Football Wins Patriot League Title

Photo Gallery

Lewisburg, Pa. (November 7, 2014) – Check another one off the preseason list of goals for the Fordham University football Rams. Winning the Patriot League championship! Peter Maetzold connected with Tebucky Jones, Jr. on a ten-yard touchdown pass in overtime to lead the Rams to a 30-27 win over Bucknell University at Christy Mathewson Stadium and help Fordham clinch the 2014 Patriot League title on Friday night.
 
With the win, Fordham's eighth straight, the #9 Rams improve to 9-1 overall, 5-0 in the Patriot League, while Bucknell falls to 7-2 overall, 3-1 in the conference.
 
The game marked the second time that the Rams have clinched a Patriot League title at Bucknell as the 2002 squad also won the championship at Christy Mathewson Stadium.
 

Maetzold, who won his second straight game in place of starter Mike Nebrich, completed 24 of 34 passes for 285 yards and two scores with nine of those completions going to Sam Ajala for 103 yards and five to Jones for 79 yards.
 
On the ground, freshman running back Chase Edmonds carried 21 times for 103 yards and two scores, his eighth consecutive and, ninth overall, 100-yard game of the year. His two touchdowns give him 20 on the year, tying Edmonds with Kirwin Watson (2003) for the Fordham single season record. His 103 rushing yards bring his season total to 1,425, good for fifth place on the school's single season rushing record list.
 
Unlike the last time the Rams clinched at Bucknell, a 34-7 Fordham win, this year it was a much more difficult task. The Rams trailed by seven after a Bucknell touchdown with 3:15 left in regulation but Fordham showed its resiliency, responding with a four-play, 75-yard drive in just 1:10 to knot the game at 24 on a four-yard Edmonds touchdown run.
 
The drive started on the Fordham 25 after 19-yard Jordan Chapman kickoff return. On the first play, Maetzold connected with Tebucky Jones, Jr. for a gain of 16 yards and then Edmonds covered 28  yards on a rush to put the ball on the Bucknell 31. Maetzold then found Ajala on the right side and Ajala almost found the end zone himself, getting tackled on the four and Edmonds covered the four yards on the next play  to tie the game after a Michael Marando PAT.
 
Bucknell still had two minutes left in regulation and managed to get to the Fordham 45 but DeAndre Slate got to Bison quarterback Trey Lauletta for a sack and the Bison punted the ball to the Rams with 30 seconds left in regulation.
 
Fordham won the overtime coin toss and elected to play defense first. Bucknell gained four yards on the first play but an incomplete pass and a Justin Vaughn sack of Lauletta forced the Bison to kick a 44-yard field goal for a 27-24 lead.
 

On Fordham's first offensive play of overtime, Edmonds gained three yards before Maetzold hooked up with Ajala for an 18-yard gain to put the ball on the Bucknell 10. After an incomplete pass, Maetzold found Tebucky Jones, Jr. in the left corner of the end zone for the game-winner.
 
The Rams threatened first, taking the opening kickoff and driving to the Bucknell four but on second down, a Maetzold pass into the end zone was tipped and intercepted.
 
Fordham did strike first later in the quarter as Edmonds capped an eight-play, 57-yard drive with a one-yard scoring plunge for a 7-0 Ram lead with 3:33 left in the period.  The big play of the drive was a seven-yard completion from Maetzold to Tebucky Jones, Jr. on third and four from the Bucknell 40 that was extended another 15 yards by a Bucknell roughing the passer penalty.
 
The Bison tied the game at seven early in the second with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Lauletta to Jake Hartman 1:11 into the quarter.
 
The Rams came back with a 68-yard drive that stalled on the Bucknell seven where Marando came on to boot a 24-yard field goal to give Fordham a 10-7 lead with 10:00 remaining in the first half.
 
But Bucknell tied it on the ensuing possession, moving to the Fordham 14 where Derek Maurer connected on a 31-yard field goal with 4:57 on the clock.
 
The Bison had a chance to take the lead when Maetzold was intercepted by Louis Taglianetti on the Fordham 34 but the Fordham defense dug in , not allowing a first down and Bucknell punted the ball back to the Rams with 2:48 left.
 
After Edmonds gained 30 yards on two rushes, the Rams were at midfield and Maetzold went to work, sandwiching a pair of passes around a sack, to place the ball on the Bucknell 32. A Kendall Pearcey rush gained 12 yards and, one play later, Maetzold connected with Dan Light over the middle with a 20-yard scoring strike and a 17-10 Fordham lead with 35 seconds left in the first half.
 
Bucknell tied the game at 17 in the third quarter on a two-yard pass from Lauletta to Patrick Kelly before taking its first lead of the game with 3:15 left in the fourth.
 
Slate led the Fordham defense with 12 total tackles, six solo, including 1.5 sacks, while Austin Hancock added ten stops, three solo, and a pass breakup and Brett Biestek finished with nine tackles, five solo, including 3.0 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.
 
The Rams return to action next Saturday, November 15, as they host Georgetown University in a Patriot League game on Jack Coffey Field at 1:00 p.m.