By Zach Jacovini
Staff Writer
Through rain and a sloppy offensive performance throughout the game, the Lions were able to get back in the win column with a dominant, shutout win over the Kean University Cougars.
Senior Stephen Begen started the game at quarterback for the Lions for the first time this season, playing a decent game in a hostile atmosphere. Begen would end the day with just 134 yards and two touchdown passes, but he took care of the football, yielding only one interception to the Cougars.
The real story of the day was the Lions power-running game in the rain. Lions coaches did an excellent job of planning for the poor weather conditions throughout the contest, and they decided on keeping the ball in the hands of their running backs for most of the afternoon.
These extra carries given to junior running backs Jayson Schmidt and Ryan McKinney paid off for the Lions, as Schmidt ran 19 times for 112 yards, and McKinney ran 16 times for 93 yards.
The Lions entered the game with a ground-oriented offensive game plan, and against the porous Cougars defense, it worked to perfection, as the Lions outran the Cougars, putting up a net 229 yards rushing compared to just 40 from Kean.
This power-running game scheme by the Lions along with an immaculate defense is the real story of the game. The Lions shut-down opposing quarterback Robbie Nungesser, as he threw an abysmal 86 yards on 12/27 passing with two interceptions on the day as well, both by sophomore cornerback Jack Young.
Nungesser was limited as a quarterback because of the pressure created by the Lions defensive line, and as a result the entire Cougar offense sputtered. Sophomore edge rusher Jameson Sessa led the team with seven total tackles, and sophomore linebacker Dave Giulian led the team with two sacks on the day. The Cougars finished the game with a pitiful 126 yards of offense, compared to the Lions 363 yards.
This shutdown performance was exactly what the Lions were hoping to bounce back into after their previous heartbreaking loss last week versus the Rowan Profs at home on a hail-mary pass.
The Lions are back in the win column, and must come up with another staunch defensive-effort for their homecoming week game versus the Gettysburg College Bullets on Oct. 21.
