Ground Attack Propels Bulldogs to 27-6 Win at Defiance
DEFIANCE, Ohio - The Adrian College football team has begun the 2011 season with a 2-0 record after another workman-like effort in a 27-6 win at Defiance College on Saturday afternoon (Sept. 10). The Bulldogs established a potent running attack against the Yellow Jackets and rode sophomore Damon Brown for most of the contest. Brown carried the ball a career-high 29 times for a career-high 178 yards and two touchdowns.
The Bulldogs won the coin toss and deferred until the second half and that move paid off immediately as Defiance fumbled on their opening drive and the Bulldogs' Kevin Kleine recovered a Drew Kuesel fumble on the first play of the game at the opponent 14-yard line. It took just two plays to find the end zone as Brown rushed for 11 yards and the Logan Mitseff extra point missed to give Adrian a 6-0 lead at the 13:57 mark.
After Adrian punted on their next possession, the Yellow Jackets marched down the field covering 55 yards in just six plays. Rick Powell carried into the end zone from two yards out and Spencer Saunders had his extra point blocked by Adrian's Keman Jacobs to keep the game tied at 6-6.
Adrian took their first possession of the second quarter and took the lead for good on a 14-play, 88-yard drive which elapsed 5:12 off the clock. Brown carried the ball six times on the drive and then the Bulldogs brought in the hammer as freshman Ce'Juwon McFerrin scored his fourth rushing touchdown of the young season from four yards out with 9:40 left until halftime. Mitseff's point after made it 13-6.
The Bulldogs took over with 2:06 left in the second quarter and worked their two-minute offense to perfection as they drove 80 yards in 1:41 and took a 20-6 lead into the locker room. Brandon Miller scampered one yard with 25 seconds left until intermission. Miller finished the day going 14-of-26 through the air for 166 yards with no touchdowns and one interception.
The Adrian defense continued to play tough and keep Defiance from crossing the 50-yard line until the final play of the game when they completed a pass to the Bulldog 46-yard line. Defiance punted four times in a row in the second half and turned the ball over on downs on their other drive. Adrian missed a pair of field goals in the second half but did break into the scoring column with 1:32 left in the game as Brown's second rushing touchdown from one yard capped off an 11-yard drive in three plays after Defiance failed to convert on fourth down in their previous possession.
The Bulldogs gained 410 yards on the day and limited the Yellow Jackets to 235 yards and just 3.6 yards per play. The defense forced one fumble and were led by sophomore Deontae Bridgeman's 13 tackles, setting a new career-high for the linebacker. Sophomore Hunter Juntunen added eight tackles for the game. Junior Joe Makowski had a pair of sacks to add to his two tackles for loss from a week ago. Adrian sacked Powell five times and limited the Yellow Jackets to 4-of-14 on third down.
Adrian (2-0) goes to Augustana, Ill. next Saturday for a 1:00 PM CDT kick.
