Bears struggle against Rhodes offense

| Sports Reporter

The Washington University football team allowed eight sacks in a 28-10 loss to Rhodes College on the road Saturday. The Bears dropped to 3-1 after its first loss of the season.

Senior quarterback Buck Smith finished the game with 202 yards through the air. However, due to sacks, he had 58 rushing yards. Four of the eight sacks by Rhodes College came from senior linebacker Desmond Hendricks. In total, the sacks accounted for a loss of 65 yards.

“We were ready, we just didn’t perform. It was kind of the whole offensive line. We didn’t step up when we needed to step up, and we just weren’t able to take care of business,” Wash. U. senior, left guard Dan Elliot said.

Rhodes quarterback Brett Stoots picked apart the Bears’ defense in the first quarter. Rhodes only took two plays to cover 80 yards and score on its first drive, which Stoots finished on a 66-yard pass to receiver Jake Jackson 2:49 into the game to make the score 7-0.

Stoots’ second touchdown of the game came with 4:26 left in the quarter, a 68-yard pass to George Smith, making the score 14-0.

Rhodes scored another unanswered touchdown to extend the lead to 21 points after a 12-yard run by running back Charles Hoggard early in the second quarter.

“We needed to step up to the plate, and that didn’t happen,” Head Coach Larry Kindbom said. “My job is to get this team prepared mentally and physically, and I let them down.”

Wash. U. had its first opportunity to put points on the board with 6:20 left in the half with a 45-yard field goal. The kick was missed, however, and the Lynx took over.

“Rhodes did a good job getting after us and attacking what we do best,” Kindbom said. “We had some breakdowns that we could not recover from.”

“We had trouble running the football, which makes it hard to be consistent on first down. That leads to a lot of three-and-outs cause you’re going to end up passing the ball a lot more than you want to,” Smith said.

The special teams unit gave the Bears life in the second half.

With Rhodes backed up at its own three-yard line and punting, freshman Nick Hillard blocked the kick and took it into the end zone, cutting the lead to 21-7.

On the Bears’ next drive, midway through the third quarter, senior Tommy Bawden threw a 27-yard pass to freshman Michael Weiss on a fake punt. The drive lasted six more plays and ended with a 33-yard field goal from Johnson.

Turnovers prevented any chance of a fourth-quarter comeback by Wash. U. Smith threw three interceptions in the final 15 minutes of the game. The third pick was returned 52 yards for a touchdown by Rhodes’ Pete Bilan, capping the score of the game at 28-10.

Wash. U.’s defense vastly improved in the second half, allowing only 63 yards of total offense. However, the team could not make up for the deficit built early in the game.

“I guess we just settled down, and we played our defense. We’re capable of doing that every quarter. We just were sloppy in the first half, and we knew we could play that way the whole game. We just couldn’t put it together in the first half,” senior defensive back Drew Makar said.

Despite the loss, junior receiver Matt Mangini had 99-yards receiving, a team and career best.

The Bears face a tough game at home on Saturday, Oct. 11 against No. 7 Wabash College.

“We have good players and a good team,” Kindbom said. “We need to blend together on every play, though, and keep our mistakes to a minimum.

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