Trailing by two touchdowns early in the fourth quarter, Amherst seemed likely to drop consecutive games in a calendar year for the first time since 1994. But a clutch 40-yard punt return by Jason Wagstaff '05 suddenly put Amherst back in the game, giving them possession of the ball at the Tufts 15-yard-line. The offense, which has struggled in the red zone all season, wasted no time in capitalizing on its good fortune as Fletcher Ladd '04 busted a run 15 yards to pay dirt on the first play of the drive. But the enthusiasm of the family weekend crowd was quickly muted as Bodner failed to convert on the PAT, giving Tufts a 24-16 lead. This was only the beginning of a quarter which would see emotional highs and lows on both sides of the field.
On the ensuing kickoff, Mike Proman '03 kicked his third successful onside kick of the season, giving Amherst possession of the ball at the Tufts 43-yard-line. The Jeffs appeared poised to score the tying touchdown as they worked their way all the way inside the Jumbos' 5 yard-line, but a fumble by Ladd ended the Jeffs drive and their attempts at a comeback.
With just over three minutes to play in the game and down by eight points, Amherst began the final drive of the game on their own 34-yard-line. Ladd and quarterback Marsh Moseley '05 methodically led their team down the field as time and the Jumbo defense conspired against them. With eight seconds remaining Moseley found Jim Devine '04 in the back of the end zone for a three-yard touchdown.
Down by two with only eight seconds remaining, Head Coach E.J. Mills was forced to go for the two point conversion. On the first attempt Moseley tried unsuccessfully to hook up again with Devine, but pass interference was called against Tufts on the play, giving Amherst a second chance at a game-tying conversion-this time from the 1-yard-line. Needing only a yard, Mills sent in his goal-line offense and, even though everyone in the stadium knew that Ladd was going to run the ball up the middle, Amherst's workhorse tailback would not be denied. With regulation time virtually expired, Amherst and Tufts stood tied at 24 apiece.
Amherst won the crucial overtime coin toss and wisely elected to go on defense first. The Jeff defense forced Tufts to attempt a field goal after pushing the Jumbo offense back a yard on three plays. Marcellus Rolle missed the 43-yard attempt wide right, and after 60 plus minutes of play, the Lord Jeffs were finally in command of the game. A few rushes by Ladd combined with a Tufts penalty allowed Amherst to make its way down to the 12-yard-line before Bodner nailed the game winner. "I just tried to kick the ball like any other field goal," said Bodner. "I try not to think of overtime kicks as any different than any other kick. [I] just concentrate and kick the ball." Bodner is now 2-2 in overtime field goals in his young career.
Amherst's win was one of the most exciting Amherst wins in recent memory. "I've been here 10 years now as an assistant and as a head coach and this is as good a victory as we have had since I have been here," said Mills. One thing that did not go in Amherst's favor was turnovers with six on the afternoon, four of which came on consecutive Jeff drives in the first quarter.
Indeed, the first score of the game came when Tufts pounced on a Ladd fumble in the end zone early in the first quarter. Down 10-3 late in the first half, Amherst attempted to run out the clock, but Tufts used its timeouts to force the Jeffs to punt. However, Amherst made their guests regret this greedy decision as safety Bob Sargent '05 intercepted Jumbo quarterback Scott Treacy on the following play and returned the ball 23 yards to the Tufts 37-yard-line. With time for only one last play in the half, Moseley launched a Hail Mary into the end zone which was somehow caught by Brian Hart '03, knotting the score at 10 heading into the half.
The third quarter belonged to the Jumbos as they outscored their hosts 14-0 in this frame. Their first score was set up by a Moseley interception which gave Tufts possession of the ball at the Amherst 36-yard-line. A few plays later, the Jeffs surrendered their first touchdown pass since Nov. 4, 2000 when Tufts scored on a 16-yard pass play,
Tufts' second touchdown of the quarter, a four yard toss from Treacy to tight end Ryan Papi came after a 42 yard punt return gave the Jumbos possession of the ball at the Jeff 7-yardline and gave the upstarts from Medford a commanding 24-10 lead. But the Amherst defense, knowing the stakes involved, refused to allow Tufts to score any more points. "Yesterday's game was a must-win situation," said co-captain defensive tackle Pat Hayes '03, who led the Jeffs on the day with nine tackles. "We took a huge step forward as a team. If we had lost I think we were headed for a 4-4 season, now we're going in the other direction."
Defensively, Amherst turned in another spectacular effort. The Jeffs surrendered only 194 yards of total offense even though they were constantly forced to deal with terrible field position due to the offensive turnovers. Offensively, the Jeffs are still struggling to find a rhythm, especially in the passing game. However, Ladd continues to be a bright spot for the team. Despite some fumble problems Saturday, caused in part by the wet conditions, Ladd carried the ball an incredible 48 times for 196 yards and is well on his way to breaking the school's single-season rushing record. Amherst returns to action next week at Trinity College (5-1).