WESTMINSTER, MD – The #18/#21 Johns Hopkins football team jumped out to a 21-0 halftime lead, added a pair of scores in the second half and notched its second consecutive shutout as the Blue Jays capped the regular season with a 35-0 win at McDaniel Saturday afternoon.
With the win, Johns Hopkins (9-1, 6-0 Centennial) locks up the outright Centennial Conference title and extends its winnings streak to seven games. McDaniel finishes the season at 1-9 overall and 0-6 in the Centennial.
The Blue Jays used an efficient offensive effort to build the 21-0 halftime lead as their three first-half scoring drives totaled just 11 plays and covered 188 yards but required just 3:43 of playing time.
After trading three punts to open the game, the Blue Jays took over at their own 25 and needed just five plays to cover 75 yards with junior Geoff Schroeder covering the final 36 yards to give the Blue Jays a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter.
That lead held into early in the second quarter, when the Blue Jay defense stopped the Green Terror and forced a punt that junior Jack Schondelmayer tipped and it went out of bounds at the McDaniel 31. Two plays later, senior Andrew Rich got to the edge and raced 24 yards into the end zone to double the Blue Jay lead with just over 11 minutes remaining in the first half.
The Green Terror had a golden chance to cut into the 14-point deficit late in the period as they took over at their own 32 after a Blue Jay punt and burned nearly five minutes off the clock as they worked their way inside the Johns Hopkins 20-yard line. Facing a fourth-and-one at the Blue Jay 16, Micajah Cobbs was stuffed for a two-yard loss and the Blue Jays took over at their own 18 with 65 seconds on the second-quarter clock. As it turned out, that was 28 more than they needed.
Senior quarterback James Rinello opened the drive with a 19-yard run up the middle and then connected with EJ Talarico for 28 yards and Cole Crotty for 31 to set the Jays up at the Green Terror four-yard line. From there, offensive coordinator Alex Horvatits went into his bag of tricks and senior wide receiver Griffin Cleveland scampered in off a direct snap to cap the lightning-quick, four-play, 82-yard drive that took exactly 37 seconds and gave the Jays the 21-0 halftime lead.
Schroeder and the Blue Jays extended the lead late in the third quarter with their longest scoring drive (by time) of the game as they again turned a fourth-down stop by the defense into a touchdown drive. After Ryan Wilson stopped McDaniel quarterback Jayden Booker on a fourth-down run, the Blue Jays responded with nine-play, 65-yard drive that ate 4:05 off the clock with Schroeder powering in from five yards out to cap the drive. The drive was extended four plays before Schroeder's scoring run on a nifty eight-yard run on fourth-and-three by quarterback Ethan Lollar.
Lollar would add a career-best 69-yard touchdown pass to senior EJ Talarico early in the fourth quarter to close out the scoring.
McDaniel had another great chance to score midway through the fourth quarter, but the Blue Jay defense held them out of the end zone on four plays from inside the seven yard line to maintain the shutout. Johns Hopkins would then run out the final 8:27 of the game as they used 12 plays to go 72 yards before kneeling out the final two plays of the game.
Inside the Box Score – Johns Hopkins
• Rinello and Lollar combined to go 12-of-15 for 261 yards and one touchdown.
• Talarico had a career-high 150 yards receiving on three receptions, including the 69-yard touchdown catch.
• Schroeder (9-77-2) and Rich (6-45-1) combined for 122 yards and three TDs to lead a rushing attack that generated 164 yards on the day.
• Senior Ryan Wilson totaled a career-high 13 tackles, including two tackles for losses, and Browning Trainer added a career-best six tackles to lead the way defensively for Johns Hopkins.
Inside the Box Score – McDaniel
• Booker was 23-of-31 for 192 yards and rushed for a team-high 38 yards to lead the way offensively for the Green Terror.
• Malachi Murhphy and Donte Evans tied for the team-lead with seven tackles apiece and the Green Terror collected three sacks on the day.
Notes of Interest
• Talarico returned one kickoff for 29 yards and became JHU's career leader in kickoff return yards (1,280).
• The Johns Hopkins defense set a Centennial Conference record for fewest points allowed in league games. With today's shutout, the unit ends the season having allowed just 33 points in six league games.
• JHU picked up its 11th consecutive road victory with today's win. The 11 straight road wins are tied for the second-longest road winning streak in program history.
Johns Hopkins will return to action in the NCAA Playoffs at a date and time to be announced on Sunday, November 17 during the NCAA Selection Show at 5 pm. Fans can tune into the show at ncaa.com.
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