By Sophie Afdhal, Sports Editor ||
F&M football continued its promising season Homecoming Weekend with the team’s third win in a row and fifth overall this season against Moravian College. The recent streak of wins began with the win against McDaniel College on the Oct. 18. The men defeated McDaniel 31-7 and controlled the time of possession 36:10 to 23:50. This win not only improved the Dips’ record but also made F&M one of only eight programs to achieve 600 overall wins.
Achieving this goal marks a major accomplishment for the College, the football program, and John Troxell, head coach. Previously this has only been reached by the University of Mount Union, Wittenberg University, Washington & Jefferson College, Widener University, Williams College, Wabash College, and Amherst College. All these programs have been going for more than a century, and F&M reached this momentous win in its 127th year.
During the team’s defeat of McDaniel, the defensive line had a strong performance, did not allow a sack all day, and cleared the way for the offensive line to rack up 223 rushing yards and 207 passing yards. A.J. Koikoi ’16 had five tackles, including one sack and 1.5 tackles for a loss. The next matchup put the Diplomats against Moravian College at Homecoming. They defeated them 42-12 in front of a record-setting Homecoming crowd.
Once again this game proved momentous, as Jordan Zackery ’15 broke the all-time school record for receptions. Justin Salton ‘04, with 241 grabs, previously held the record, but Zachary now holds the title with 242. The Diplomats truly dominated in this game. They held 222 passing yards and 303 rushing yards over Moravian’s 179 and 72 respectively. The men also held possession 40:15 of the game, while their opponents held it for only 19:45. Matt Magarity ‘16 had an excellent game, completing 19 out of 27 passes and a total of 162 yards and leading the team 74 yards on the ground.
F&M secured the third win in its streak this past weekend against Susquehanna University. The men defeated their Centennial Conference opponents 13-8, improving their record to 4-3 in Centennial Conference play. Unlike the other two wins, F&M fought for control throughout. Susquehanna held possession for 31:41 and F&M held it for 28:19. Most of the points were scored early on as the teams hit a stalemate during most of the second and third quarters with strong defenses limiting short offensive possessions.
The men worked for each point and yard to bring home a win for the College.
This Saturday marks the football team’s last home game of the season against Johns Hopkins University. There are two games remaining and the opportunity to secure a strong winning record. The improvement of the F&M football program over the last several years is certainly noticeable and perhaps on Saturday they will continue their winning streak.
Senior Sophie Afdhal is the Sports Editor. Her email is safdhal@fandm.edu.