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Gallaudet spoils Castleton's Homecoming as Bison run wild, 49-18

CASTLETON, Vt. - The Gallaudet University football team racked up 477 yards of total offense as the Bison ran past Castleton State College, 49-18, on Saturday before a Spartan Homecoming crowd of 3,400. The win is the first for the Bison in the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference.

Gallaudet (2-2, 1-1 ECFC) ran for a program best 448 yards, average of 8.5 yards per rush, as the Bison ran past the Spartans (1-2, 0-1 ECFC), who began Division III football this season. The new rushing yards in a game mark is the best during the Gallaudet football modern era, which dates back to 1947. The loss is the first for Castleton State in its new Spartan Stadium.

"To get a conference win, like this, early in the season is big," said GU coach Ed Hottle, in his fifth season at the helm. "We played really well in a tough environment. When you take an eight-hour road trip it is a challenge for the team."

Sophomore running back Phillip Hayes (Baton Rouge, La.) had a breakout game as he ran for 128 yards and three touchdowns. Hayes ran the ball 10 times and averaged 12.8 yards per carry.

"Phillip got his first start of the season today. He has been working real hard," said Hottle. "He had a breakout day today and stepped up. I am proud of him."

In addition to Hayes' breakout game the Bison received a strong game from fellow sophomore running back Justin Arrigo (Trenton, N.J.) who ran the ball 11 times for 145 yards (13.2 average per rush). The Bison were able to run the ball so well behind the senior offensive line of Benjamin Bottoms (Chesterfield, Va.), Michel Daze (Frederick, Md.), Joshua Doudt (Medina, Ohio), Philip Endicott (Philadelphia, Pa.) and William Jacobs (Austin, Texas).

The Bison defense delivered the first blow to Castleton's offense early in the first quarter after GU had just turned the ball over to the Spartans at the 25-yard line. Junior defensive end Richard Bailey (Willingboro, N.J.) burst through the Spartan line and sacked quarterback Shane Brozowski (24-for-37, 242 yards, two interceptions). Bailey's hit forced the ball to come free and allowed Joshua Doudt to scoop up the ball and run 68 yards for the game's first touchdown.

"The big swing of momentum in the game came early on when Josh returned the fumble for the first touchdown. That gave us confidence and from there we played great consistent Bison football," said Hottle.

Three minutes later, Gallaudet struck again as senior quarterback Jimmy Gardner (St. Augustine, Fla.) connected on a 29-yard pass to senior wide receiver Ryan Lentz (Fremont, Calif.) to give the Bison a 14-0 lead after one quarter of play. Gardner finished the day with 64 rushing yards, one touchdown and complete 1-of-4 passes for 29 yards and one touchdown.

"Jimmy really bounced back today after not having a great week against Mount Ida," said Hottle.

The Bison scored three straight times in the second quarter as junior Cole Johnson (Edina, Minn.), Gardner and Hayes capped off quick strike drives of six plays or less to help give Gallaudet a 35-15 lead at halftime.

The Bison put the game away in the third quarter as Gallaudet pounded the ball on the ground and used up nine minutes and 25 seconds of the clock. Hayes ran in two touchdowns in the quarter as Gallaudet increased its lead to 49-15.

Gallaudet's defense stepped up and held the Spartans to 78 rushing yards as the Bison made five sacks, two interceptions, forced a fumble and Joshua Doudt's fumble return for a touchdown. Freshman linebacker Tom Pangia (Hammonton, N.J.) led the team with 13 tackles followed by Joshua's brother Calvin's 11 tackles. Bailey finished the game with six tackles, one and a half sacks, and two and a half tackles for a loss of 13 yards. Sophomore Jon Van Wey (Alexandria, Va.) made five tackles and one and a half sacks while Joshua Doudt (six tackles) and freshman Joe Conard (Austin, Texas) added a sack each.

"We challenged our defense this week. We knew Castleton State would do things to challenge us. They are a well coached and overall solid team. We wanted to work with our base plays and stay vanilla on defense," said Hottle. "Since I have been here that was the most dominating performance by a Gallaudet defense against the run."

The Spartans added a second field goal from Luis Robitaille with 34 seconds left in the game to close out the game.

GU posted a 2-1 record during its three-game road trip. The Bison return home for four consecutive games at Hotchkiss Field. GU will begin the extended home stand against ECFC foe Husson University on Saturday, October 3, at 12 p.m.

NOTE: The GU coaching staff wore special patches for today's game as part of the Coach to Cure MD, a national charity project of the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA). Thousands of coaches nationwide, at all levels of collegiate football, wore a "Coach to Cure MD" logo patch on the sidelines in an effort to raise awareness and research funding for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, the most prolific genetic killer diagnosed in childhood.  

Also see:

• Gallaudet University football feature story by Rutland Herald in Vt.