The football team suffered its second consecutive setback last Saturday, falling to the Bantams of Trinity College at Pratt Field by a final score of 13-9. The game was the last home appearance for the Class of 2008, a class that, heading into next weekend, has won a total of 20 games in its Amherst career. Trinity was the one team that the seniors had never beaten, despite several very close calls. Saturday's game was just as close as the score indicates, with the Jeffs controlling the game for much of the second half. Nevertheless, Trinity was once again able to catch the necessary breaks, especially on two key second-half plays that severely shifted the momentum of the game.

One of the main differences in Saturday's game was the health of the Jeffs' two superb kickers. After the first quarter, the score was 3-0 thanks to a 39-yard field goal from Trinity kicker Adam Cox. Thirty-nine yards is exceptionally long for the NESCAC, but Amherst kicker Matt Eberhart '10 has hit field goals as long as 44 yards this season. Unfortunately, Eberhart, along with several other members of the team, was suffering from illnesses on Saturday and unable to play. In addition to Eberhart, receiver Mike Myers '08, who was an all-state place kicker in high school and the Jeffs' presumed second string kicker, was also unable to play. With both of them out of action, Amherst was forced to call on first-year quarterback John Howe to execute the kicking duties.

At the beginning of the second quarter, tailback Eric NeSmith '09 and quarterback Dan Pozner '11 engineered a drive into Trinity's red zone. A sack of Pozner, however, brought up an Amherst fourth down on Trinity's 12-yard line. The Jeffs brought on Howe to attempt a relatively short 30-yard field goal. A low kick, however, resulted in a block that Trinity was able to recover.

In the next drive, it appeared as though the Bantams would get on the board again, as they were able to move the ball down into Jeff territory. Senior inside linebacker Nick Boehm came to the rescue, however, stripping the ball from Trinity tailback Jordan Quinones. Junior nose tackle Greg Smith picked up the loose ball and rumbled down the left sideline. He appeared to have everyone beat when a Bantam defender made a last diving effort and caught Smith by the heel. Smith stumbled for a few steps, but was unable to maintain his balance and fell at the Trinity nine-yard line. A couple of broken plays, including a screen pass for a loss of four yards and a sack, moved Amherst back to the Trinity 16-yard line. Once again, the Jeffs called upon Howe to kick a field goal, and this time he delivered, nailing a 34-yarder to tie the score at three and help the Jeffs enter the locker room even with the Bantams.

The third quarter was a field position battle, but it appeared to be one that the Jeffs would win. Trinity suffered the loss of Eric McGrath, their starting quarterback, to what appeared to be a hand injury. John McNamara '11 took over in his stead, but seemed to have some difficulty moving the offense. The first three Trinity drives of the second half resulted in three-and-outs. At the end of the third quarter the Jeffs moved into field goal position once again and called on Howe to try a 28-yarder to take the lead. The first-year quarterback gamely came on, but missed his second attempt of the day.

Although Trinity finally got to start with slightly better field position, their next drive fared little better than the others. Senior defensive back Chris Mottau intercepted a McNamara pass to give the Jeffs the ball and excellent field position, once again. After consecutive three-and-outs by Amherst and then Trinity, the Bantams were forced to punt from their own end zone, and it looked as though the Jeffs might be able to finally tack on some more points and leave the rest to their dominating defense.

But that was precisely when the momentum of the afternoon suddenly shifted back towards the Bantams. On the ensuing punt, the ball bounced off Mottau's leg on its way down. Despite the best efforts of first-year return man Nick Edwards, Trinity was able to recover near midfield. The Jeffs may have been able to recover from that blow, but on the very next play McNamara threw deep over the middle of the field. The pass appeared to be broken up on a fantastic diving play by sophomore defensive back Chris Govey, but in a questionable call, Govey was flagged for pass interference. The 15-yard penalty put Trinity on the Amherst 27, and it seemed as though the defense could not bear to see the field position it had worked so hard to gain disappear so suddenly. The next play went for 11 yards and the second non-penalty induced first down of the half for the Bantams. From there, they had no problem moving into position for a 26-yard field goal to take a 6-3 lead.

It quickly became apparent that the spirit of the Amherst team had been broken, as the offense had a quick three-and-out without the services of Pozner, who had to leave the game due to what appeared to be a shoulder injury. On the next possession, Trinity marched right back down the field against an Amherst defense that had been so effective all afternoon. On third-and-goal at the nine-yard line, it looked as though Amherst might be able to hold the Bantams to a field goal and have a chance for one last touchdown drive. However, the defense gave up an eight-yard run to the goal line, followed by a leaping touchdown. Ahead 13-3, the Bantams allowed the Jeffs to drive for a final touchdown to bring the tally to 13-9.

The loss dropped Amherst to 4-3 and leaves the team in a tie for fifth place in the NESCAC, but the Jeffs will have a chance to make up for it next week in the most important game of the season. Next weekend the Jeffs will take on archrival Williams College in the 122nd playing of the "Biggest Little Game in America." "The Williams game is exciting because we have a chance to win the Little Three Championship in addition to beating our biggest rival. One hundred twenty-two years of tradition is in this game and we haven't won at Williams in 22 years, which is motivation enough," said offensive linesman Justin Wiley '09. He added that the match will be thrilling, "because of the alumni, fans and overall atmosphere of the game."

The game will also unfold live on national television. ESPN is sending its College GameDay crew, which traditionally broadcasts from the site of the most anticipated college matchups in the country. This is the first time in history that the program will cover a Div. III game.