Moon Township, Pa. – The Robert Morris University football team scored first, but Duquesne tallied the next 24 points to put a stranglehold on a game it eventually won, 48-24, Saturday night at Arthur J. Rooney Field in Pittsburgh, Pa. The Colonials slip to 1-5 and 0-3 in the Northeast Conference while Duquesne improves to 4-3 and 1-1 in the league.
 
Terence Stephens Jr. rushed for 112 yards on 16 carries and caught six passes for 110 yards. It's the first time an RMU player went over the century mark in both categories since NFL draft pick Tim Hall did so at Wagner on Oct. 15, 1994. Stephens had 212 yards of total offense, averaging 9.7 yards on 22 touches.
 
Jimmy Walker went 19-of-31 passing for 262 yards and a trio of touchdowns. He was haunted by a pair of interceptions, both of which were tipped at the line. He found tight end Matthew Gonzalez seven time for 103 yards and a pair of scores. The aforementioned Stephens had six catches for 110 yards. The Colonials rolled up 423 yards of offense in all, 267 through the air and 156 on the ground.
 
Duquesne took the opening kickoff and was driving on the Colonials, riding the legs of A.J. Hines, who finished with 182 yards rushing, to the RMU four-yard line. A bad handoff, however, led to a turnover as Tyler Lamica pounced on the loose ball at the six-yard line. Stephens carried the load on the ensuing drive for Robert Morris, toting for a total of 56 yards on the team's first drive. Walker capped it off with a four-yard scoring toss to Gonzalez to give RMU a 7-0 lead at 5:05 of the first quarter.
 
The Dukes responded with a 10-play, 60-yard drive, knotting the game at 7-7 when Hines plunged over the goal line from two yards out. RMU would punt on its next possession, giving Duquesne an opportunity to take its first lead of the game. Daniel Parr found Nehari Crawford down the middle of the field for a 42-yard touchdown that put the host squad on top, 14-7. The Colonials second turnover of the game, a tipped pass interception, turned into 10-yard rushing score by Hines putting the host team on top, 21-7, with 7:43 left in the second quarter before a 30-yard field goal by Mitch Maczura hit a 30-yard field goal.
 
Robert Morris pushed back on the next drive when a fake punt conversion on fourth-and-four when Mathew Barr connected with Gonzalez for five yards kept the drive alive. On the next play, Walker fired a bullet down the seam to Stephens who rolled 55 yards before being taken down at the Dukes nine yard line. Four plays – and one pass interference call - later, Walker dropped a touch pass into the hands of Gonzalez in the left corner of the endzone.
 
Duquesne would take advantage of the final 39 seconds of the first half, though, going 69 yards in just five plays to take a 31-10 lead into the break following Hines third scoring rush of the half.
 
The teams traded scores for the remainder of the second half. Daquan Worley found the end zone from 23 yards and Nick Bisceglia answered that with a 29-yard field goal. Maczura hit a 31-yard field goal of his own to cap the third quarter scoring.
 
Walker found Brandon Magee from six yards out, his third passing touchdown of the game making it 41-24 early in the fourth quarter. Two plays later, Worley burst through the line and went 52 yards for the Dukes to cap the scoring at 48-24 in favor of the host team.
 
Robert Morris returns to the friendly confines of Joe Walton Stadium next Saturday, Oct. 20, when they host Central State. Kick-off is scheduled for Noon.