Bulldogs beat RMU, 49-46, on Homecoming

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Junior Tomas Wright (St. Augustine, Fla.) finished with four tackles for a loss and two strip sacks, while senior Price Wilson (Marietta, Ga.) threw for 359 yards and four touchdowns as the Bryant University football team held on to defeat Robert Morris, 49-46, on Saturday afternoon at Beirne Stadium.

Bryant held an 18-point lead on three separate occasions but needed a nine-play, 75-yard drive with under seven minutes remaining to overcome a four-point deficit. Wright's second strip sack of the afternoon then sealed the victory for the Black and Gold.

Wright finished with seven tackles, 2.5 sacks, four tackles for a loss, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery, while senior Thomas Costigan (Stamford, Conn.) tied his career high with 16 tackles. Junior Robert Brown (Palmetto Bay, Fla.) added a career-high 11 tackles.

Wilson finished 25-of-38 for 359 yards and four touchdowns, while senior Vincent Nisivoccia (Nutley, N.J.) caught eight of the passes for a career-high 115 yards. Sophomore Declan Burt (Lynnfield, Mass.) caught the first two touchdowns of his career and three different running backs added scores in the victory.

GAME INFORMATION
Bryant 49, Robert Morris 46
Records: Bryant (3-1, 1-0 NEC), Robert Morris (1-3, 0-1 NEC)
Location: Beirne Stadium (Smithfield, R.I.)
Attendance: 3,792

Coach Perry's Comments

"We practice very hard and, to their credit, they work very hard to be in great shape and towards the end of the game that showed a little bit. Tomas has really turned into an elite player in this league. He practices very hard and its nice to see guys that work hard to hone their craft get it done in the game. The amount of support we get is remarkable and being the head coach here is a special job. All the guys that were watching today that our alums have a lot to be proud of because this a special group of kids."

Key Moment

• Sophomore Isaac McCray (Middletown, R.I.) took a handoff and ran left behind a big line of blockers before sprinting down the sideline for a 26-yard touchdown to give Bryant the 49-46 lead with 3:09 left in the game.
• On the ensuing drive, Wright sacked RMU QB Jimmy Walker and recovered the fumble to give Bryant the ball back.

How it Happened

• Wright's first strip sack of the afternoon led to Bryant's first score. McCray caught a 14-yard pass to convert a fourth down and then redshirt junior Jean Constant (Delray Beach, Fla.) capped the 11-play drive with a four-yard TD reception.
• On the ensuing kickoff, junior Gavin Rowley (Hampstead, Md.) knocked the ball free to give the Bulldogs the ball back. McCray converted again on fourth down and Wilson connected with redshirt freshman Shelton McNeal (Lakeland, Fla.) to make it 14-0.
• Nick Bisceglia capped a nine-play, 72-yard drive with a 25-yard field goal to make it 14-3.
• Bryant quickly answered with a 2-play, 51-yard drive. Nisivoccia hauled in a 22-yard pass and freshman Daniel Adeboboye (Toronto, Ont.) raced 29 yards for a score.
• The Colonials responded with a 14-play drive as Alijah Jackson punched it in from 1-yard out.
• The Black and Gold came right back with another 11-play drive to make it 28-10. McCray put Bryant inside the 10 and Burt caught the first TD pass of his career to cap the drive.
• The third quarter was a back-and-forth affair as Terence Stephens opened the second half with a 97-yard return. Walker's four-yard pass to Matthew Gonzalez capped the drive.
• It took Bryant just two plays to respond as a 44-yard completion to McNeal was followed by a nine-yard TD run from senior Brenden Femiano (Northport, N.Y.).
• Robert Morris converted a turnover into seven points as Stephens scampered 19 yards to make it 35-24.
• Again, it took Bryant just two plays to score. Wilson found Burt in the flat and the tight end exploded down the sideline for a 60-yard touchdown.
• RMU then scored the next 22 points to take the lead. Jackson punched it in from two yards out, Walker called his own number to make it a three-point game and then scored again to give the Colonials the lead.
• Bryant got the ball back with 6:40 to go and went 75 yards in nine plays. Freshman David Zorrilla (Everett, Mass.) posted a 24-yard reception and McCray capped it with his 26-yard scoring run.
• Wright then stripped the ball from Walker on the second play of the RMU drive.

Stats

• Bryant ran 76 plays and finished with 525 yards of total offense. The Bulldogs posted 25 first downs, went 5-for-13 on third downs and a perfect 3-for-3 on fourth down.
• The Bulldogs limited Robert Morris to 396 yards of total offense.
• Bryant posted 166 rushing yards and scored a season-high three rushing touchdowns.
• Wilson finished 25-of-38 for 359 yards and four touchdowns. He was intercepted twice.
• Nisivoccia posted eight catches for 115 yards. He finished with 156 all-purpose yards.
• Burt caught four passes for 92 yards and two touchdowns.
• McNeal finished with three catches for 54 yards and a touchdown.
• Constant finished with two catches for 17 yards and a touchdown.
• Adeboboye finished with five carries for 54 yards and a touchdown.
• McCray added 53 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries.
• Femiano rushed for 26 yards and a score.
• Costigan posted 16 tackles and 1.5 tackles for a loss.
• Brown posted a career-high 11 tackles.
• Wright finished with four tackles for a loss, 2.5 sacks and two forced fumbles.
• Sophomore David Onyemem (Dracut, Mass.) posted a career-high seven tackles.

Notes and Notables

• Bryant improved to 9-2 against Robert Morris. The Bulldogs are 6-0 vs. RMU in Smithfield.
• Bryant improved to 3-0 at home this year. The Bulldogs are 19-4 at home since 2014.
• The Bulldogs rushed for 150+ yards for the third-straight game.
• Adeboboye has rushed for a new career-high in yards in each of the first four games.
• Wilson threw for 350+ yards for the second-straight week and matched his season-high with four touchdown passes. He has 13 TD passes in four games this year.
• Costigan matched his career-high 16 tackles.
• Wright's four tackles for a loss are tied for the fourth-most in a single-game in program history.
• Nisivoccia posted his second-career 100-yard receiving game.
• Constant's receiving TD was the 14th of his career, tying him for fourth all-time.

Up Next

The Bulldogs have a bye week next Saturday before heading to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Oct. 6 to face Duquesne.