Mack steps up big in the Jumbo backfield

Going into Saturday's game against Amherst, it was easy to wonder whether the Tufts football team would be able to move the ball on the ground against the Lord Jeffs. The Amherst defense was holding teams to just 76 yards rushing per game, and the Tufts backfield had been unsettled by multiple injuries.

Senior Tim Mack, a converted wide receiver starting at running back for just the second time, served notice that the Jumbos can run the ball against anybody in Saturday's 24-17 overtime win. Mack gained 138 yards on 32 carries and scored two touchdowns, including the score that put Tufts ahead for good in overtime.

"It feels great. It's all about pride," said Mack after the game. "Obviously it's not going to be easy for us to win the league, but anything can happen. We were just concentrating on getting the W."

The Tufts offensive line had a great game opening up holes for Mack. Senior fullback Adam Wylie, who became the starter earlier this year because of injury, had another great game. Offensive coordinator Mike Daly recognized his contributions before the game, and Wylie was able to come through with his second straight outstanding effort.

"The O-line did a tremendous job," Mack said. "I always say that anybody can run with holes that big."

While there is some truth to Mack's observation, there isn't likely to be anyone else doing much running anytime soon after the way he's played the past two weeks. His performance against Amherst followed a game against Williams in which he gained 114 yards on 22 carries.

Mack also had six catches for 27 yards, and he lined up at his normal position of WR on several plays during the game. He will likely continue to see time there, despite his success as running back, as the Jumbos try to reintroduce junior Steve Cincotta into the offense. Cincotta started the year as the team's primary running back and was running well before he injured his ankle in the third game of the season.

After the game Mack said that he wouldn't mind moving back to receiver. "It doesn't really matter to me where I play, I just want to get my hands on the ball," he said.

With the way he has been playing, it's likely the Jumbos are going to get the ball to Mack as much as possible.



Tufts Defense

The Tufts defensive players went into the Amherst game feeling like they had something to prove after two straight sub-par performances in losses to Trinity and Williams. With a dominating performance against one of the best offenses in the NESCAC, the D redeemed itself.

The Amherst offensive attack features two productive running backs in Fletcher Ladd and Matt Monteith, and one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the league, Marsh Moseley. Tufts was able to contain Ladd, the league's leading rusher, and shut down Monteith and Moseley. Monteith gained just 17 yards on 6 carries and Moseley threw for just 51 yards and was picked off twice by the Jumbos.

Tufts defensive coordinator John Walsh was impressed by the way his team handled Ladd, who gained 94 yards on 23 carries.

"Anytime you hold a back like that under 100 yards, you've done a good job," Walsh said. "He's a kid who gets a lot of yards after contact, but we did a decent job tackling and surrounding him. That's how you contain great backs, by swarming them. We consistently had lots of brown jerseys around him."

Walsh was very pleased with the all-around effort of the defense, which held an Amherst offense that he described as "hard to contain" to just 201 yards. The Lord Jeffs had been averaging nearly 434 yards of total offense per game on the season.

"Our kids battled. They fought hard in tough situations and showed a lot of character," Walsh said. "It was a great team defensive effort. It was one of the first games that I though we played consistently throughout the whole game."

Although Walsh emphasized that it was a complete team effort, he singled out the defensive line as playing "a phenomenal game". In particular Walsh mentioned senior Matt Keller, who led the Jumbos with 11 tackles and controlled the line of scrimmage for the entire game.

This dominating defensive performance showed the kind of game that Tufts is capable of playing. The Jumbo defense is one of the most talented in the league and when it plays consistently, it is very hard to move the ball against.



Tufts Passing Game

It is generally acknowledged by the Tufts players and coaches that the running game is the team's bread and butter. But lost in this week's dominating performance by Mack was the fact that the Jumbos gained more yards through the air than on the ground. This was thanks to tremendous games from junior quarterback Jason Casey and senior wide receiver Kevin Holland.

Casey completed 23 of 36 passes for 227 yards, with Holland catching seven of those balls for 121 yards. The two also hooked up for a touchdown in the second quarter, a 29-yard pass that put Tufts ahead 14-7 at the half. In the fourth quarter and overtime, when Tufts had to move the ball quickly, the passing game was particularly sharp.

Casey, who has been splitting time with fellow junior Casey D'Annolfo but played the whole game against Amherst, had completed less than 50 percent of his passes going into the game, and had been intercepted three times. However, against Amherst Casey didn't throw any interceptions and completed 64 percent of his passes.

The passing game gave Tufts its most balanced offensive performance of the year. That balance needs to carry through the remaining two games for Tufts to repeat its success against Amherst."