WATERVILLE — A key play in the Bates College football team’s 10-9 win over Colby last Saturday was the result of simple miscommunication by the officials.
Colby scored a touchdown to pull within a point of the Bobcats, 10-9, with 13:31 left in the game. Because Bates was penalized for offsides on the scoring play, the referee went to the Colby sideline to discuss options with head coach Jonathan Michaeles.
up next
When: 1 p.m. Saturday
Where: Alfond Stadium, Waterville
Last season: Tufts 28, Colby 7
Key players: Tufts — RB Chance Brady, QB Alex Snyder, WR Mike Rando, DB Tim Preston, LB Patrick Williams, LB Zach Thomas. Colby — RB Jabari Hurdle-Price, QB Gabe Harrington, WR Mark Snyder, LB Steve O’Grady, DE Ryan Ruiz, LB Bryan McAdams.
Outlook: This game features the top two rushers in the New England Small College Athletic Conference. Brady leads the league with 625 rushing yards, while Hurdle-Price is second with 611 yards. Tufts won four of its first five games for its best start since 2007, before falling to Amherst last week. The Mules are coming off a loss to rival Bates. Tufts leads the league in turnover margin, +6, while Colby is last at -5. While the Mules are last in the conference in total offense, they may be able to move the ball against the Jumbos, who allow an average of 396.7 yards per game.
“They were asking if we wanted it assessed on the try or on the kickoff,” Michaeles said.
As this was happening, the umpire spotted the ball for Colby’s extra point try and blew his whistle, signaling that the Mules could line up and snap the ball. However, because the referee was at the sideline with the Colby coaches, the play should not have gone off. The Mules were forced to kick again, and this time, Bates blocked the kick to maintain their one-point lead and eventual margin of victory.
“(The umpire) blew the whistle, we snapped the ball and kicked. The ref was over on the sideline. Since he wasn’t the one who set it in play, we had to redo the down,” Michaeles said.
The Mules (1-5) hope things go much smoother on Saturday when they host Tufts (4-2). The Jumbos are having one of their better seasons in recent memory and could provide the blueprint for Colby’s potential success in the coming years.
“They’ve built their program over the last couple of years, and they’ve got a lot of guys who’ve been playing since they were freshmen and sophomores and they’re starting to come of age. They’ve got solid personnel across the board,” Michaeles said.
Colby is in the position now that Tufts was in a few years ago with younger players on the field at a number of positions. More than half the athletes on Colby’s roster are either first- or second-year players.
Saturday’s contest is Colby’s final home game of the season, as the Mules end the season next week at rival Bowdoin. Michaeles said he expects a strong effort from his seniors in their final home game.
“It’s always emotional. It goes by so fast. I can’t believe we’re here in week seven of the season,” Michaeles said. “There’s so few opportunities to play on your home field in this league, with only four (home games) a year, it’s extremely meaningful because of the investment they’ve put into this program.”
• • •
Bates can clinch its second consecutive Colby-Bates-Bowdoin title and its third in four years with a win over the Polar Bears on Saturday. Last week, the Bobcats beat Colby in a close game for the second straight season.
This game could be a shootout. Bates (1-5) and Bowdoin (1-5) are ranked next to last and last in the New England Small College Athletic Conference in total defense, with each allowing an average of more than 405 yards per game.
Brandon Williams has five interceptions for Bates to lead the conference. Bowdoin linebacker Branden Morin leads the NESCAC with 56 tackles.
• • •
Husson can clinch its second consecutive Eastern Collegiate Football Conference title with a win at Norwich on Saturday. It won’t be easy for the Eagles as both teams are 5-0 in conference play.
A Husson win gives the Eagles the title and the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs. Even if Husson were to lose the regular season finale next week to Mt. Ida it would still have the head-to-head tiebreaker over Norwich and Castleton. They are the only teams that could tie the Eagles for first place.
If Norwich beats Husson on Saturday, the Eagles need a win over Mt. Ida next week and a Norwich loss at Castleton to clinch the conference crown.
If Husson wins the ECFC title, it will become the first school to win the league in back-to-back years. The league began play in 2009.
• • •
Maine Maritime Academy defensive lineman Michael Burgess was named to the d3football.com Team of the Week for his special teams effort in the Mariners’ 21-20 win over Curry last Saturday. Burgess set an MMA record with three blocked kicks, including what would have been the game-winning field goal for Curry.
The Mariners (2-5) play at Salve Regina on Saturday.
Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242
tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.