Football Closes Out Regular Season with Win at Bucknell

Lewisburg, Pa. – There are a lot of things Fordham junior running back has done since he arrived at Fordham in the summer of 2014. But one of the few things he hadn't accomplished was to rush for more than 100 yards against Bucknell, a team known for its stout defense. That changed today as Edmonds ran for 181 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Rams to a 36-22 Patriot League win over the Bison at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium.
 
With the win, Fordham improves to 8-3 overall, 5-1 in the Patriot League, while Bucknell finishes at 4-7 overall, 3-3 in the conference.
 
Edmonds, who entered the game with the school and Patriot League record for career rushing touchdowns, added to that total with his three today and now has 62 over the past three years.
 
The 181 rushing yards bring Edmonds' season total to 1,799, tops in the NCAA FCS and just 39 yards shy of his Fordham single season record of 1,838, set in 2014.
 

Edmonds wasn't alone in leading the Fordham offense as senior quarterback Kevin Anderson completed 17 of 32 passes for 327 yards and two touchdowns with sophomore Austin Longi catching eight of the passes for 114 yards and a score and Robbie Cantelli recording three receptions for 113 yards and a touchdown.
 
Defensively, the Rams' unit allowed just 13 points (the first Bucknell touchdown was on an interception return and the Bison scored on a safety) and limited Bucknell to just 275 yards of total offense. Junior linebacker Niko Thorpe led the Fordham defense with a season-high 12 tackles, seven solo, including two for loss and one sack).
 
The Rams got on the board early as Jihaad Pretlow returned the opening kickoff 56 yards to the Bucknell 39. Seven plays later, Anderson found Longi with a five-yard scoring strike to put Fordham up 7-0, just under two minutes into the game.
 
The Fordham defense held Bucknell on the ensuing possession but the Rams were backed up on their own 12 following a punt. On the first play from scrimmage Bret Burg stepped in front of an Anderson pass and returned it 12 yards for a score to tie the game at seven.
 
The game remained 7-7 until Fordham took over on its own 34 following a punt. Edmonds gained 18 on the first play and then hauled in a pass from Anderson for another 19 yards to put the ball on the Bucknell 29. Eight plays later, Edmonds covered the final four yards to put the Rams up 14-7, with 8:42 left in the half.
 
Bucknell moved the ball to the Fordham 29 on the subsequent series but decided to punt on fourth down, pinning the Rams on their own one. On the first play, Anderson couldn't handle a high snap and lost his balance in the end zone for a Bucknell safety.
 
Late in the first half, the Rams took over on their own 12 with 1:43 left and, after hitting Longi with a 14-yard gain, Anderson found a streaking Cantelli over the middle and Cantelli took it 74 yards to the end zone and a 21-9 Fordham lead with 1:04 remaining in the half.
 
The Bison came out and took the second half kickoff and drove to the Fordham one where Chad Freshnock went up and over the pile only to have Thorpe punch the ball out. But fortunately for Bucknell, Andrew Podbielski grabbed the loose ball in the air for a touchdown, as the Bison pulled within six, 21-15.
 

Neither team was able to generate much offense the rest of the quarter until Fordham took over on its own 19. Edmonds burst through the line for a 24-yard gain on the first play and then picked up 18 more yards and back-to-back carries to put the ball at midfield.
 
The Rams faced a fourth-and-one on the Bucknell six on the first play of the fourth quarter when Edmonds gained five yards and the first down. On the next play Edmonds capped the drive and Anderson found Isaiah Searight with a pass for the two-point conversion and a 29-15 Fordham lead 15 seconds into the final quarter.
 
A one-yard Freshnock rush with 2:28 remaining made it a 29-22 game but Fordham recovered the ensuing onside kick at the 50. Edmonds then put the game away, covering the 50 yards with four rushes, the final a two-yard scoring run with 1:30 left for the 36-22 final.
 
George Dawson added eight tackles for the Fordham defense, including one for loss, while Antonio Jackson and Caleb Ham each recorded eight.
 
Notes
 
Anderson's 327 passing yards brings his career total to 5,907, good for fifth place on the Fordham career list (18 yards behind Joe Moorhead for fourth), while his two touchdown passes brings his career total to 59, third on the Fordham career list.
 
The game was Anderson's third 300-yard game of the year.
 
Edmonds' 181 rushing yards brings his school-record career total to 5,285, 336 yards shy of Jordan Scott's Patriot League career mark of 5,621 yards.
 
The 100-yard game was Edmonds' ninth of the season and the 26th of his career, a Fordham record.
 
Cantelli's touchdown gives him 13 this year the second best single season total in school history (Cantelli had just two receiving touchdowns entering the season).
 
The Rams gained 500 total yards in the game, the most for a Bucknell opponent this year.
 
Fordham is now 21-3 against Patriot League opponents over the past four years (the Rams were 5-1 last year, a perfect 6-0 in 2015 and 5-1 in 2013, though the games in 2013 did not count in the league standings).
 
The Rams have now taken the past four meetings with Bucknell but the Bison still lead the all-time series, 18-14.