No matter how the game plays out, whether it's a shootout or a defensive struggle, the Tufts football team simply can't seem to come out on the winning end.
The Jumbos, who had scored just 13 points in their past three games — all losses — found themselves engaged in an unexpectedly high-scoring affair at Colby on Saturday, ultimately falling 34-31. The Mules scored 21 unanswered, second-half points to plunge Tufts to its fourth straight defeat.
"It won't be easy to forget," senior quad-captain and defensive lineman Dan Stebbins said. "It was a real heartbreaker because our offense played so well, but our defense wasn't able to step up and help them win the game."
Colby sophomore quarterback Nick Kmetz fired four touchdown passes to three different receivers in the second half, overcoming a 21-7 third-quarter deficit and baffling a Jumbos defense that, up until that point, had been relatively stingy.
Entering the game, Tufts' defense ranked fourth in the conference, allowing just 291.3 yards per game. But the Jumbos ceded 451 total yards to the Mules, including 307 in the second half.
Without senior quad-captain Tom Tassinari, who went down in last week's loss to Amherst, as well as senior cornerback Andrew Elfman, who hurt his ACL in the fourth quarter, the Jumbos' defense was shredded by big passing plays. Kmetz had 326 yards of total offense, including his four scoring passes, all of which went for over 25 yards.
"We do have talent on the team, and some guys came in and had to step up," Stebbins said. "Losing [Tassinari] and Elfman, it's not easy to lose them, but you just have to keep looking forward and can't dwell on who's hurt or not."
Yet Tufts' offense, which has struggled all year to find the end zone, had by far its most productive outing of its 2009 campaign. Junior running back Pat Bailey, ranked third in the NESCAC at 147.4 all-purpose yards per game, continued to be Tufts' sparkplug on offense. Bailey opened up the third quarter with an explosive 94-yard touchdown run to give the Jumbos a 21-7 lead and additionally had a four-yard scoring rush in the first half, finishing with 293 all-purpose yards.
"Bailey came up huge for us today," senior quarterback Tom McManama said. "He's definitely one of the toughest kids I've ever played with. He took a hit on a swing pass that I don't know [how] he got up from. He had some great runs all day."
McManama also had his most efficient outing Saturday, completing 24 of 29 passes to five different receivers while hurling two touchdowns. His four-yard scoring pass to senior fullback Noah Hatfield-Biondo capped off a lengthy, 15-play drive in the second quarter.
"We were able to run on them, able to pass on them, [and] the line played unbelievable," McManama said. "When everything's clicking, it's pretty nice. You're not usually in tough situations, so the burden isn't on you to make plays."
But despite the Jumbos' firepower, they were unable to clamp down on a surging Colby offense in the second half. The Mules, who have scored 84 points in their past three games after totaling just 92 all of last season, produced clock-eating drives in their comeback effort and had 10 more minutes of possession than Tufts. The Mules also converted on eight of 14 third-down opportunities.
"I don't think we anticipated it becoming a shootout," Stebbins said. "It's surprising that it ended up the way it did. Overall, I don't think we were very good on third down; they were just able to keep the drive alive, and over time, it wore us down."
Colby senior running back Dan Prunier opened up the scoring with a one-yard run in the first quarter, but the Mules were held in check the next five possessions, until Kmetz found junior wideout Matt Hellinger for a 26-yard score.
Kmetz replicated the effort minutes later, hooking up with junior tight end Nat Carson from the same distance as before. After a Jumbos' three-and-out, Kmetz found junior Patrick Burns in the back of the end zone from 29 yards out, giving Colby a six-point edge and a lead it would never relinquish.
On the ensuing drive, Tufts sophomore kicker Adam Auerbach, who had missed field goals on consecutive first-half drives from 32 and 44 yards, struck one through the uprights from 25 yards out to bring Tufts within three.
Kmetz and McManama traded touchdown passes, but it turned out to be too little too late for Tufts, as an 11-yard third down rush by Prunier ultimately sealed the win for Colby.
Defensively for the Jumbos, sophomore Donnie Simmons contributed two sacks and a forced fumble, while junior Matt Murray registered 10 tackles.
The loss, Tufts' fourth straight, sends the Jumbos to 2-5 on the year, though four of their five defeats have been by 10 points or fewer. Tufts will now turn its attention to 4-3 Middlebury in its season finale, as the Panthers' high-powered passing attack, led by junior Donald McKillop and his 362-yards-per-game arm, rolls into Medford on Saturday.
Facing the concluding home game of a disappointing campaign, the Jumbos choose to focus on the imminent task at hand rather than reflect on what could have been in prior contests.
"We're going to try to get everyone's mind focused and just forget about everything else," Stebbins said. "The seniors have one more game left in their collegiate career, so we're going to try and end it with a win."
"This is probably my last game ever, so I'm not really thinking about anything else," McManama said. "I think the younger guys are going to play for the older guys, and I think it's going to be a real emotional game for a lot of people. Everyone knows that."
