Although endless winds and rain battered Zimman Field Saturday afternoon, the football team's storm on the field served as the focus for the Homecoming game. The Jumbos, powered by 365 yards of total offense and a lockdown defense, steamrolled Bates by a final score of 34-7.
Tufts continued its dominance over the Bobcats -- the Jumbos have not lost to Bates since 1985 -- with the aid of two crucial touchdowns in the first two quarters, catapulting the Jumbos to a 27-point cushion at halftime. This margin was more than enough for coach Bill Samko's squad to cruise by a thoroughly overmatched Bates team.
With 38 seconds left in the first quarter, senior running back Will Forde found a hole in the left side of the Tufts line and turned on the afterburners, bursting 60 yards for his only score of the day. Forde, who recorded his first career hundred-yard rushing game in last week's 20-14 win over Wesleyan, reached the century mark on 12 carries in the first half alone against Bates. The senior finished with 116 yards on 19 carries, for an average of 6.1 yards per carry.
Junior quarterback Anthony Fucillo completed 69 percent of his passes and hurled for 195 yards and two scores, both of which came in the first half, to lead Tufts in his first Homecoming victory.
"Getting this win was extra special for me," Fucillo said. "It's easy to make the plays when everyone around you does everything right. The offensive line did an excellent job."
Like Forde, Fucillo's knack for the big play allowed Tufts to surge ahead early, quelling any hope Bates had at recording a Homecoming upset. With 8:01 left in the second quarter, Fucillo placed a pass perfectly over the shoulder of senior wide receiver Stephen Black, who reeled it in and scampered the remaining 71 yards to the end zone.
Black caught two passes for 108 yards on the afternoon, while fellow senior David Halas hauled in four passes for 48 yards, including an 18-yard reception for the first score of the game. Halas' 12-yard catch earlier in the drive, followed by a 10-yard rush from Fucillo, set up Tufts' opening touchdown.
Although the Jumbos struggled at the beginning of the game -- their first two drives resulted in a three-and-out and a turnover on downs -- Halas' score marked the start of the offensive flood for Tufts. Forde, who had just seven carries for 28 yards to start the game, sprinted 60 yards to the end zone on the next Jumbos possession.
The consistency of Tufts' backfield has been a cornerstone for the team so far, totaling 424 yards on the ground through two games behind the play of Forde, junior running back Darren Ferguson and senior full back Kevin Anderson, who recorded Tufts' last touchdown and the first of his career on a one-yard plow in the fourth quarter.
Anderson's score was the result of a lengthy 16-play, 85-yard drive, capped off by his plunge into the end zone. The Jumbos' ability to wear down the Bates defense through their potent running attack proved to be a difference-maker, as five Tufts players carried the ball on the drive.
"The Tufts running attack is as good as any in this league," Bobcats coach Mark Harriman said. "Forde and Anderson and everyone else [make] a tough combination that is hard to stop. Tufts is a very good team, very balanced and very fast. They were certainly the more physical team on the field today."
The combination of speed and balance ultimately allowed Tufts to impose their will on the Bates defense. At halftime alone, the Jumbos totaled 124 yards on the ground and 168 through the air, aided by the big plays of the day. But it was a stingy defense, holding Bates to 167 yards of total offense on the day that best demonstrated the stability of the Tufts team.
Not to be outdone by his offensive counterparts, junior defensive back Tom Tassinari grabbed Bates quarterback Ryan Katon's pass out of the air with a minute left in the second quarter. Weaving in and out of the Bates offense, he found pay-dirt 48 yards later, diving for the pylon with an outstretched arm for the score. Just 10 seconds later, junior linebacker Alex Perry intercepted a last-ditch effort by Katon to score before the half.
"Once I intercepted the ball, I just looked for the fastest way through the Bates defense," Tassinari said. "I had great blocks from [junior defensive back Andrew] Elfman the whole way. As a whole, we shut them down today."
"Our defense came up big today; everything seemed to just click," Perry said. "On the interception, I was just trying to prevent a big play. Getting a pick is always great, but doing it in a Homecoming game is even more special."
Tufts held Bates to just 65 passing yards, nine first downs and a 29 percent third-down conversion rate. The first six drives for the Bobcats resulted in punts, four of which were three-and-outs.
Tufts was not without its troubles, however, as several mistakes on special teams led to promising field position for Bates. The Bobcats blocked a punt in the third quarter, and an errant snap on a punt in the fourth quarter led to their only score of the afternoon, a one-yard rush by senior Ryan Mullin in time against Tufts' second unit.
Despite the unbalanced final outcome, Samko believes there is plenty of room for improvement before next week's contest against Bowdoin.
"I think we played alright today -- certainly not great," Samko said. "We made big plays and did what we had to do. I told the boys to enjoy it tonight, but come Monday we have to move on, keep our focus and practice well to get ready for next week."
With the win, Tufts improved to 2-0 on the season and will hit the road next week to face the 0-2 Polar Bears. A game with big implications, next week's showdown could set the Jumbos up for an Oct. 11 battle against Trinity for early season supremacy in the NESCAC.
"For us now, we just have to keep healthy and stay the course," Samko said. "As a team, we are outstanding. We play well together, help each other out, we just get it. But in this league, when we can carry only 75 guys, staying healthy is the most important thing."
