BRUNSWICK, ME -- The Williams College football team (1-0) scored the first 41 points of the game and rolled up 476 yards in total offense to down Bowdoin 41-6 in the season opener or both teams.
The Williams sophomore class shined on a day that saw QB Bobby Maimaron score four touchdowns, two of which were caught by WR Frank Stola. Sophomore RB TJ Dozier rushed 21 times for 128 yards (6.2 yards per carry) and one scored one TD and LB TJ Rothmann recorded a team high eight tackles (4 solos and one TFL).
Today's victory was the Ephs' sixth consecutive win over Bowdoin and second straight season-opening win over the Polar Bears.
Maimaron connected on 13 of 23 passes for 146 yards and two touchdowns and he added 73 yards and two scores on the ground. Frank Stola led the team in receptions (8) and receiving yards (82), and made two beautiful touchdown catches in the second quarter to help the Ephs pull away.
After an exchange of punts, Williams scored their first touchdown when Dozier weaved his way through the Bowdoin defense for a 20-yard score at 8:50 in the first quarter.
Bowdoin managed to pick up a first down on their next series, but the drive stalled due to an illegal forward pass penalty, which resulted in an 8-yard loss and a loss of down. On their next drive, the Ephs converted twice on third down, the second of which was a 38-yard touchdown scamper by Maimaron -- the quarterback's longest run of the game -- to put Williams up 14-0.
In the second quarter, Williams scored touchdowns on back-to-back drives and added a field goal right before halftime to extend the lead to 31-0.
On third-and-9 from the Bowdoin 28, Maimaron found senior wide receiver Joe Volpe for a 17-yard gain. Maimaron followed the third-down conversion with a beautiful fade to Stola in the back of the end zone for their first touchdown connection.
Inside five minutes before halftime, Maimaron orchestrated a 13-play drive, featuring quick handoffs to Dozier and a 10-yard sweep run by sophomore wide receiver Rashad Morrison. However, the Ephs were fortunate not to turn the ball over in the red zone, as a fumble by junior running back Kyle Horihan was recovered by sophomore offensive lineman Patrick Watson.
The Ephs capitalized on the fumble recovery by running what may have been Maimaron's best play of the game. Rolling out to his right to evade defenders, the quarterback hit a wide-open Stola in stride in the front-right corner of the end zone for the touchdown.
The next Bowdoin drive, which started with under a minute to play, ended in just three plays, as LB Luke Appuzi picked off Bowdoin QB Austin McCrum. Apuzzi returned the interception to the Bowdoin 25-yard line. The Ephs cashed in on the turnover, driving inside the 10 where first year placekicker Andrew Schreibstein converted his first collegiate field goal.
Bowdoin made its first trip inside the Williams 40-yard line in the third quarter, only to see their field goal attempt go wide left. Williams then continued their first-half momentum, with Maimaron running in yet another touchdown on third-and-goal to make it 38-0. The play turned out to be Maimaron's last, as freshman quarterback Jackson Bischoping came in and led a field goal drive of his own.
Late in the fourth quarter, Bowdoin managed to score a touchdown but the ensuing extra point attempt was blocked, resulting in the final score of 41-6.
Williams held Bowdoin to 245 total yards and it was also a near penalty-free day for the Ephs, who recorded just two penalties for 10 yards, compared to 6 for 44 yards for the Polar Bears.
One reason why Williams was able to score touchdowns rather than field goals was their performance on third down. Williams was extremely efficient, converting 9 of 15 tries (60.0%) compared to just 6 of 18 (33.3%) for Bowdoin.
But perhaps the most striking difference was each team's ground attack. Although Bowdoin rushed for a decent 108 yards, Williams ran for an impressive 305 and with their strong running game Williams dominated time of possession, holding the ball for over 33 minutes.
On special teams, freshman kicker/punter Andrew Schreibstein was a perfect 7-for-7 on his kicks, making two field goals and five extra points.
Eph head coach Mark Raymond was impressed by the way his team set the tone and played an efficient, mistake-free game. "I was really happy with the way our guys played today," Raymond said after the game. "We prepared very hard, and it showed today. I was really pleased with the way they came out, played physical, tough football, and stayed away from big mistakes. They just played a real solid game."
Next Saturday at 1:00 PM the Ephs will host Colby College in their 2018 home opener on Farley-Lamb Field.