Football Defeats Fordham 33-3 In Home Opener

The Central Connecticut State football team opened the home portion of its season with a 33-3 victory over visiting Fordham University. The Blue Devils improved to 1-1 on the year and the Rams dropped to 0-2.

The game started in monsoon conditions, as heavy rains swept Arute Field as kickoff occurred. That played a role in a combined 16 first-half fumbles, 10 from Fordham of which the Blue Devils recovered four.  All told, Fordham committed 12 fumbles and CCSU seven, with the Blue Devils recovering five and the Rams two.

The CCSU defense held Fordham to 188 yards of total offense on the day. The Blue Devils had nine sacks, 13 TFL's, four quarterback hurries, and three pass breakups. Twice the Blue Devils defense held on first and goal chances for Fordham inside the five-yard line in the second half, allowing just a field goal. The Rams finished with 47 yards of rushing.

The Blue Devils begin the Northeast Conference schedule next weekend traveling to Saint Francis U. The game is set for 12:00 pm.

GAME INFORMATION

Score:  CCSU 33, Fordham 3
Records: CCSU (1-1), Fordham (0-2)
Location:  Arute Field | New Britain, CT

KEY MOMENTS

• Vince Thomas recovered a bad snap on a Fordham punt in the end zone, 3:11 into the second quarter, for the first points and a 7-0 advantage
• Eliah Howard capped a 51-yard drive with a 23-yard touchdown run, to give the Blue Devils the 14-0 advantage
• Another snap over the head of a Fordham quarterback resulted in a safety for CCSU and a 16-0 advantage with 1:15 to play in the first half
• Jack Barnum connected from 30 yards out as the half expired and CCSU took a 19-point advantage into the intermission
• The Fordham defense intercepted the Blue Devils on the opening drive of the second half, drove the ball to the five-yard line, and the CCSU defense held to force the Rams to settle for a field goal midway through the quarter
• After the defense forced a Fordham turnover on downs, Olson completed a pass to Sean O'Brien, for 62 yards to give Central the ball on the Fordham 18-yard line. On the next play, Olson dumped the ball to Donny Marcus who followed his blockers to the pylon for an 18-yard touchdown.
• Olson found Daniels with 42 seconds left in the third quarter, for a 32-yard touchdown strike and extended the lead to 33-3 after the Barnum PAT
• The Rams nearly found the end zone at the start of the final period when Julius Loughridge went 55-yards to the one-yard line, where Davone Walden, Jr, pushed him out. That effort saved a touchdown, and the defense held, forcing a Rams turnover on downs to preserve the 33-3 advantage

NUMBER TO KNOW

3 – Consecutive wins over Fordham and consecutive non-conference home wins under Adam Lechtenberg

NOTES

• Seven different players recorded at least half a sack for CCSU, with 2.0 apiece from Dan Toatley and Jalen Howard
• The Blue Devils offensive line did not allow a sack on the night
• Kimal Clark finished with a game-high 13 tackles, six of them solo stops
• Malachai Wright recorded 3.5 TFL's on the evening, to go along with seven total stops
• Elijah Howard carried the ball 19 times for the Blue Devils, finishing with 50 yards on the ground to go along with 28 yards on three catches
• Olson completed 15-31 passing, to seven different receivers, for 223 passing yards and two touchdowns
• Donny Marcus and Eli Daniels had touchdown receptions for CCSU
• Thomas had two fumble recoveries and a pass breakup, to go along with his touchdown and three tackles
• Christopher Jean had two fumble recoveries for Central as well as two tackles and a PBU