Bears Gain 194 Yards on the Ground in 14-10 Loss at Rhodes
BOX SCORE
Memphis, Tenn., September 11, 2010 – The Washington University in St. Louis football team suffered its first loss of the season in a 14-10 defeat at Rhodes College on Saturday afternoon in Memphis, Tenn.
Washington U. held onto a 10-7 early in the fourth quarter, before Rhodes put together a game-winning nine-play, 62-yard drive. Chris Rose capped the run with a two yard TD plunge to make it 14-10. The Bears drove down to the Lynx three-yard line with less than three minutes to play, but Washington U. was stopped on fourth and goal.
Senior running back Jim O’Brien carried the ball 18 times for 88 yards, as Washington U. picked up 194 yards on the ground. The Bears had a 291-267 advantage in total offense for the game, and limited Rhodes to 104 yards through the air.
Junior linebacker Nick Hillard led the defensive unit with a career-high 14 tackles, while freshman defensive back Scott O’Brien added a career-best six stops. The Bears defensive forced five punts and had a fumble return in the loss.
The Bears scored on its first possession of the game after O’Brien scored from one-yard to make it 7-0 with 9:27 left in the first quarter. The big play of the drive was a 53-yard rush by senior quarterback Stephen Sherman. Rhodes knotted the score with 11:44 left in the second quarter after quarterback Tyler Perkins connected with Buddy Logens for a 22-yard touchdown pass.
The Bears drove down to the Rhodes 19-yard with six seconds left in the second quarter, before sophomore kicker Eric Chalifour booted a 35-yard field goal to give Washington U. a 10-7 halftime advantage. Chalifour is 3-of-4 on field goals this year after playing one season at UCLA.
Washington University had the ball four times in the second half, turning the ball over on downs three times and punting once. The Bears managed the clock in the second half, holding a 18:26-11:34 advantage in time of possession.
Sherman struggled in his second start of the season, completing 11-of-27 passes for 97 yards and an interception. He also gained 74 yards on six carries.
Washington University travels to No. 6 ranked Wittenberg University on Saturday, Sept. 18. Kickoff is set for Noon (ET) in Springfield, Ohio.
Bear Notebook: Rhodes leads the all-time series with Washington University, 24-22-1 … Senior Brandon Brown made his 32nd-consecutive start at defensive back, while junior Joe Rhein made his 22nd-consecutive start at center.