September 2, 2006

(September 2, 2006) - It was an extreme case of Murphy's Law for the Fordham football Rams in their season-opening loss to Monmouth on Jack Coffey Field. Everything that could go wrong did as the Rams found themselves in a 20-0 hole after the first quarter, a hole in which they could not get out of as the rains and winds of tropical depression Ernesto blew across the New York City area.

"When you get behind as much as we did as early as we did on a night like tonight, it's almost impossible to get back in the game," said Fordham head coach Tom Masella, who was making his debut on the Rams' sideline. "But I have to give credit to my players who never gave up. They kept fighting until the end. That's part of growing up."

The Rams got the ball first and on the first play of the season quarterback Derric Daniels attempted a deep pass into the wind but the ball was tipped by the Fordham receiver and intercepted by Monmouth's Matt Hill on the Monmouth 32. Hill returned the pick 38 yards to the Fordham 30.

On the second play from scrimmage, Monmouth quarterback Brian Boland found a wide open Adam San Miguel over the middle for a 7-0 Hawks lead 47 seconds into the game.

The Rams went three-and-out on their next possession and Monmouth took over on their own 16 following a punt and 15-yard penalty. Boland made quick work on the drive, completing three passes to San Miguel for 13 yards before throwing a screen pass to running back David Sinisi and Sinisi turned the play into a 71-yard touchdown and a 13-0 Monmouth lead with 11:38 remaining in the first.

Fordham moved the ball from its own 16 to the 40 on the ensuing possession where the drive stalled and Monmouth took over on their own 29 following a punt. Boland again made quick work on the drive, finding San Miguel down the right side with a 71-yard touchdown pass and a 20-0 Hawks lead with 6:01 left in the period.

The Hawks would make it a 23-0 game on a Fred Weingart 23-yard field goal with 9:13 left in the second quarter.

The Fordham offense was held in check in the first half, gaining 78 total yards and picking up just three first downs.

The Rams' offense had a little more success in the second half, getting a kick start from an 89-yard touchdown run from James Prydatko with 5:07 left in the third. The Rams took over on their own nine after holding the Hawks on a fourth-and-one situation. After Prydatko gained two yards on the first play from scrimmage, the senior running back burst through the right side and outraced the defenders to the endzone. The play was the second longest run for a touchdown in Fordham history, behind only John Mullen's 100-yarder in 1899 against Cathedral. It was also the long scoring run for a Ram since Andre Robinson scored on an 87-yard rush in 1996 versus Bucknell.

The Rams forced a pair of Monmouth turnovers in the fourth quarter, the first a Bruce Lee interception and the second a Sam Orah fumble recovery, but Fordham couldn't convert on the opportunities.

The 23-6 score would hold until the Rams drove from the Monmouth 44 to the Fordham 28 where Micah Clukey connected on a career-long 45-yard field goal with just over four minutes left in the game.

Boland completed 13 of 24 passes for 223 yards and three touchdowns for Monmouth with San Miguel catching seven of those for 115 yards and two scores. Sinisi led the Hawk's ground game with 67 yards on 20 carries.

Prydatko led the Fordham offense, gaining 135 yards on 14 carries, his sixth career 100-yard rushing game.

Defensively, Marcus Taylor made 13 stops, four solo, including two for a loss while Ryan Kleve led the Rams with 10 tackles, six solo, including 1.5 for a loss and he forced a fumble.

The Rams will next travel to Albany to face the University at Albany Great Danes next Saturday, September 9th at 6:00 p.m.

Notes The Rams dropped their third straight opener...It was the first ever meeting on the gridiron between the two teams...Masella was attempting to become the first head coach to win his Fordham debut since Dave Rice in 1975...Prydatko's touchdown was the first touchdown for the Rams in over ten quarters, dating back to last year...The last Fordham touchdown before tonight's was a 74-yard run by Prydatko against Bucknell last November...Clukey's previous long was a 44-yard field goal against Brown in 2004...The game was the second night game with permanent lights in Jack Coffey Field history (the Rams fell to Columbia in last year's season-opener under the lights).