David Estevez – Nothing But NESCAC

Last But Not Least: Weekend Preview 11/9

Bates (1-7) @ Hamilton (4-4), 12:00pm, Clinton, New York

Saturday will be a huge day in Clinton as the Continentals have a chance to finish with a winning record for the first time since the NESCAC football records begin in 2000. Hamilton fought valiantly last weekend against Middlebury, allowing just two scores to one of the conference’s most potent offences. The game was neck and neck throughout but Middlebury took a 14-7 lead by the end of the 1st quarter and rode that to the final whistle. Despite this tough loss, the way that Hamilton has separated themselves from the CBB teams, as well as beating more historically successful programs like Amherst and Tufts, has been extremely impressive. The Continentals have the opportunity to display that separation even more this weekend as they invite a 1-7 Bobcat’s team to upstate New York. Coming into the weekend Hamilton’s Senior RB David Kagan ’20 is tied for 2nd in the NESCAC with 8 rushing TDs, sitting just one short of the leader. Against a Bates defense who gives up over 30 points a game, it looks very possible that Kagan could finish the season leading the conference. While the narrative looks good for Hamilton, nothing is a given.

Bates enters this weekend on a high note after taking their first win of the season away from rival Bowdoin. For the first time this season the Bobcat defense dazzled, allowing only 5 points to Bowdoin while putting up a 30 spot on them. QB Brendan Costa ’21 had his season-high with 3 touchdown passes, with 2 of those going to WR Jackson Hayes ’22, his only 2 catches on the day. While Bates would certainly love to finish the season strong on a second win, they will also be watching the Colby vs. Bates game with keen interest as a Colby loss means a share of the CBB crown for all 3 teams. Hamilton will be a whole different animal from the Polar Bear defense that Bates faced last week, and that may be a rude awakening for them. Against Colby the Continentals were able to pick off Matt Hersch 3 times, and the task will not be any easier for Brendan Costa. This is not the Continental squad of the past and Bates will have to figure out how to adjust to that this weekend.

Picks:
HC: Hamilton 31, Bates 21
SS: Hamilton 38, Bates 23
CC: Hamilton 31, Bates 20
RM: Hamilton 31, Bates 23
MK: Hamilton 24, Bates 14

Writers’ Pick: Hamilton

Amherst (4-4) @ Williams (6-2), 12:00pm, Williamstown, Mass

Coming into the final week of the season Williams finds themselves unlucky to be eliminated from championship contention after a tough 27-21 loss at Wesleyan last weekend. The Ephs were able to bring a one score lead into the final minute of the 4th quarter but allowed a rushing TD with just 17 seconds remaining to force OT. Williams got the ball to start OT but a quick turnover on downs turned into a loss immediately as they allowed a Wesleyan score on their first offensive play of OT. Had that gone differently Williams would be sitting in 2nd instead of Wesleyan. For now though, the Ephs have the opportunity to improve their record to 7-2 and finish strong at home on senior day. Bobby Maimaron ’21 continues to lead the conference in touchdown passes with an insane 20:2 TD to INT ratio. These stats are possible only because of the help of WR Frank Stola ’21, who is 2nd in the conference in receiving yards/game (96) and conference-leader in receiving touchdowns with 12. This dynamic duo have been putting up huge numbers all season long and I wouldn’t expect it to slow down for their last home game of this campaign.

Amherst had a tough time last weekend as they hosted the Bantams, as they were able to rack up over 300 yards of total offense but that only translated to one score. Turnovers killed the Mammoths in the first half, with their first two drives ending in an interception and a fumble. They were able to reach the back of the end zone once in the first half, a 27 yard touchdown pass from Ollie Eberth ’20 to James O’Regan ’20, but that would be their only score as their second half drives ended in an unsuccessful combo of punts and turnover on downs. Their offense will certainly need to liven up this weekend if it wants a chance to compete with the Ephs, who average nearly 30 points a game. Eberth has been a solid quarterback this year but does not really separate himself as a top talent in the way that Trinity’s Seamus Lambert ’22 does with his efficiency or even as Bobby Maimaron ’21 does with his ability to find the back of the endzone. This team has played middle-of-the-pack football all year and that is evident in their record. It will take far more than business as usual for the Mammoths to come out on top and on Saturday we will see if Amherst is up for the challenge.

Picks:
HC: Williams 34, Amherst 17
SS: Williams 31, Amherst 10
CC: Williams 31, Amherst 17
RM: Williams 27, Amherst 10
MK: Williams 24, Amherst 13

Writers’ Pick: Williams

Wesleyan (7-1) @ Trinity (5-3), 12:00pm, Hartford, Conn

The Cardinals pulled out a shocker last weekend as a series of insane plays propelled Wesleyan past Williams to a 7-1 record and places them in a comfortable 2nd place position. Big plays were the name of the game and David Estevez ’22 was the name of the guy making the plays as he threw for a 52 yard touchdown pass, returned a kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown, rushed for a 2 yard touchdown to tie the game in the last seconds of the 4th quarter and finally rushed for a 25 yard touchdown with his first touch of the ball in overtime to win the game. It was a day to have a day for Estevez as he must’ve had a very sore back on Sunday. While the NESCAC crown is still out of reach, the Cardinals can aim to end the season on a high note by going into Hartford and handing the Bantams their first 4-loss season since 2001.

It has been an up and down season for Trinity as they have shown us that they simply are not the same dominant Bantam squad of the past few seasons. A big loss to Williams must’ve been a low point for the Bantams, as they had not had their score nearly doubled in quite some time. QB Seamus Lambert ’22 continues to be an extremely bright spot for this team, leading the conference in completion percentage (63.1%), passing yards (1904), yards per attempt (11.3) and QB efficiency rating which is an insane 182.2. He is a level above most other quarterbacks in the NESCAC and that is what has kept them competitive this season but the team as a whole does not have the ridiculous depth that allowed them to dominate as they have in the past. This game will be a statement from Trinity as 6-3 looks very different from 5-4, especially if you are a prospective student-athlete. Is this a rebuilding year for the Bantams or simply a few unfortunate losses? It will be easier to answer that question on Sunday.

HC: Trinity 23, Wesleyan 21
SS: Trinity 28, Wesleyan 24
CC: Wesleyan 27, Trinity 20
RM: Trinity 20, Wesleyan 13
MK: Trinity 28, Wesleyan 20

Writers’ Pick: Trinity

Middlebury (8-0) @ Tufts (4-4), 12:00pm, Medford, Mass

The Panthers have already clinched this year’s title, but they have the opportunity to go out in style this weekend as they seek their first undefeated season in program history. Last week they held off a pesky Hamilton team in a 14-7 defensive battle for their final homestand. Midd’s pass rush continued to impress as their 4 sacks last weekend maintained their conference lead with 23 on the season. RB Alex Maldjian ’23 had yet another breakout game to lead the Panthers to victory, rushing for a season-high 145 yards and 2 touchdowns on a whopping 35 carries. Maldijan has been the workhorse that has propelled the Middlebury offense thus far, leading the conference in carries (177), rushing yards (769) and rushing touchdowns (9). QB Will Jernigan ’21 and his receiving core have helped take the pressure off of Maldijan, allowing him to put up these outstanding statistics. Along with having a defense that has been nothing if not consistent this season, the stage is all set for Middlebury to complete the perfect season and a Jumbo squad who has certainly seen better days may be their final victim.

This season has been up and down for Tufts but overall falls far below the standard that Jumbos fans are used to seeing. A loss to Hamilton must have been a real sting to the ego a few weeks ago but Tufts was able to save face and cruise to victory against a Colby team that simply wasn’t up to the challenge. RB Mike Pedrini ’21 showed signs of life in the first drive of the game, cutting through the Colby defense like butter for the first 70 yards of the game and a touchdown. The offensive attacked cooled off for the rest of the first half, with the exception of a 100 yard kickoff return, but the Mule offense was nowhere to be seen either. The second half was all about the passing game as Jacob Carroll ’20 and Frank Roche ’20 found the back of the end zone on 3 different occasions to give Tufts a comfortable victory. This storyline is much more reminiscent of Tufts teams of the past and should give Jumbo fans hope that there are great pieces to build on for the future. For now though Tufts faces their toughest challenge to date and it seems unlikely, based on their inconsistency, that they will rise up to it.

HC: Middlebury 29, Tufts 17
SS: Middlebury 24, Tufts 13
CC: Middlebury 35, Tufts 20
RM: Middlebury 24, Tufts 14
MK: Middlebury 20, Tufts 14

Writers’ Pick: Middlebury

Colby (1-7) @ Bowdoin (0-8), 4:30pm, Brunswick, ME

It’s all on the line for Coach Cosgrove and the Mules this weekend as he looks to maintain his perfect CBB winning percentage. Last week was another tough one for Colby, getting run all over in the first half and then being torn up by QB Jacob Carroll ’20 and WR Frank Roche ’20 in the second half. A few forced fumbles and an impressive touchdown pass from QB Matt Hersch ’22 to former QB turned wide receiver Jack O’Brien ’20 were small victories but otherwise it was a game to put behind them before this weekend. The Mules have to go into this game with all the confidence in the world after seeing the way that Bates took care of the Polar Bears with ease. On paper, everything seems to be in their favor, but with CBB games the beauty is that you never know for sure.

It has been a tough season for Bowdoin and their woes continued last week as they were handed another lopsided loss by rival Bates. This game really went to show how far behind the rest of the NESCAC Bowdoin is compared to even the other CBB teams. Bates and Colby has both put up some respectable performances this season despite losing every game, with the exception of Colby over Bates, while Bates has shown lifelessness without fail. It is hard for me to believe that anything can change this narrative and that the Polar Bears can magically pull it together for this last game of the season. They have one more shot left at redemption this Saturday night, under the lights, at home, on senior day, against a CBB rival. If that does not give them enough to put up a fight than nothing will.

Picks:
HC: Colby 27, Bowdoin 13
SS: Colby 24, Bowdoin 10
CC: Colby 28, Bowdoin 10
RM: Colby 31, Bowdoin 10
MK: Colby 31, Bowdoin 7

Writers’ Pick: Colby

The Preseason is Over: Wesleyan vs. Tufts Game of the Week Preview

This week’s Game of the Week coverage features the Wesleyan Cardinals hosting the Tufts Jumbos in what is sure to be a season-defining matchup for both teams. For Wesleyan, their perfect 4-0 start to the season is taken with a grain of salt considering their victories have been against the likes of Hamilton, Colby, Bates and Bowdoin. It doesn’t help that the latter of the bunch was tied with the Cardinals until 3:52 remaining in the fourth quarter in what would have been the biggest upset of the season to date. Defeating Tufts would not be the loudest statement we’ve seen, but it would surely qualify as a step up in competition. For the Jumbos, last week’s 33-28 scare against the Bobcats exhibited (once again) some glaring concerns for a team that some thought of as a conference championship contender after their upset of Trinity. A win on the road against Wesleyan would help rejuvenate this squad and maybe spark a run in the latter remaining weeks.

Key #1 for Tufts: Start Fast

In its four games of the season, the Jumbos have scored a total of 25 points in the first half. Another first half performance that features single digit points will most certainly not cut it against a Wesleyan offense that’s averaging over 30 ppg. In order to set the stage for an upset, it is vital that Jacob Carroll ‘20 and company come out firing and put pressure on the Cardinals defense to make plays. Up until Saturday’s matchup with Bowdoin, Wesleyan had not trailed in 2019; once the Polar Bears took a 7-0 lead, the atmosphere changed and the Cardinals (at times) seemed to tighten up. Carroll has some really dynamic weapons at his disposal, most notably OJ Armstrong ‘21 (29 receptions for 232 yards and a TD) and Brendan Dolan ‘21 (12 receptions for 215 yards and two TD’s). The senior quarterback has to find a way to get his playmakers the ball and quickly, or else Coach Civetti could pull the string and go with true freshman Trevon Woodson ‘23.

Key #2 for Tufts: Contain Ashton Scott

This one is a real simple concept, and yet this Jumbos’ defense has had an extremely hard time containing dual-threat quarterbacks as of late. Last week, Bates quarterback Brendan Costa ‘21 came on in the second quarter and gave Tufts fits, throwing for 200 yards and rushing for another 62 on just eight carries. Costa played well, but it’s hard to ignore the fact that the junior had never passed for more than 200 yards in a single game in his career until Saturday. The fact that he did so in three quarters…is alarming to say the least. The defense we saw on opening day against Trinity is long gone, and since that 14-8 victory, Tufts is allowing close to 33 and 408 yards per game. Along with Costa, Bobby Maimaron ‘21 and Ollie Eberth ‘20 have combined to rush for 73 yards per game against Tufts, and each of those quarterbacks averaged at least 5.6 yards per carry. Given the fact that Scott leads the Cardinals in rushing attempts, the defense should expect a similar offensive scheme coming their way.

Key #1 for Wesleyan: Let Scott Loose

With four games under his belt as a starting quarterback in the ‘CAC, Scott gets his first crack at a team that isn’t one of the historical bottom dwellers. While not the football juggernaut we thought this Jumbos team could become after upsetting the Bantams, they have more than enough talent to frustrate the Cardinals and pull off the upset. While the defense hasn’t been spectacular as of late, Tufts has the capability to shut down the run game and force teams to beat them through the air. I believe Coach DiCenzo will allow Scott the opportunity to throw the ball the more after being ultra conservative early on in the season. Other than Williams, no other team has attempted fewer than 100 passes, and you have to consider that because Williams ran out to essentially insurmountable leads against Bowdoin and Tufts, they had the luxury of just running out the clock in the second half. Scott only attempted 16 passes last week against Bowdoin despite completing 11 of those attempts, and you would have to think Tufts knows that Wesleyan relies heavily on their ground game; I wouldn’t be surprised to see Scott attempt 30+ passes, but in a manner that allows the underclassman to get the ball out quickly and efficiently.

Key #2 for Wesleyan: Give Scott a #2 Target

If Scott is going to throw the ball more than usual on Saturday, then someone from this young wide receiver department needs to step up. Matthew Simco ‘22 (14 receptions for 225 yards and two scores) is one of many big play threats on this Cardinals’ offense, but none of the remaining pass catchers have registered double digit receptions. Dario Highsmith ‘20 showed some life and caught two passes for 42 yards and a touchdown last week against Bowdoin, so maybe the only senior out of wide receiver group can build off last week’s successful showing; however, the fact remains that backup running back Charlie McPhee ‘22 is the team’s third leading receiver with a paltry six receptions. Expect offensive coordinator Eric Ludwig to throw the kitchen sink at Tufts, utilizing various routes to get his wide receivers open and instill some confidence in a group that Scott needs to be at their best on Saturday.

Everything Else:

I think Saturday’s near epic collapse against the Bobcats sent a message to the Jumbos in the sense that this team is not strong enough as a collective unit to just waltz in against a conference opponent and play ok football en route to a win. It was a wake up call for sure, and I reckon this week of practice was geared towards getting the team refocused and ready to roll. I fully expect Tufts to come out to stack the box and force Scott to beat them with his arm, keeping this game close. When it’s all said and done, however, I just don’t think the Jumbos have enough offense to knock off the Cardinals. With all the focus on running backs Glenn Smith ‘21 and David Estevez ‘22 as well as Scott’s running ability, I believe Wesleyan will come out aggressively in the passing game and jump out to a lead early. They were clearly overlooking Bowdoin last week, and they’ll have their heads on straight in this one. Scott throws for a score while adding another on the ground, and the Cardinals wear down the Jumbos en route to a 5-0 start to the season.

Prediction: Wesleyan 27, Tufts 16

Can the Madness Continue?: Weekend Preview 9/21

The inaugural week of the NESCAC football season was one of the more unpredictable and exciting weeks of football we’ve had in quite some time. Trinity losing on the opening week? Check. Trinity somehow not scoring double digits? Check. Multiple first-time starting quarterbacks impressing in their debut? Yup. A game-winning drive with well under a minute on the clock to ensure an upset? You got it. Once the dust settled, behemoths Trinity and Williams found themselves in the cellar of the conference standings, essentially needing to win out in order to get back in the race for the NESCAC Championship. This week’s slate features some important matchups with title implications, and a few trap games in which relatively large favorites will have to hit the road for the first time this season. Let’s get right into it.

Amherst (1-0) @ Colby (0-1), 1 pm, Waterville, ME

It wasn’t pretty, but the Mammoths found a way to take down the Bobcats after trailing at the half for the second consecutive season. Quarterback Ollie Eberth ‘20 connected with his favorite target James O’Regan ‘20 (five receptions for 140 yards) early and often, including a pair of 40+ yard touchdown passes. Eberth’s passing efficiency was slightly alarming considering the senior completed less than fifty percent of his passes; nonetheless, he finished with 234 yards through the air and another 68 on the ground, which isn’t too shabby for an opener. Along with O’Regan, Luke Mallette ‘20 caught five passes for 49 yards and sophomore tailback Brandon Huff ‘22 emerged as a solid receiving option out of the backfield, snagging three receptions for 43 yards. On the defensive side, the Mammoths came out a little sluggish but locked things down in the second half, shutting out the Bobcats for the remainder of the game. Defensive backs Matt Durburow ‘21 and John Ballard ‘20 combined for 20 tackles, and Joe Kelly ‘21 brought the heat on the defensive line with seven tackles and a forced fumble. More impressively, sophomore linebackers Matt Schiano ‘22 and John Schiano ‘22 answered any questions about the uncertainty at the position entering the season, combining for 14 tackles (2.5 tackles for loss) and 1.5 sacks.

Many (including myself) expected Colby to compete with Wesleyan this past Saturday, but the defense looked like swiss cheese against a sophomore quarterback making his first career start. The Mules D’ allowed a porous 454 yards in their opener, and failed to generate any sort of pressure for the entirety of the game. The run defense was especially pitiful as the Cardinals gashed their way to 237 total rushing yards at around 6 yards per carry. That’s not good news considering the Mammoths averaged 4.5 yards per carry against a much more stout Bobcat defensive line. One bright spot for the Mules was senior running back Chris George ‘20; the first-year starter totaled 104 yards on 18 carries, and the Mules should make it a priority to feed their tailback in order to make life easier for quarterback Matt Hersch ‘22.

Amherst improves to 2-0 as they total over 225 yards on the ground and catch the Mules secondary napping with some deep shots to O’Regan.

MK: Amherst 28-7
RM: Amherst 34-17
SS: Amherst 28-17
HC: Amherst 34-21
CC: Amherst 31-13

Writers’ Pick: Amherst

Wesleyan @ Hamilton, 1pm, Clinton, NY

Not many people knew what to expect of sophomore quarterback Ashton Scott ‘22 considering he did not complete a pass his freshman season, but boy is he on every single NESCAC coaches’ radar after his performance against the Mules. Scott threw for 217 yards with three touchdowns and added 76 yards on the ground on just 13 rushing attempts, one of the best performances from the quarterback position of the week. A multitude of sophomores contributed in the offensive onslaught against Colby, including a pair of running backs in Charlie McPhee ‘22 (nine carries for 53 yards along with four receptions) and David Estevez ‘22 (ten carries for 54 yards). Ten different Cardinals caught a pass from Scott, led by Matthew Simco ‘22 (4 rec, 65 yds, TD) and Delando Clarke ‘21 (3 rec, 59 yds, 2 TD’s). Scott’s arm might be asked to do more this time around against Hamilton, who stifled Bowdoin’s ground game and held them to under 100 yards rushing. Linebacker Carmine Bruno ‘20 made plays all over the field with a whopping 15 tackles (two TFL), and defensive lineman James Ball ‘21 registered 1.5 sacks. Running back David Kagan ‘20 exploded against the Polar Bears to a tune of 195 yards and three touchdowns on just 20 carries, and I expect his workload to increase by 5-10 touches in order to slow the game down and wear down Wesleyan’s defensive front.

Quarterback Kenny Gray ‘20 had a disappointing performance having completed less than 50 percent of his passes this past weekend, but the senior avoided turning the ball over and found the endzone through the air and on the ground. He’ll have to improve upon that performance a significant bit in order to spring the upset against the visiting Cardinals, but with Scott entering his first road game as a starter, the Continentals will surely be confident they can pull out a victory. In the end, however, I think Wesleyan’s offense looked too explosive against Colby, and Hamilton’s offense putting up 37 points is more of an indictment of Bowdoin’s atrocious defense. Scott once again completes over 60% of his passes for 220 yards and two scores while adding 50+ yards on the ground, and the Cardinals pull away late to escape Clinton, New York with a win.

MK: Wesleyan 27-17
RM: Wesleyan 31-20
SS: Wesleyan 31-10
HC: Wesleyan 24-10
CC: Wesleyan 28-14

Writers’ Pick: Wesleyan

Bowdoin @ Trinity, 1pm, Hartford, CT

Seamus Lambert struggled under center in Week 1, but will he still be there in Week 2?

The second worst defensive performance of the NESCAC football slate in Week 1 belonged to the Polar Bears. Allowing 403 total yards against the Continentals is not what Coach Hammer wanted to see with a matchup against a very ticked-off Bantams squad, who lost their NESCAC opener for the first time since 1995. In the upset of the week (and possibly the 2019 season), Trinity failed to eclipse double digits and fell to Tufts 14-8. Neither quarterback found any success: Seamus Lambert ‘22 was 15/26 for a mere 111 yards (1 TD, 1 INT) before being benched in favor of last year’s opening-day starter Jordan Vazzano ‘20. Vazzano wasn’t much better, throwing an interception with less than three minutes left as the Bantams were marching deep into Jumbos territory. Despite their offense being stagnant for a majority of the game, Trinity had three chances in the fourth quarter to take the lead, and blew each opportunity. Brian Casagrande ‘22 penetrated the Jumbos’ offensive line and recorded a safety to make it a one score game with about 12 minutes remaining. After receiving the ball back inside the Jumbos 40 yard line, the Bantams were stifled on a 4th and 1 attempt and turned the ball over on downs. Vazzano’s interception would turn out to not be the game-clincher as the Trinity defense would force a quick stop in order to give the offense one more crack. After leading a drive all the way inside the Jumbos’ 10 yard line, Vazzano was sacked and the game-clock ran out of time.

The defense played extremely well in limiting the Jumbos to under 300 yards of total offense and will have no trouble shutting down Austin McCrum ‘21 and Nate Richam-Odoi ‘20. The latter needs to be a focal point this week for the Polar Bears, as he had a tough time sledding against the Continentals. McCrum was relied on to throw the ball way too much last week, and as we saw last season, the junior quarterback is prone to turnovers when his throwing volume increases. Moral victories will be all the Polar Bears are concerned with on Saturday.

MK: Trinity 34-0
RM: Trinity 48-7
SS: Trinity 35-6
HC: Trinity 45-13
CC: Trinity 42-6

Writers’ Pick: Trinity

Middlebury @ Bates, 1pm, Lewiston, ME

Middlebury’s 17-13 upset of Williams was dwarfed in significance due to the Tufts-Trinity game, but the Panthers’ defense made a statement to the rest of the NESCAC world that their squad is a serious contender for the Championship in 2019. They did exactly what was needed to be done in order to take down the Ephs: shut down Bobby Maimaron ‘21 and the running game. The Panthers limited the Ephs to just 101 yards on the ground, and Maimaron ran 16 times for a mere 39 yards. Linebacker Pete Huggins ‘21 was flying around the backfield constantly, totaling 13 tackles (five TFL’s) and two sacks. Linebacker Wyllis McKissick ‘21 recorded his first interception of his career as well as his first offensive touchdown on a two-yard reception from quarterback Will Jernigan ‘21. With no Pete Scibilia ‘21 for reasons unbeknownst to the Nothing But NESCAC writers (assuming some sort of injury), Jernigan did more than enough to will the offense to victory; trailing by 3 with just 30 seconds left, the junior scored on a five-yard quarterback keeper to propel the Panthers into the win column. Jernigan found success on the ground (21 carries for 82 yards and a touchdown), but freshman running back Alex Maldijan ‘23 struggled in Scibilia’s absence (21 carries, 49 yards).

Liam Spillane had a very solid Week 1 out of the Bobcat backfield

The same offensive and defensive formulas will be applied this week when the Panthers hit the road and take on the Bobcats. Junior quarterback Brendan Costa ‘21 is respected as more of a runner rather than a thrower; despite completing 23 of his 38 attempts, most of his completions were either of the wide receiver screen variety or swing passes. I thought Bates came out with a solid game plan against the Mammoths, but shortened offensive possessions due to turnovers forced the defense to take the field on short rest. Running back Jaason Lopez ‘21 had two of those fumbles in the second half in addition to one at the beginning of the game, but expect him to bounce back in a big way on Saturday, ready to atone for last week. Liam Spillane ‘21 (11 car for 55 yds, 2 rec for 10 yds and a TD) and Tyler Bridge ‘23 (4 car for 40 yards) round out the trio of tailbacks for the ‘Cats, and all three are capable of changing the game with a single carry.

Costa has weapons on the field if he can get the ball downfield to them. Christian Olivieri ‘22 (6 receptions for 58 yards) is turning into a reliable ball-catcher and tight end Isaiah Saunders ‘21 has the potential to catch 3-5 passes a game if he can consistently get open. Freshman Mohamed Diawara ‘23 is electric when in space and caught three passes against Amherst, but he showed his physicality with an absolutely thunderous crackback block in the second quarter. He’s an immediate impact player, and Bates will need him ready to go in order to pull off the upset.

It’s no surprise that Middlebury’s defensive plan will be to stack the box and keep an eye on Costa’s scrambling ability, forcing the junior to beat them with his arm. I really do think this is a trap game for the Panthers because of the volatility of their offense (specifically Jernigan), but I just can’t pull the trigger. Middlebury’s defense will once again win them the game, but it won’t be easy.

MK: Middlebury 20-10
RM: Middlebury 24-20
SS: Middlebury 24-10
HC: Middlebury 35-24
CC: Bates 27-21

Writers’ Pick: Middlebury

Tufts @ Williams, 1:30pm, Williamstown, MA

I’ll keep this one short because it’s our Game of the Week, but no one could have predicted Tufts to knock off the three-time defending champions in Week 1. What an awesome feeling that must have been for first-year starter in senior Jacob Carroll, who waited his turn behind Ryan McDonald and finally got his chance on the big stage. Tufts has everything going for them heading into Williamstown, but my gut tells me the high from beating Trinity won’t last past Saturday. After stumbling on their own feet against Middlebury, Williams knows this game is a must win. Starting the season 0-2 is essentially a death sentence, so expect Maimaron, Frank Stola and co. to set the tone early and grind out some yards against a solid Jumbos defensive front.

Also shoutout to OJ Armstrong for the Jumbos, Go Raiders*

MK: Williams 20-13
RM: Williams 23-17
SS: Tufts 17-7
HC: Williams 30-24
CC: Williams 24-16

Writers’ Pick: Williams