Nov. 12, 2005
Final Stats
SAN DIEGO, Ca.-San Diego junior running back Jon Polk scored four touchdowns to lead top-ranked San Diego to a come-from-behind 42-35 victory over visiting Marist at Torero Stadium Saturday afternoon. The Red Foxes, ranked fifth in Don Hansen's I-AA Mid-Major National rankings, fell to 6-4 overall, while USD improved to 10-1 on the season.
Marist struggled all afternoon to stop the high-octane Toreros, who entered the contest averaging 43 points per game. USD put up 474 yards of total offense on the afternoon, compared to 391 for the Red Foxes. Despite all the offense, the Red Foxes held a 14-0 lead after the first quarter and entered the final quarter of the game in a 28-28 dogfight with the Toreros. The contest was certainly a different game than the last meeting between the two schools, when USD trounced Marist 47-0 in 2003.
The Red Foxes marched 70 yards down the field for their first score after junior safety Huck Correia picked off Torero quarterback Josh Johnson in Marist territory. Marist rode the broad shoulders of sophomore fullback Obozua Ehikioya (West Hempstead, N.Y.) for most of the drive cashed in the turnover on a one-yard touchdown plunge by Ehikioya at the 5:27 mark.
After San Diego had trouble with a punt snap on the ensuing possession, Marist senior quarterback James Luft (Lake Peekskill, N.Y.) made the Toreros pay again with a nine-yard touchdown strike to senior wideout Guy Smith (New Milford, Conn.) to put the Red Foxes up 14-0 at the 2:03 mark. With the catch, Smith set the all-time school record for touchdown passes in a season with six, passing Warren Weller (1983), Jon Reed (1996) and Joe Calabria (1998) who all had five during their respective seasons.
San Diego got on track with 8:59 remaining in the second quarter on a 15-yard touchdown pass by Johnson to senior wide receiver Adam Hannula to bring the Toreros within seven.
USD, coached by former NFL quarterback Jim Harbaugh, evened the affair with 4:02 to go in the second when Polk rumbled over from five yards out.
USD came out firing in the second half when Polk notched his second score of the game, a one-yard plunge with 10:03 to go in the third quarter to put the Toreros up 21-14.
Marist struck right back on the first play from scrimmage of the ensuing possession when Luft faked a handoff to Ehikioya and shot down the left sideline for a 65-yard touchdown run with the help of downfield blocks by Smith and junior tailback Frankie Farrington (Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.).
The offensive track meet continued when Johnson put a rushing touchdown on the board with a two-yard score and he eluded sophomore linebacker Joe Macho (Wappingers Falls, N.Y.) in the backfield to put USD up 28-21 with 6:51 to go in the third stanza.
The Red Foxes stormed right back, however, when Luft connected with Smith on a 53-yard bomb down the right sideline to put Marist in business inside USD's 10-yard line. Ehikioya scored his second touchdown of the day on a four-yard run with 2:22 to go in the third to tie the game at 28-28.
The tie would be short-lived, however, as the Polk scored his third rushing touchdown of the afternoon on a two-yard carry with 11:58 to play to make the score 35-28 USD.
The Toreros finally put the game away with 5:39 to play after senior defensive back Philip Bretsch picked off Luft's third down pass and returned the ball 55 yards to the Marist two-yard line. Polk did the damage once again when he jetted untouched into the end zone for his fourth score of the game (seventh for the season) on a one-yard score.
Marist would not die, however, as the Red Foxes' hurry-up offense yielded another one-yard score for Ehikioya. This one came with 2:07 to play and was his 15th touchdown of the season and 23rd of his career.
The Red Foxes tried a last-ditch onside kick attempt, but the kick was quickly recovered by USD sophomore wideout Wes Doyle.
Marist will host Stony Brook next Saturday, November 19 at 1 p.m. for its final game of the season. USD will face Morehead State next Saturday at 7:00 EST in the Pioneer League Championship.
Ehikioya finished with 100 yards on 23 carries, while San Diego was led by Polk's 69 yards on 17 carries.
Luft finished 14-for-22 with 201 yards and one touchdown to go with one interception, while Johnson went 23-for-30 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.
Smith led the Marist receiving attack with 93 yards on four catches, while Hannula finished with 96 yards on seven catches.
Marist senior linebacker Mike Giummo (Lincroft, N.J.) led the Marist defense with 14 tackles and one pass breakup, while sophomore linebacker Ronnie Pentz and Bretsch both tallied 10 tackles apiece.
Quotes
Marist senior quarterback James Luft
We showed a lot about our team today. We would've liked to come out on top , but it just wasn't meant to be. We were excited to be here. We just wanted to come out here and keep scoring on every play.
Marist sophomore running back Obozua Ehikioya
San Diego was a hard-hitting team. They are such a physical team that you just have to keep hitting them back for 60 minutes. As far as I'm concerned, I'm a little dinged up, but I feel ok. We knew we had to keep the ball out of their hands and tried to control the clock. We'll come out fired up next week. It's all about consistency and we'll come out strong next week against Stony Brook because we want to send our seniors out with a win.
Marist head coach Jim Parady
I give our kids a lot credit. We had them on the ropes, and even though it was such a back and forth game, I'm proud that we played with so much emotion. Marist played a game today that it can be proud of. Of course, it's disappointing to come out with a loss. They made one more play than we did though, and that was the difference in the end. All in all, it was just a great college football game.
