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It was a fitting ending to a season of disappointment for the University of Maine football team Saturday afternoon on Senior Day. The Black Bears succumbed to James Madison University 14-10.
The Black Bears finish the season at 4-7 and 3-5 in Colonial Athletic Association play, while James Madison improved to 6-5 and 3-5 in CAA play.
Maine took possession of the ball with 3:49 remaining in the game, trailing James Madison 14-10. Needing to put together a 68-yard drive in the waning moments to win the game, they were only able to get 65 — sophomore tight end Jeff Falvey was tackled at the three-yard line as time expired.
The final drive that came up short was arguably Maine’s best all game. It spanned 16 plays and included three third-down conversions as well as a critical fourth-down conversion with 17 seconds left.
With a time-out remaining and the ball at the three-yard line it appeared that UMaine was going to bid farewell to the senior class with a dramatic last-second victory. Instead they ran the ball for no gain, called their last time-out, and ran a tight end screen play short of the goal line.
“I’m hurting on that one, I take full responsibility,” head coach Jack Cosgrove said about the final sequence.
It was an emotional loss on an emotional day for 12 seniors playing their final game. Offensive lineman Matt Barber; cornerback Steven Barker; offensive lineman Alex Batanian; linebacker Levi Ervin; defensive end Omar Jacobs; wide receiver Tyrell Jones; fullback Conor Keating; wide receiver Jeremy Kelley; linebacker Mark Masterson, linebacker Ryan McCrossan; defensive lineman Ryan Nani; and wide receiver Desmond Randall were all honored before the last home game of their careers.
At first, things were promising for the Black Bears. James Madison won the coin toss and elected for their defense to take the field first — a unit that surrendered only 15.2 points per game, good for second in the CAA.
UMaine countered this strategic move by the Dukes, embarking on an 11-play, 73-yard drive that ended with junior quarterback Warren Smith’s 4-yard touchdown plunge.
A fake punt highlighted the drive on fourth-and-two in which junior halfback Pushaun Brown scampered 19 yards, setting the Bears up with a first down inside James Madison territory.
After an impressive opening touchdown drive, the Black Bear defense matched their intensity. The first four drives of the game for James Madison resulted in a three-and-out, turnover on downs after just four plays, three-and-out and a punt. Unfortunately for UMaine they were plagued by offensive ineptitude as well after their initial scoring drive: two punts, and interception and a blocked field goal.
After an efficient yet unspectacular 10-play drive, sophomore kicker Brian Harvey’s 35-yard field goal attempt was blocked by the Dukes’ redshirt sophomore Chase Williams.
Just before halftime the Dukes retained possession at the Maine 46-yard line with a short field.
The Dukes reached into their bag of tricks, with what looked like a jet-sweep to quarterback Dae-Quan Scott, but turned into the longest passing play of the game. Scott, who primarily played quarterback, lined up at wide receiver and came in motion. He took the handoff from senior quarterback Drew Dudzik and launched an arching spiral that found the open wide receiver Renard Robinson, putting the Dukes at the 13-yard line of the Black Bears.
Six plays later, James Madison found the end zone and tied the game at seven.
Despite the long connection, the passing game was relatively quiet for both teams. Dudzik and Scott combined to go 6-8 for 64 yards and an interception while Maine’s Smith completed 23 of 38 for 108 yards and an interception.
“It was difficult to throw the ball in that high wind today,” James Madison head coach Mickey Matthews said. “The ball really took off.”
To account for a lack of passing game, James Madison ran a heavy dose of senior running back Jamal Sullivan (19 carries, 61 yards) and used Scott’s unique athleticism (17 carries, 78 yards).
It was Scott who turned in the play of the game. On the fifth play of the opening drive of the second half, Scott ran outside to the right and broke the first tackle; following that was a spin move that made two defenders miss while creating a seam in the second level of the defense. He hit the seam, evaded one more tackler and 43 yards later, was in the end zone, giving James Madison a 14-7 advantage.
The play was the lone blemish on the day for an outstanding Black Bear defense, which surrendered only 204 yards of total offense and limiting the Dukes to only four of 11 on third down.
“We fit well, he’s a good player, he made a play,” said junior middle linebacker Donte Dennis, who, along with sophomore linebacker Troy Russell, had a game high 11 tackles on the afternoon.
“We just missed tackles [on that play]. It should have been a two yard gain, then a five yard gain, then a 12 yard gain,” Cosgrove said.
Maine’s ensuing drive was a strong response. Pushaun Brown carried UMaine inside the red zone with tough running, including a highlight reel 25-yard run.
The drive stalled at the 19-yard line but as Brian Harvey lined up to attempt a field goal, Maine was flagged for a false start. Instead of a 37-yarder, the attempt was from 42 yards, and Harvey pushed it wide left, contributing to Maine’s anemic 40 percent red zone scoring percentage on the day.
Nearing the end of the third quarter the turning point in the game occurred. Having already converted a third down on a Smith 16-yard scramble earlier in the possession, UMaine faced third-and-one near mid-field. Smith put a pass on the hands of junior halfback Derek Session, who was unable to corral it.
Forced to kick it away, junior punter Jordan Waxman’s punt was muffed on the other end by Scott. Initially, it appeared Maine recovered the fumble, but James Madison emerged from the pile with the ball.
“We made some big mistakes, [we] failed to capitalize on opportunities that could have changed the outcome of the game,” Cosgrove said.
After junior cornerback Jerron McMillian intercepted Scott, Maine was able to tack on a Brian Harvey field goal from 23 yards out and push the score to where it would remain, 14-10.
Perhaps the most important drive of the day from either side came after the field goal. James Madison began a drive at their own 41 line and ended at the Maine 32. Going into the wind, James Madison decided to go for it on fourth-and-nine rather than try a 42-yard field goal, but Scott was sacked by freshman defensive end Michael Cole.
The Dukes turned it back over on downs to the Black Bears, but not before running 10 plays and taking up 6:20 of the fourth quarter.
“We would have liked to get off the field sooner at the end,” Cosgrove said, referencing two big third down conversions by the Dukes that enabled more time to run off.
The turnover set up Maine for their final drive, which ended in heartbreak.
“It was just a two-minute drill; we had to go score a touchdown. I thought we made plays to extend the drive,” Smith said. “We have to finish to be a championship team.”
On this day it was James Madison who finished.
“I told our guys on that last drive that if we tackle we’ll win the game. We tackled poorly all game,” Matthews said.
After the game Smith acknowledged the work that needs to be done before the 2011 campaign.
“We are going to be a better team offensively next year. I promise you that,” he said.
“It’s a tough break and a tough way to end,” said Cosgrove. “The plan was for us to sing the Stein Song at mid-field when this one was over.”
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