November 22, 2008
BRYANT FOOTBALL DEFEATS SAINT FRANCIS (PA) 23-0
Bulldogs Conclude First Year of Division I with
7-4 Record
BOX
SCORE
LORETTO, Pa.
(11/22/08) - It
may have been the longest road trip in the history Bryant football
program, but it will certainly be memorable as Jerell Smith rushed
for 150 and quarterback Jay Graber threw three touchdown passes as
the Bulldogs rolled to a 23-0 win over Saint Francis (PA) on a
snowy afternoon at DeGol Field. The win concludes Bryant's
first Division I season with a 7-4 record.
The Bulldogs out-gained the Red Flash 382 to 58 in total yards
as Graber completed 14 of 19 passes for 160 yards on the day.
Ross Giffune hauled in four catches for 59 yards and it was his
first touchdown reception of the season that got the Bulldogs on
the board first.
Bryant put together a nice looking drive right away on its first
possession. Hard running from Lindsey Gamble helped move the
ball down to the Red Flash eight yard line, setting up an 8-yard,
Graber to Giffune touchdown pass in the back of the end zone to
make it 7-0.
Two fumbles halted a pair of other Bryant drives in the second
quarter but the Bulldogs were able add on a 32-yard field goal by
Chris Bird just before the end of the half to take a 10-0 lead into
the locker room at the break. The field goal was the
15th in the career for Bird, tying Pete DiMartino's
school record.
The Bulldog defense enjoyed an outstanding first half, holding
Saint Francis to just 12 yards of offense and only one pass
completion.
In the second half, the Bulldogs stretched the lead to 17-0 as
Graber connected with wide receiver Vinton South for a 33-yard
score with 1:19 left in the third. The scoring drive covered
10 plays and took off more than five minutes on the clock.
Graber and the Bulldogs would put the game away midway through
the fourth as the senior signal caller threw his third touchdown
pass of the game, this time to Tyler DiGiovanni. The point after
was wide but the point didn't matter as the Bulldogs managed to end
the season with a win for the first time since the 2000 season and
just the second time in the 10-year history of the program.
