Photo Credit: Randall Wolf
Moon Township, Pa. – The
Robert Morris University football team opened a four-game road trip Saturday by notching its first road win since 2015 with a 31-21 victory over VMI at Foster Stadium.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
For the second consecutive game, redshirt sophomore running back
Alijah Jackson eclipsed the 100-yard plateau. He started the scoring on the afternoon, as on the second play of RMU's second drive of the contest he raced 47 yards to give the Colonials (1-3) an early 7-0 advantage.
GIVETH, THEN TAKETH AWAY
Robert Morris looked to add to its lead in the first quarter on its next drive, as quarterback
Caleb Lewis hit tight end
Matthew Gonzalez for a 55-yard completion. However, Kaleb Tucker forced a Gonzalez fumble, with the Keydets (2-2) recovering at their own 16-yard line. No matter. Redshirt senior
Heavon Price returned the favor on the next play, forcing an Alex Ramsey fumble that was recovered by sophomore
Ezra Tupuola. The Colonials capitalized on the takeaway, as Lewis connected with redshirt freshman
Garrett Houser for a 15-yard touchdown pass to give RMU a 14-3 advantage.
BEND, DON'T BREAK
The RMU defense came up big in the first half in helping the Colonials snap a 21-game road losing streak. Robert Morris held the Keydets without a touchdown in the first half, allowing just a pair of field goals. Sophomore linebacker
Aniello Buzzacco recorded nine of his team-high 13 tackles in the first 30 minutes, while redshirt senior
Mason Gray notched eight of his nine stops in the first half.
THE PRICE IS RIGHT
Redshirt senior
Heavon Price, who registered three tackles last season, put together his best game in a Robert Morris uniform against VMI. In addition to forcing a fumble that led to RMU's second score of the game, he compiled a career-high 10 tackles while breaking up a pair of passes. The Keydets trailed, 31-21, late in the fourth quarter, and on arguably their final attempt to get back in the game, Price broke up a Reece Udinski pass intended for Javeon Lara on 4th-and-10 to help VMI turn the ball over on downs.
TWO IN A ROW
For the second consecutive game, Jackson went over 100 yards rushing and Gonzalez eclipsed 100 yards receiving. Jackson averaged 6.3 yards per carry, compiling 125 yards on the ground on 20 attempts. Gonzalez caught just three balls on the afternoon from Lewis but amassed 126 yards receiving, an average of 42.0 yards per reception. Thanks to his three catches, Gonzalez moved into a tie with former tight end Brent Hockenberry (2000-01) and wide receiver
Donte Jeter (2011-13) for eighth all-time in program history with 73 receptions.
IN THE POCKET
Caleb Lewis got the start under center for Robert Morris and finished 12-for-17 passing for 214 yards, a touchdown and an interception. His favorite target of the afternoon was senior
DeLano Madison, who finished with four receptions for 46 yards.
BEST OUT OF FIVE
The meeting between RMU and VMI was the fifth in the all-time series between the two programs. The Colonials picked up their third consecutive win over the Keydets and also improved to 3-2 (.600) in the all-time series against VMI.
UP NEXT
Robert Morris concludes the non-conference portion of its 2019 slate Saturday, Sept. 28, with a 6:00 p.m. kickoff at Youngstown State.
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