Moon Township, Pa. – The
Robert Morris University football team extended its winning streak to five and remained in a tie for first place in the Northeast Conference standings Saturday with a 41-21 victory over Duquesne at Joe Walton Stadium.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Having trailed at halftime in each of its previous four victories, RMU (6-4 / 5-0 NEC) held Duquesne scoreless in the first half and grabbed a 20-0 advantage at the break. An opportunistic defense set up the first touchdown of the day for the Colonials, as defensive back
Jacob White notched the first of four interceptions on the afternoon. White picked off Brett Brumbaugh of the Dukes and returned it 37 yards to the three-yard line of Duquesne. Two plays later quarterback
George Martin punched it in from two yards out to give Robert Morris an early lead.
HAVE A DAY, GRAY
Safety
Mason Gray put forth a game for the record books Saturday, both in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) as well as for RMU. He returned a pair of interceptions for touchdowns in the second half, becoming the 28th player in NCAA FCS history to turn the trick and the first since Ray Mitchell of Northern Iowa in 2013. Gray also joined former Robert Morris defensive back Corey Oaks (2001-02) in the RMU records, as Oaks finished with two pick sixes in a 41-12 win over Buffalo State (9/7/02) at Moon Stadium.
QUOTABLE
"I read my keys and did what our coaches said to do in practice, and it showed up in the game," Gray said. "It feels great. This whole week in practice we were striving on attacking, getting to the ball and forcing turnovers. We've been stressing that all year. To play a full game for the first time this year, it feels good."
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
The first interception of the contest for Gray came with 7:06 to go in the third quarter. The Dukes (6-3 / 4-1 NEC) trimmed their deficit to 20-7 and were looking for more when Gray intercepted Brumbaugh in stride and raced 36 yards to the end zone to give Robert Morris a 27-7 edge. Duquesne pulled to within 27-14 before Gray stepped up again, intercepting Brumbaugh for the second time and zig zagging his way 81 yards for a touchdown and a 34-14 lead for RMU with 3:36 to play.
TURNOVERS
Duquesne (6-3 / 4-1 NEC) suffered seven turnovers in the contest, losing three fumbles in addition to its four interceptions. Linebacker
Aniello Buzzacco registered a game-high 11 tackles, forced a fumble, recovered one and also returned an interception 22 yards. Also recovering fumbles for RMU were linebacker
Brady Ours and defensive lineman
Izon Pulley.
INSURANCE
Brumbaugh, who finished 24-for-50 for 302 yards and two touchdowns on the afternoon, hit Kellon Taylor for a 22-yard touchdown pass with 2:29 left to close the deficit for the Dukes to 34-21. Duquesne tried an on-side kick to retain possession, but Robert Morris forced the ball out of the bounds. On the first play from scrimmage in the drive, running back
Terence Stephens, Jr., broke through on the outside and raced 47 yards down the sideline to give the Colonials a 41-21 advantage.
FORTY
In snapping a six-game slide to Duquesne, the 41 points for Robert Morris are the most scored against the Dukes in the all-time series. It also marks the most points for the Colonials against an NCAA Division I opponent since a 45-14 victory over Saint Francis (10/8/11) at Joe Walton Stadium.
QUOTABLE
"Our young men played together," head coach
Bernard Clark, Jr., said. "Our guys did a good job executing things we set out for them. We were facing a team in Duquesne that was a champion last year. If we would've got behind on them there's no telling what could've happened, so I'm proud of the start we had."
STATS AND NOTES
Stephens, Jr., notched his second 100-yard rushing effort of the 2019 campaign with 119 yards on 20 attempts, an average of 5.9 yards per rush … Tight end
Matthew Gonzalez paced the RMU receiving corps with three catches for 65 yards, while wide receiver
Tim Vecchio caught three passes for 22 yards and a touchdown … Gonzalez had his streak of consecutive games played at home with a touchdown catch snapped at nine ... Martin finished 13-for-23 passing for 131 yards and a touchdown … Defensive lineman
Supilani Mailei posted eight tackles, including two for losses and a sack, and also forced a fumble.
UP NEXT
Robert Morris travels to New Britain, Conn., Saturday, Nov. 16, for a Noon kickoff against Central Connecticut. The Blue Devils prevailed at home, 38-31, in overtime at home against Saint Francis Saturday. Both teams enter the contest 5-0 in the NEC.
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