by Danny Baker 04
Student Assistant Athletic Communications
WASHINGTON, D.C.- Senior wide receiver J.B Gerald (Lanham, MD) threw a two-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver DeWayne Long (West Des Moines, IA) with 5.6 seconds remaining to propel Colgate to a 20-19 season opening win over the Georgetown Hoyas before 2,406 fans at Harbin Field.
Colgate (1-0, PL 1-0) extended its winning streak to seven straight equalling the 10th longest win streak in school history.
On the game-winning play, Colgate quarterback Chris Brown (Rockledge, FL) shifted to the slot, and Gerald, who was in the backfield, took a direct snap and sprinted to the right before finding Long in right side of the end zone or the game-winning TD.
Gerald, who started his collegiate career at quarterback, had been lined up at wideout for the entire game and finished with seven receptions for 77 yards, in addition to returning five punts for 25 yards and three kickoffs for 72 yards.
It was a great play call, one of the best Ive ever been a part of. We worked on that play all week long in practice and got it down. The ball got snapped, and the rest is history, said Gerald.
Colgate had gotten the ball back with 30 seconds remaining and no timeouts left at the Georgetown 34-yard line after the defense forced the Hoyas to punt. Brown, who finished with 91 yards passing and 76 yards rushing, immediately found Long for an 11-yard gain. Two plays later, Brown hit Gerald for a 21-yard strike to the Georgetown two-yard line, setting up the last second finish.
Its nice to open with a win, because this is only our second opening win in my eight seasons as coach here. The way we won the game, coming from behind at the end, showed a lot of resolve in these kids, said head coach Dick Biddle.
Colgate jumped all over the Hoyas in the beginning, opening the game with an 11-play, 62-yard drive capped off by a one-yard touchdown run by junior tailback Jamaal Branch (Mashpee, MA). That would be all the scoring done by either team in the first half.
Colgate came out in the second half just like it did in the first, but this time with a change of names. This time, it was sophomore running back Joe Pinion (Yonkers, NY) finding a seam in the Hoya defense for a 58-yard run to the Georgetown two-yard line. Pinion finished with 132 yards rushing on 21 carries in his first varsity game. Two plays later, Brown scored on a quarterback keeper to put Colgate up 14-0.
Georgetown scored three consecutive touchdowns over the next 25 minutes to take a 19-14 lead, but a blocked extra point attempt after Georgetowns second touchdown would prove costly as the Hoyas were forced to go for two points following their last touchdown and failed to convert.
The Hoyas first TD came with 3:48 remaining in the third quarter, when William Huisking caught a two-yard pass from Andre Crawford to cap an 80-yard drive in 14 plays.
Georgetown moved to within one point of the Raiders nine seconds into the final quarter, when Luke McArdle grabbed a 35-yard pass from Crawford over the middle. The Hoyas had the extra point blocked by Josh Sabo (White Oak, PA).
The first Hoya lead came with 2:50 remaining, when Kim Sarin scored on a one-yard run following a recovered Colgate fumble at the 47-yard line. The two-point conversion pass failed giving Georgetown a 19-14 lead.
On Colgates next possession, Brown was intercepted by Georgetowns Maurice Banks at the GU 22. An unsportsmanlike penalty moved the Hoyas back to the 11.
With 1:28 remaining in the game Georgetown appeared ready to run out the clock, but Colgates defense held the Hoyas to fourth-and-seven at the 14. Following an 11-yard punt return by Gerald, the Raiders had 34 yards to go in 30 seconds to pull out the victory.
By and large, for three quarters we played pretty good defense. We have to improve our passing game and eliminate the unnecessary mistakes. Also, we need to get some kids healthy again who have been out, and then well be alrig
