By Chris Estrada

DURHAM, N.H. – Neither rain, wind nor cold could stop Maurice Murray from running over No. 8 New Hampshire.

The senior tailback was the star of the show, rushing for a career-high 206 yards and three touchdowns on a whopping 55 carries, to power Northeastern (2-7, 1-5) to a 31-13 victory over the Wildcats (6-3, 3-3) at Cowell Stadium in Durham, N.H.

Afterward, Murray’s 230-pound frame visibly shivered as head coach Rocky Hager called the game “one of the most rewarding wins I’ve had as a coach.” When Hager got around to Murray and found out about his 55 carries, he quipped to his senior, “Man, you oughta be sore!”

To which a shivering Murray replied quietly, “Pretty cold, I’ll say that.”

In the game, Murray surpassed Tim Gale’s rushing touchdown record of 36, collecting three to lift him to 39 in his career.

His performance kept the Huskies red-hot on offense all day. When Murray needed a breather from his duties, junior back Alex Broomfield stepped in and kept the drives alive, as did junior quarterback Anthony Orio.

The offensive line controlled the line of scrimmage throughout the contest and helped chew up the clock (NU’s 48:13 to UNH’s 11:47). NU kept All-American quarterback Ricky Santos from inflicting damage with a ‘Cats offense that averaged 41.5 points per game heading into Saturday.

“The plan was that we needed to keep the ball in our hands and the best way to do that is not to go out and throw it an awful lot,” Hager said. “Just enough to keep them from being a nine-man front … and even when they were a nine-man front, we still moved the ball pretty darn well.

The fourth-year coach also praised the offense for its ability to stay away from costly penalties.

“The biggest thing is we finally got to the point where we weren’t having those little busts along the way and that allowed us to finish those drives,” he said. “I think that got to be contagious and that it got to be infectious for the [offensive line].”

Northeastern started the game with an 11-play, 65-yard drive with Murray at the forefront. He broke the record to finish the drive, a three-yard run to make it 7-0 Huskies. After UNH failed to answer, Northeastern’s second series stretched 90 yards on 16 plays – also ending in a Murray touchdown, this time from one yard away.

Down 14-0, the Wildcats got in gear and drove down to the Husky seven. But on fourth-and-2, Santos’ pass for tight end Scott Sicko was incomplete.

The Huskies responded by playing ball control to perfection once again. Munching eight minutes and 58 seconds from the clock, the 93-yard march ended with a three-yard touchdown pass from Orio to junior tailback Alex Broomfield, making it 21-0 with 3:11 left in the first half.

UNH finally got on the board with a 22-yard touchdown reception by tailback Chad Kackert with 59 seconds left in the half, but it didn’t stop the ‘Cats defensive linemen from showing frustration.

“Halftime, we noticed that [the UNH defensive line] were throwing their helmets in disgust … so we knew we had them right there,” said senior left guard Scott Kaplan.

Murray had gained 128 yards on 29 carries in the first half and the NU offensive front had broken them mentally.

“[The offensive line] was very important,” Murray said. “We got to keep those guys fresh and happy up front and to have [Broomfield] come in when I needed a blow, that was important to our success. Keeping the ball, controlling the clock the whole game, that was a key point.”

UNH got the ball back at the beginming of the the second half, but on third-and-two from the NU 47, running back Robert Simpson lost control of the pigskin, with Husky senior linebacker Joe Mele recovering. NU’s ensuing drive ended in a blocked field goal, but still ate up 8:38 from the third quarter. Sophomore kicker Mat Johnson would get his three points later, connecting from 22 yards to make it 24-7 with 11:40 left in the game.

Santos was picked off by linebacker David Akinniyi two plays into the next UNH drive and the Huskies would deliver the coup de grace – a five-yard touchdown run from Murray – with 4:18 left. The ‘Cats finished the scoring with a two-yard pass from Santos to Kackert with 2:39 on the clock.

Northeastern returns to Parsons Field this weekend, taking the field Saturday against Hofstra at noon for Alumni and Senior Day.