Football Takes Down Bucknell, 66-21

Bronx, N.Y. – Last week, Fordham senior quarterback Tim DeMorat seemed as if he were trying to tie Mike Nebrich on the school's career passing touchdowns list. Today he DID tie a Nebrich record, throwing six scoring strikes to lead Fordham to a 66-21 Patriot League win over Bucknell University on Jack Coffey Field.
 
With the win, Fordham wins its fourth straight and improves to 4-3 overall, 2-0 in the Patriot League, while Bucknell falls to 1-5 overall, 0-2 in the conference.
 
DeMorat completed 26 of 36 passes for 318 yards and the six touchdowns in just over two quarters of work. He tied the school mark with the six touchdowns, first set by Kevin Eakin against Rhode Island in 2003 and matched by Nebrich against Penn in 2014.
 
Junior wide receiver Dequece Carter led all Fordham receivers with ten catches for 87 yards and two touchdowns while senior Fotis Kokosioulis had six receptions for 76 yards and three scores. On the ground, senior Trey Sneed rushed 15 times for 137 yards.
 
Defensively freshman linebacker James Conway made ten tackles, five solo, including one for loss, while senior Alfonzo Dixon IV finished with eight stops, four solo, including 2.5 tackles for loss, and 2.0 sacks.
 
Much like last week, the Fordham offense came out firing on all cylinders, scoring a touchdown on its first four possessions to take a 28-7 first quarter lead that grew into a 45-14 advantage at the half.
 
Takeaways
• The Rams won their fourth straight, the first four-game winning streak for the Rams since 2015.
 
• Fordham opens Patriot League play 2-0 for the first time since 2016.
 
• DeMorat has completed 87 of 129 passes (67.4%) for 1,242 yards and 15 touchdowns over the past four games (all Fordham wins).
 
• The game was James Conway's fourth straight double-digit tackles game.
 
• Junior kicker Nick Leinenweber converted on all nine PATs today and is a perfect 30-for-30 on the year.
 
• Junior kicker Michael Bernard kicked off eleven times with ten of those going for touchbacks (the other was caught on the Bucknell eight).
 
• Fordham entered the game without a turnover in the previous three games but lost four fumbles in the game.
 
• The 66 points are the most scored by the Rams against Bucknell and the 45-point margin of victory is the largest in the Fordham-Bucknell series.
 
• The 66 points also ties the school record against a Division I team (the Rams scored 66 in 1936 and 1937 against Franklin & Marshall).
 
• It is the first time in school history that the Rams scored more than 50 points in back-to-back games.
 
• Fordham's 697 yards of total offense is a Patriot League season-high and a top-ten total for an NCAA FCS team this year.
 
• The Rams have won nine straight over the Bison and now lead the all-time series, 19-18.
 
• The nine straight wins over Bucknell is the longest winning streak over a Patriot League opponent for the Rams.
 
• It was the first time Fordham defeated an opponent twice in the same calendar year in school history (Fordham defeated the Bison, 31-17, during the 2021 spring season).
 
By the Numbers
5 – Different quarterbacks to take a snap for Fordham today (DeMorat, Sean Holland, Grant Wilson, Joey Gulbin, and Tom Sharkey).
 
8 – Career 300-yard passing games for Tim DeMorat.
 
9 – Tackles for loss recorded by Fordham
 
30:00 – Time of possession by both teams today.
 
57 –Career touchdown passes for Tim DeMorat, third all-time at Fordham.
 
61 – Rushing yards for sophomore Taj Barnes, a career-high.
 
62 – Wins for Fordham since 2012, the most of any New York City area school.
 
66 – Points scored by the Rams, the most in a Patriot League game in school history.
 
87 – Rushing yards for senior Antonio Cortex Feria, a career-high (Feria had a 60-yard touchdown run).
 
343 – Rushing yards for the Rams, a season-high.
 
620 – Career completions for Tim DeMorat, moving him ahead of Kevin Anderson and into third on the Rams' career list.

697 – Total yards of offense for the Rams, their third straight 500-yard game and a season-high.

7,323– Career passing yards for Tim DeMorat, fourth all-time at Fordham.
 
What's Next?
• The Rams continue Patriot League play as they host the Lehigh University Mountain Hawks on Jack Coffey Field next Saturday, October 23, at 1:00 p.m.
 
• It will be the 33rd meeting between Fordham and Lehigh on the gridiron.
 
• The Mountain Hawks lead the all-time series, which started in 1923, 25-7.
 
• Lehigh took the most recent matchup, 30-27 in overtime, on October 19, 2019 despite a career-day for Fordham running back Zach Davis, who rushed 34 times for 185 yards, both career-bests.
 
• The Rams have taken five of the past seven meetings, including a 43-14 win in Bethlehem in 2018 as Tim DeMorat completed 14 of 23 passes for 299 yards and two touchdowns and Tyriek Hopkins gained 117 yards on the ground with a score.