Oct. 3, 2015
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EASTON, Pa. -- Lafayette took advantage of a fumble on the opening kickoff and DeSean Brown ran it in for six 15 seconds into the contest, but that was all of the offense the Leopards mustered in a 35-7 defeat at the hands of No. 13/15 Fordham on Saturday night at Fisher Stadium.
Following that opening score, the Rams rattled off 35 unanswered points to push the Leopards to 0-1 in Patriot League play and 1-4 on the year . The loss marks the second consecutive year Fordham has defeated Lafayette in both teams' Patriot League opener, knocking off the Maroon and White by a 42-18 margin last fall.
Fordham (4-1, 1-0) tailback Chase Edmonds provided all of the offense the Rams needed, carrying 30 times for 234 yards and two touchdowns. QB Kevin Anderson threw for two more scores, completing 10-of-20 for 149 yards. The Leopard offense struggled to get the run game going, held to 62 yards, 49 of those on 11 carries by Brown.
Off the opening kickoff, Fordham's Jihaad Pretlow tried to catch the Leopards off guard, throwing a lateral across the field that was broken up and recovered by senior Alex Merriman to change possession immediately. It took just one play for the Maroon and White to find pay dirt as Brown walked in a stretch run from 10 yards out inside the left pylon for an initial 7-0 lead.
Fordham's first legitimate possession stalled on its end of the field and a punt that appeared to hit off a Lafayette player was overturned by video review as the Leopards took over on their own 36-yard line. A Reed sack at midfield ended that drive and the Rams went back on offense.
Following another Fordham punt, a number of solid rushes from Brown helped the Leopards move into the Fordham red zone with five minutes to play in the opening quarter. However, a 35-yard field-goal attempt from freshman Jacob Bissell was blocked and returned the length of the field as Fordham's George Dawson was tackled at the Lafayette five-yard line with the Rams in prime position for their first points. An acrobatic, one-handed catch from Phazahn Odom in the back of the endzone got the visitors on the board, knotting the game at seven with 4:07 left in the first.
A few failed possessions from either side finished out the first quarter, but with no time left on the clock before teams switched ends, Edmonds broke off a 67-yard touchdown run to give the Rams their first lead of the game.
Following another three-and-out from the Lafayette offense, Edmonds went back to work as three straight rushing plays got the Rams from midfield into the red zone. Then, with 10:59 to play in the second, Kendall Pearcey, spelling Edmonds, carried a host of Leopard defenders across the goal line from 16 yards out as Fordham opened its edge to 21-7. Fordham converted all three of its chances in the red zone while the Leopards were 1-of-5.
The ensuing possession looked promising as a screen to Joey Chenoweth and a long ball down the left side from Reed to Matt Mrazek set up the Leopards in Fordham territory. However, a throw into double coverage down the middle of the field was picked off by the Rams' Lourenzo Smith to end the drive.
The Leopard defense stood strong, though, and, after taking over at its own 16, a 38-yard strike to Rocco Palumbo with less than a minute to play in the half set the Maroon and White up with a chance to go into halftime with momentum on their side. An offensive pass interference near the goal line took away chances of a touchdown and another blocked field goal left the halftime score at 21-7.
Desperately needing to sustain a drive out of the break, Lafayette went three-and-out and the Rams took advantage. A 71-yard touchdown pass down the middle of the field to a wide-open Cory Caddle opened up the game with the Rams in front, 28-7.
The visitors continued to pour it on throughout the third quarter as five straight runs from Edmonds on the next possession got the Rams the 28 yards they needed for his second touchdown and a 35-7 scoreline.
Early in the final quarter, freshman Tyler West got his chance to get some carries and performed well with a trio of carries for 13 yards to get the Maroon and White into scoring territory. Reed's try into the end zone off his back foot, however, was tipped up and picked off to keep the Leopards without a point since the opening possession of the game.
Junior Blake Searfoss replaced Reed for Lafayette's final possession of the game, earning one first down before punt ended the night for the offensive unit. The Rams ran out the clock late to walk away with a 35-7 victory.
Brandon Bryant made a game-high 16 tackles while Dennis Bencsko added nine.
Lafayette continues conference action on Oct. 10 traveling to Washington, D.C. to battle with
Georgetown at 3:30 p.m.