Yet if the first game of this nascent season is any indication, the Amherst football team has found an air attack. After a season in which the team averaged only 122.5 passing yards per game, the Jeffs went to the air in a big way. Quarterback Alex Vetras ’11 starred in his first-ever collegiate start, throwing for 239 yards and three touchdowns en route to a 30-6 triumph over the Hamilton College Continentals.
Vetras was hardly the only Jeff on his game this weekend, though. He received plenty of help from his talented wide receiving corps, which was led by junior Brandon Bullock and sophomore Ben Kettering. Each pulled down eight catches and racked up 76 yards a piece, and Bullock accounted for two of Amherst’s three touchdowns.
In Bullock’s eyes, Saturday’s victory was a long time coming for the Jeffs. “The game was a lot of fun,” he said. “There was a lot of energy out there from the fans. Our expectations are really high, and we have a great chance of winning the NESCAC.”
According to Head Coach E.J. Mills, Saturday was just the start for Vetras and the Jeffs’ attack. “I was extremely pleased with the way he managed the game and led our offense,” said Mills of his QB.” He played well—and I believe he is only starting to scratch at his potential.”
Just as the passing game was noticeable for its newfound potency, the running game was noticeable for its relative absence. During a tough 2007-08 campaign, it was the Jeffs’ ground attack that allowed them to challenge NESCAC opponents on a weekly basis. On Saturday, however, the Jeffs coaching staff clearly de-emphasized the ground game. Amherst ran the ball 32 times against the Continentals for a total of 120 yards, an average of 3.75 yards-per-attempt. As a point of comparison, in last year’s season opener against Bates College, Amherst ran the ball 51 times for 170 yards. Running back Aaron Rauh, then a sophomore, racked up three touchdowns in the Jeffs’ 24-0 rout of the Bobcats. While the yards-per-attempt was a less-impressive 3.33 in that game, Amherst clearly relied on the ground game for offense—something that was not the case last weekend. Notably, however, the Amherst runner who was most productive against Hamilton was neither Rauh nor senior Eric NeSmith, Amherst’s other star running back from last season. Instead, sophomore Femi Oyalowo led the Jeffs’ running game, gaining for 45 yards on only four carries.
As for Amherst’s defense, it has apparently perfected the art of bending without breaking. On the face of things, Amherst’s defenders had a tough day against the Continentals. The Jeffs gave up 232 yards through the air—only seven fewer than the Jeffs accumulated in the winning effort. Their rush defense was a little stingier, holding Hamilton to only 70 yards on 27 attempts for a measley 2.6 yards-per-attempt average, but the special teams struggled, allowing 69 yards on kickoff returns, more than double what Amherst’s kick return team posted. And the Continentals controlled the ball for longer than Amherst did.
Nevertheless, the Jeffs locked down the Continentals when it mattered, picking off Hamilton’s quarterbacks four times. The only statistic that mattered, the final score, bore this out, as the Continentals finished the game with an underwhelming six points.
The Jeffs ability to force Hamilton into errors deserves much of the credit for the Continentals’ weak offensive performance. Fran Florio ’09 pulled down two interceptions for the Jeffs, and Chris Govey ’10 and A.J. Scola ’09 accounted for the remaining pair. The Jeffs also hit the Continentals with three sacks, thanks to sacks by Alex Widen ’09, Eric Pender ’10 and Edwin Urey ’10.
Mills was happy with the defense’s overall effort, but he emphasized that the Jeffs still have a lot to work on. “We need to tackle better on defense,” he said. “And we need to eliminate giving up big plays.”
As a team, the Jeffs were pleased with Saturday’s performance. As junior kicker Matt Eberhart, who knocked home a 25-yard field goal against the Continentals, put it, “The offense was really working well together and there was hardly a time when they struggled. I am looking forward to watching our offense put up big numbers all season.”