Football lines up a win in home opener

Head football coach Bob Ritter can exhale: his Middlebury Panthers opened the 2010 football season with a 24-21 win over the Wesleyan Cardinals. He may, however, have a few more gray hairs then he did before the game. Leading 24-14 with just over 10 minutes left in the game, the Panthers drove deep into Wesleyan territory and seemed poised to score and all but put the game out of reach. But on third  and 13 from the Wesleyan 23-yard line Middlebury quarterback Donnie McKillop ’11 forced a throw into double coverage in the end zone and was intercepted by Wesleyan safety, Justin Freres. Given new life, Cardinals quarterback Matt Coyne led a 16 play, 80-yard drive that culminated in a Vince Miller two-yard touchdown run cutting the score to 24-21.

Having already used all three of their timeouts, the Cardinals were forced to attempt an onside kick, which they managed to recover with 2:14 left in the fourth quarter on their own 43-yard line. Needing a defensive stop to win the game, the Middlebury defense responded, forcing the Cardinals to turn the ball over on downs, ending the game.

“We were certainly anxious,” conceded head coach Bob Ritter. “We knew if we got the ball back the game was over. The defense did a great job of rallying when all the momentum was against them and made four great plays.”

The Cardinals opening drive was capped by a 25-yard touchdown run by running back Vince Miller whose 117 yards rushing were only surpassed by his teammate Shea Dwyer who accumulated 119 yards on the ground.

After allowing an opening drive touchdown to the Cardinals, the defensive unit made a terrific adjustment, and spent much of the rest of the game in the Cardinals backfield disrupting the rhythm of Wesleyan quarterback Matt Coyne. Despite allowing 261 yards rushing to the Wesleyan offense, the Panthers defense continually made big plays throughout the game. Coyne, in his first game as a starter for the Cardinals after transferring from Williams, showed his lack of experience in the pocket as the game progressed and ended up making a poor throw that was acrobatically intercepted by Panthers linebacker Andrew Durfee ’11 who had a stellar day –– registering nine total tackles as well as a sack. Equally disruptive was Panthers defensive end Paul Carroll ’11, who constantly penetrated the Wesleyan backfield, finishing with two sacks and another tackle for a loss, and seemingly rushing Matt Coyne every time he dropped back to pass.

“Paul was really inspirational,” Ritter said. “What we ask of our guys is always maximum effort. As well as he played it was really the effort he showed that was eye-opening.”

Carroll made an impression on fellow first-year defensive lineman Bryant Adams ’14 as well. “Paul plays with a lot of heart,” Bryan said. “He’s not even that big of a guy, but he never quits on a play. He was huge.”

The biggest play from the Panthers defense, however, came on another long run from Wesleyan running back Vince Miller. On third and three from the Middlebury 16-yard line, the Wesleyan running back found a hole and not only picked up the first down, but was dragging tacklers into the end zone when he was stripped of the ball on the one-yard line. Defensive back Dan Kenerson l’12 recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchback, keeping the Wesleyan offense off of the scoreboard.

The highest scoring offense in the NESCAC did its job as well, behind a solid performance from quarterback McKillop and a career day from running back Andrew Plumley ’11. Plumley, who has been slowed by injuries during his previous three seasons was impressive Saturday, totaling 85 yards rushing on 19 carries and another 40-yards receiving –– including a nine yard touchdown catch. “It’s great to see him out there playing,” said Ritter. “He played like a senior even though he doesn’t have senior experience. It’s really nice to see him get off to a great start.”

If Plumley can stay healthy, he adds another dimension to this already explosive offense. On a number of plays the Burlington High School product and 2006 Vermont Gatorade Player of the Year carried multiple defenders for extra yards and converted a number of big third down runs. And for once, his health does not seem to be an issue.

“I feel great,” Plumley said. “My knees have been a problem over the last few years, but I feel strong and ready to go. I feel as good as I ever have.”

Meanwhile, his partner in the backfield McKillop threw for three touchdowns and 255 yards while completing nearly 63 percent of his passes. McKillop connected for touchdowns with Plumley, wide receiver Matt Rayner ’12 and Zach Driscoll ’13 who lead all receivers with six catches for 92 yards.

But the Panthers still have areas where they can improve. Multiple times the Panthers couldn’t finish crucial drives with points.

“We have to be more focused in the red zone offensively, and not leave points on the board,” said Ritter. The Panthers squandered multiple scoring opportunities. “We wanted to stay aggressive,” Ritter said. “I have a lot of confidence in our offense. Given the nature of the game and where we were I’d do it again.”

Middlebury travels to Colby to play the Mules (0-1) this Saturday. Colby lost its opener 33-6 at Trinity.