Football Pleases Family Weekend Crowd

Bronx, N.Y. – The last, and only, time that the University of Richmond football squad paid a visit to Jack Coffey Field the weather dominated the day. The Spiders and Rams plodded through a wet, muddy field, made that was by the remnants of a tropical storm, in a game that would end in a 3-3 tie. Today the weather was ideal but it seemed as if they game would end in a regulation tie. However, junior defensive back Dervin Hylton, Jr. took it upon himself to prevent that from happening, breaking up two Richmond passes in the end zone in the final minute to help Fordham to a 23-16 win in front of a Parent's Weekend crowd of 5,578.
 
With the win, Fordham improves to 2-3 on the season while Richmond falls to 1-3.
 
Junior running back Zach Davis, who gained a career-high 146 yards on 13 carries, led the offense while sophomore quarterback Tim DeMorat completed 20 of 30 passes for 142 yards and two scores, both going to sophomore wide receiver Fotis Kokosioulis, who caught nine passes for 45 yards.
 
Defensively, sophomore linebacker Ryan Greenhagen recorded 13 total tackles, ten solo, including 4.5 for loss and a sack, as the Rams limited Richmond to just 65 net rushing yards and 14 first downs.
 
Trailing 10-0 in the second quarter a 41-yard Andrew Mevis field goal midway through the quarter made it a 10-3 game and then DeMorat connected with Kokosioulis on a 12-yard scoring strike with nine seconds left in the half to knot the game at ten at the break.
 
A 32-yard Jake Larson field goal midway through the third gave the Spiders a 13-10 lead but Fordham answered with a one-yard scoring pass from DeMorat to Kokosioulis to take a 16-3 lead.
 
Just before the end of the third DeMorat ran in from three yards out to bump the Fordham lead to ten 23-13, before Richmond answered with a 41-yard Larson field goal early in the fourth to make it a 23-16 game. The Fordham defense then dug in, allowing just one first down in the fourth quarter.
 
Takeaways
• The win evens the all-time series with Richmond at 1-1-1
 
• Tim DeMorat has thrown at least one touchdown pass in each of the first five games this year.
 
• Zach Davis now has four career 100-yard rushing games, three of those coming this year.
 
• Ryan Greenhagen entered the game off back-to-back Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week honors.
 
• Fordham was 8-for-16 on third down conversions.  
 
• It was Fordham's first win over a CAA opponent since a 27-24 win over #8 Villanova in 2013.
 
• The game featured nine players on each squad who played high school football with a member of the opposing team.

• Tom Dewey, who served as the Fordham head track and field/cross country coach for 39 years before retiring in June, was honored at halftime.
 
• The Fordham coaching staff wore special Coach for Cure MD patches on the sideline today in support of an effort undertaken by the members of the American Football Coaches Association to raise awareness of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy -- a fatal genetic disorder affecting young men.
 
By the Numbers
4 – Sacks by the Fordham defense, tying a season-high.
 
4.5 – Tackles for loss recorded by Ryan Greenhagen, a career-high (previous high was 2.5 in the season-opener with CCSU this year).
 
5 – Touchbacks on kickoffs by Andrew Mevis (on five kicks).
 
9 – Tackles for loss recorded by the Fordham defense, a season-high.
 
9 – Receptions by Fotis Kokosioulis, tying his season-high set last week at Stony Brook.
 
15 – True freshmen to appear in the game for the Rams.
 
32 – Home wins by Fordham since 2012, the tenth-most of any NCAA FCS team.
 
54 – Wins by Fordham since 2012, the most of any Metropolitan football team.
 
65 – Net rushing yards by Richmond, a season-low for a Fordham opponent.
 
147 – Rushing yards for Zach Davis, a career-high (previous high was 140 at Bryant earlier this year).
 
What's Next?
• The Rams travel to New Haven, Connecticut, to face the Yale University Bulldogs next Saturday, October 5, at 1:00 p.m.
 
• It will be the tenth meeting between Fordham and Yale on the gridiron.
 
• The Bulldogs lead the all-time series, 6-3, including a 41-10 win in the last meetings between the two teams in 2017 at Fordham when current Ram head coach Joe Conlin was the Yale offensive coordinator.