over the Bobcats, the team has been focused on not getting over-confident.

"It's like coach has said a few times _ we need to overcome our attitudes," Zupancic said. "We can't go in expecting to win or thinking we're better, because that's how they'll sneak up on us."

If Samko has anything to say about it, all of his players will be just as fired up for Bates as they would be for rival Williams.

"The biggest game we play this year is Bates, because it's on Saturday," he said. "If you lose one, no matter who it's to, it still goes down as one (loss).