By Conor Nevins
The Northeastern University football team (3-4, 2-2) dropped its second consecutive game Saturday afternoon, 35-26, against the No. 19 University of Maine Black Bears (4-3, 2-2) in a pivotal Atlantic 10 matchup. Both teams entered the game with 3-3 records, hoping to climb above .500 as well as gain standing in the intensely competitive A-10 conference.
Coach Rocky Hager’s team showcased an impressive offensive display in response to last week’s stagnant showing against Harvard University, amassing 472 total yards to Maine’s 333. Senior quarterback Shawn Brady had a career day, completing 28 of 43 passes for a career best 353 yards and scoring three touchdowns (two rushing).
However, just like the Harvard game, the Huskies turned the ball over in crucial situations, handing the Black Bears field position, points and eventually the game.
Brady threw two interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown, and lost a fumble, while place-kicker Miro Kesic had two field goal attempts blocked, shutting the door on numerous attempts by the Huskies to regain control of a game they were in up until the final whistle.
Coach Hager praised the efforts of his team, but once again felt the sting of another game given away due to turnovers.
“I thought we had good enough performances on the offensive and defensive side to win the game,” Hager said. “Unfortunately, turnovers and plays on special teams hurt us. The handling of the football is something you emphasize everyday in practice so you don’t like for those things to happen.”
Although the bottom line does not sit well with the Huskies, as they dropped their second consecutive game, with No.7 University of New Hampshire coming up next, the turnovers should not take away from an otherwise brilliant performance by Brady and the NU offense.
Twice bringing drives to the Black Bear one-yard line, Brady used his legs to gain the first two scores for the Huskies, the second of which gave NU their only lead of the game at 17-14 with 12:03 remaining in the third quarter.
Both defenses battled to keep the score close and Maine led 21-17 heading into the fourth quarter. A field goal by Kesic to start the fourth would have cut the Black Bear’s lead to one but Brandon McGown came in to block the kick, setting up a 28 yard touchdown run by senior running back Marcus Williams to increase the Black Bears lead to 28-17.
On the following drive, Manauris Arias intercepted a Brady pass and returned it 54 yards for the touchdown, giving Maine a 35-17 lead just under three minutes into the fourth quarter.
A Kesic field goal and a 49-yard touchdown reception by junior wide receiver Cory Parks would give the Huskies a chance to trim the lead to one possession, but a missed two-point conversion would end any hope of a comeback and all but seal the victory for the home team.
Parks would finish the day with a career high 10 catches for 168 yards including the touchdown while running back James West rushed for his second straight 100-yard day, amassing 116 yards on 26 carries.
Despite the turnovers, coach Hager insists there is no panic with his explosive but mistake-prone offense.
“We need to keep emphasizing being fundamentally correct with how you play and staying within our offensive system,” Hager said. “We understand the mistakes that were made and we need to continue to work to improve upon them.”
The Huskies return home Saturday for the Homecoming game against the University of New Hampshire at 12:30 p.m. at Parsons Field.
