Washington University football outhustled the University of Chicago to keep the Founder’s Cup in its possession. The 31-10 victory improved the Red and Green’s record to 6-1, 1-0 in UAA play.

The Founder’s Cup, the trophy that commemorates the first ever UAA game between these two schools, has now been held in St. Louis for 16 of the 21 years of its existence. By winning this game, the Bears, the highest ranked UAA team in the division three rankings, got one step closer to their goal of winning the UAA title for the first time since 2004.

Commenting on the win, WU Quarterback Buck Smith stated, “It was huge. We only have three games in the conference, and starting out 0-1, you really put yourself in a hole.”

Though the score was 31-10, Wash. U. did not play a clean game by any stretch of the imagination. The Maroons outgained the Bears 322-224 in total offense, and WU committed three turnovers. However, Chicago committed seven turnovers which the Red and Green turned into 17 points.

After Smith and Mike Capser connected for a 12 yard touchdown pass on the Bears’ opening drive, defensive lineman Brent Sensenich returned a fumble 62 yards for a touchdown. Linebacker Tyler McSparin had a 37 yard interception return two drives later to make the score 21-0, which began Wash. U.’s slaughter. Junior Tommy Bawden and sophomore Tim Machan also had interceptions of Chicago’s Marshall Oium’s passes, while teammate Brandon Brown picked the ball twice; Todd Palmer also recovered a fumble.

“The defense just went out and made plays when plays presented themselves. We got a lot of pressure on their quarterback,” said Smith.

Aside from the Smith touchdown on the opening drive, Wash. U. running backs ran for 3.5 yards per carry and a touchdown. The offense did little else, as the Maroons held the ball for more time and gained 108 more yards than the Bears.

“Our offense wasn’t as smooth as it has been. They [Chicago] had a good effort from their defense and that allowed them to hang around until the fourth quarter. Our offense did two important things: we scored first, and we put the game away at the end,” stated Head Coach Larry Kindbom.

After the first drive, Smith explained that, “We had some problems getting back in the flow of the game since the defense was on the field for so long. We never made adjustments.”

The Bears hope to keep their road record perfect this season, as the final three games will be away from Francis Field. After a bye week, the Red and Green will square off with UAA preseason favorite Carnegie Melon University on October 27. After facing the Tartans, the Bears will end their conference play the following week at Case Western Reserve University before facing Greenville College in the regular season finale.

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