BOX
SCORE
BRUNSWICK, Maine - The Bowdoin College football team totaled 515
yards of offense and outscored Middlebury 19-0 in the fourth
quarter to win their season-opener on Saturday, 50-35. In a classic
quarterback duel, Oliver Kell tossed for 374 yards and four
touchdowns to lead the Polar Bears (1-0) while Donald McKillop
threw for 420 yards and three scores in defeat for the Panthers
(0-1).
Kell, who threw for the second-most yards in a single game in
program history, became the school's career passing yardage leader
in the victory. He is the first player in school history to eclipse
4,000 career yards passing (4,086 total) and breaks the mark of
3,712 formerly held by Hayes MacArthur '99.
Bowdoin started their season auspiciously, scoring on their first
two drives. A five yard end-around rush by Pat Noone gave the hosts
the lead after a nine-play, 67-yard drive and, after a MIddlebury
punt, Noone found himself on the receiving end of a 51-yard scoring
strike from Kell to give the Polar Bears a 14-0 lead.
Middlebury's offense found their stride on the ensuing possession,
as McKillop directed a four-play, 60-yard drive that ended in a
screen play from the junior quarterback to Matt Rayner, who
scampered through traffic for a 14-yard score. After forcing a
Bowdoin punt, McKillop and Rayner hooked up again - this time on a
24-yard scoring pass - to deadlock the score with just 18 seconds
left in the opening quarter.
After receiving the kickoff, Bowdoin found paydirt on the last
play of the period, as Nick Tom rambled 62 yards through the
Middlebury defense to give the hosts a 21-14 edge.
The Panthers took the lead for the first time in the second
quarter with impressive back-to-back drives. A 10-play, 53-yard
surge was capped by an Erik Rostad dive into the endzone to tie the
game at 21. Later in the quarter, McKillop found Rayner for the
third time with 4:12 left to cap a nine-play drive and give the
visitors at 28-21 lead. Bowdoin managed to trim the advantage
before intermission as Bill Donahue booted a 40-yard field goal
right before the break to close the gap to 28-24.
Bowdoin took the opening kickoff of the second half and cashed in
on an 11-play drive deep into Middlebury territory. On a
fourth-and-goal from the three yard line, Kell rolled right and
found Phil Tonucci wide open in the flat to give the Polar Bears a
31-28 lead. The Panthers regained the lead later in the quarter as
a long pass from McKillop to Bill Greven set up a three-yard plunge
by Rostad to make it 35-31 Middlebury.
The Polar Bear defense clamped down from there, and the Bowdoin
offense continued to roll with 19 unanswered points in the fourth
period. Early in the fourth, a broken play resulted in Kell finding
a wide open Justin Starr for a 32-yard score. After a long
Middlebury drive was stymied in Bowdoin territory, Kell found Noone
again over the middle for a 58-yard touchdown pass to make it
44-35. Late in the quarter, a Kevin Zikaras interception set up a
15-yard touchdown run by Nick Tom, icing the 50-35 victory.
Noone's 12 catches broke the program mark of 11 in a game held by
Bert Sciolla, Paul Wiley and Doug Johnson. His 180 yards receiving
were the fourth-most in school history. Kell's four touchdown
passes were the second-most in school history. Zikaras led Bowdoin
with 15 tackles (nine solo) including three for a loss.
McKillop threw 61 passes, completing 38 for the Panthers and ended
with 420 yards through the air. Rayner and David Reed each finished
with seven catches and 101 yards. Cam Daylor led Middlebury with 10
total tackles while Chris Dola had five tackles (3.5 for loss) and
1.5 sacks in the game.
Middlebury retains an 11-7-1 lead in the all-time series as
Bowdoin earns their first victory against the Panthers since the
2005 season opener (the teams did not play in '06 and '07). The 85
total points are easily the most scored in the series history and
are the most points scored in a Bowdoin game since 2004 when
Hamilton defeated Bowdoin 51-48.
Photos courtesy of Brian Beard and Creative Images
Photography.
