After dismantling Bates College in the first game of the season, the team expected a greater challenge out of Bowdoin, who had ended a league-leading 14-game win streak by Williams College only a week earlier. It was the first time since 1979 that the Polar Bears had managed to defeat the Ephs, and the feat was even more impressive considering that it took place in Williamstown, Mass.
Given those events, the Jeffs were taking the historically inept Polar Bears a little more seriously then usual. "We're always happy to have an advantage over Williams, but that also meant that we had a challenging game ahead of us this week," said senior captain fullback Chris Gillyard of starting the season 1-0 while Williams was 0-1. "Two years ago, Bowdoin had a similar win against us. To keep this from happening to us this year, we made sure we had complete focus this week in practice."
The extra effort immediately paid dividends, as Amherst had no trouble marching the ball down the field on the opening drive for a touchdown. Eric NeSmith '09 carried the ball nine times on drive for 41 yards.
The only blemish came on the final carry, as NeSmith was hit hard from behind, forcing him to fumble. The play worked out fortuitously for the Jeffs, however, as wide receiver Mike Myers '08 scooped up the loose ball and waltzed unmolested into the end zone.
After a Bowdoin drive ended quickly, the Jeffs got right back to work, this time using sophomore tailback Aaron Rauh to make their way down the field, with Amherst blockers again opening up gaping holes. It was NeSmith, however, who capped the drive off with a 22-yard touchdown, giving the Jeffs a two-touchdown advantage at the end of the first quarter.
The Polar Bear offense once again failed to get going, as cornerback A.J. Scola recorded the first of his two interceptions on the day off of Bowdoin quarterback Oliver Kell. Although the running game continued to be effective for Amherst, the offense began to get buried in laundry. On the afternoon, the Jeffs had an incredible 10 penalties for over 100 yards. Twice in the second quarter Amherst drove deep into Bowdoin territory, only to be stalled by holding, false start and facemask penalties. Nevertheless, kicker Matt Eberhart '10 was able to connect on one of two field goals to give the Jeffs a 17-0 advantage at the half.
The second half began as the first had, with the Jeffs marching their way unabated down the field, and then fumbling near the goal line. This time Amherst was not lucky enough to recover, but only three plays later Scola intercepted his second pass of the day and returned it to the three-yard line. From there, Rauh had no trouble giving the Jeffs their third touchdown of the day and his fourth of the season.
Entering the fourth quarter, Bowdoin was still scoreless, giving the Amherst defense a remarkable seven-quarter scoreless streak. However, the Polar Bears were able to take advantage of a short field after an excellent punt return. Starting from the Amherst 34-yard line, Bowdoin was able to get into the end zone after a three-yard touchdown pass from Kell. The two-point conversion failed, however, allowing Amherst to keep it a three-score game, 24-6.
After a failed onside kick by the Polar Bears, Amherst ran Rauh seven consecutive times, before NeSmith provided the finishing touch with a six-yard dash to the end zone. Eberhart's extra point failed, but the defense held up, giving the Jeffs a 30-6 victory and a 2-0 record to start the season.
The Jeffs finished the game with an absurd 331 yards on the ground, including 159 from Rauh and 131 from NeSmith. Sophomore Lucas Loeffler, who completed six of 14 passes for 59 yards and no interceptions, credited the running game for the Jeffs' victory. "Bowdoin was very small upfront, and going into the game we thought we would be able to run the ball very well and we did that," Loeffler explained. "We just ran the ball well from the beginning and as soon as we got up by two scores, it seemed we just needed to stick with what was working."
The Lord Jeff defense was dominant as usual, holding the Polar Bears to just 250 yards of total offense. Amherst was especially stiff against the running game, giving up only 23 yards on 31 attempts.
The only blemish on the afternoon was the 10 Amherst penalties, but the squad is confident it can clean up its execution. "Penalties definitely hurt us," said Loeffler. "Although we didn't agree with all of the calls, the blame without a doubt falls on us. We have to execute at a higher level in all aspects."
That will be especially important next week, when the level of competition rises a notch with Middlebury College coming into town. The Panthers are currently tied atop the NESCAC standings with a 2-0 record and were the first team to beat the Jeffs last season, handing them a 7-3 loss in Vermont.
"Middlebury is definitely more athletic than either Bates or Bowdoin," said Scola. "Middlebury has a better run game than what we have seen, and we'll need to be prepared."
If the Jeffs can continue with the level of play they've demonstrated over the first two weeks of the season, they should be able to hand a little revenge to the Panthers, come Saturday.