Box Score DUDLEY, Mass. – The Nichols College football team scored 26 second-half points to win its home opener, erasing a six-point deficit en route to a 26-6 over Framingham State under the lights at Vendetti Field Friday night. Senior running back Robert Morris (Melbourne, Fla.) scored a pair of touchdowns for the Bison (1-1) and led the ground attack with 168 rushing yards on 26 carries.
Framingham State (1-1) struck in the first quarter when junior David Leach (Chelmsford, Mass.) broke through a tackle from the 13-yard line and crossed across the field into the end zone just under six minutes into the game. Leach led the Rams with 157 rushing yards on 29 carries on the night.
The Rams held the six-point lead through the half, until a 15-yard Morris rush set up quarterback Justin Nelson (Oceanside, Calif.) at the 19-yard line. The sophomore connected for a 17-yard pass with classmate Colton Langdon (Middletown, R.I.) before Morris carried it the rest of the way on the next play.
Framingham fumbled the ensuing kickoff, which first-year Antonio Munroe (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) recovered at the Rams' 40 yard line to set up an eight-play scoring drive to put the Bison ahead, 12-6.
Nelson connected with Langdon for a 10-yard completion before finding Langston Little (Stratford, Conn.) as he crossed into the endzone with 4:25 on the clock.
The Nichols defense stalled the Rams early in the fourth quarter, forcing Framingham to punt from their own 11-yard line after just over a minute of possession. Morris carried it back in a series of three plays, capped by a 33-yard scoring run to give the Bison a 19-6 advantage.
Framingham started to mount some offense late in the fourth, but the Nichols defense held the Rams to the Bison 43-yard line, led by 11 tackles (eight solo) on the night from defensive lineman Bill Hassett (Oxford, Mass.) and nine stops (eight solo) from senior captain Josh Harris (Northbridge, Mass.).
The Bison posted their final score of the night when Nelson found Langdon open in the endzone from 19 yards out with 5:05 left to play. Langdon finished with 71 receiving yards on five catches.
The Rams's final drive looked to be successful, as they crept down to the Nichols 14-yard line, but a Mike Rubalcaba (Barre, Vt.) interception within three yards of the endzone ended the threat.
Nichols held a 185-149 advantage in rushing yards in the wet weather, while Nelson completed 14 of 25 passes for 140 yards and two touchdowns. Bruce Rich (Chelmsford, Mass.) completed 12 of 21 passes for 95 yards with two interceptions for Framingham. Joe Treacy (Wakefield, Mass.) led the Rams' defense with nine tackles (six solo).
Nichols is on the road for the next two weeks, first at Worcester State on September 19th in a 7 p.m. game, then in the Bison's NEFC Boyd Division opener at MIT on Saturday, September 27 at 1 p.m. Framingham hosts MIT next Saturday at 1 p.m.
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