The (soon to be formerly) 16th/22nd ranked Hobart College Statesmen beat themselves in a game that saw them dominate the overall statistics but were they came undone by a massive edge in penalties. Hobart was flagged 15 times for -148 yards, not all of which seemed fair, but that's how it goes. A drop out of the Top 25 is coming up and the Statesmen's NCAA playoff hopes took a hit too.
We knew the Statesmen (5-1, 2-1) had lived dangerously this season so this type of game wasn't a surprise to me unfortunately. What was a surprise were the number and kinds of calls that went against Hobart. The final nail in the coffin was the pass interference call after SR OLB Marcus Jemison appeared to have made a game saving interception on RPI's (4-2, 2-1) final drive.
Hobart out-gained the Engineers 435 to 192 yards, had over three times RPI's passing yardage and out rushed them also. The Statesmen took a 10-0 lead into halftime after two drives netted a SR WR Jack Pfohl TD catch and a JR PK Will McCool 28 yard FG. Unfortuntely McCool would miss two other FG attempts, which ultimately would have won them the game if converted. This loss isn't on him by any stretch as the entire team made countless mistakes - a false start on 3rd and 1 that ultimately cost Hobart a 14-0 halftime lead, roughing the kicker penalties on special teams that extended RPI scoring and other drives, allowing a 70 yard KO return, a pass interference penalty on 3rd and 11 with RPI on their 31 yard line late in the third quarter - the list goes on and on. The Statesmen were also four-14 on third downs and went 0-3 on fourth downs.
Although it seemed like fate would look kindly on the "Cardiac Kids" after JR QB Shane Sweeney connected with SO TE Matt Woods for a seven yard TD with 1:12 remaining, things fell apart shortly thereafter. The KO unit allowed a 34 yard return then made matters worse by committing a personal foul giving RPI the ball at the Hobart 36 yard line. SO QB Ed Trimpert would score the winning TD a few plays later, after the interception by Jemison was overturned. Trimpert led the Engineers with an efficient 14-20 for 109 yards and two passing scores while adding the rushing TD to go with 14 rushing yards.
This will not be an easy game for the team to watch and it certainly places Hobart's playoff hopes in jeopardy. They will need to win out in order to make it back to the NCAA playoffs as there's no way an 8-2 team will make the field unless it's a conference champion. As of now, #21 Saint Lawrence (6-0, 3-0) controls their own destiny and at this point appears stronger than the Statesmen barring a head-to-head contest against them to settle the score.
I'm curious whether or not the HC Mike Cragg will file a complaint with the LL on this officiating crew? It really seemed like they had it out for Hobart, but at the end of the day, the Statesmen could and should have played better and RPI did what it had to win.
With no game until October 22, we'll have to stew on this one for a while. Hopefully it motivates the squad to fix the areas they know need improvement.
Thanks for reading and please tune into ITH Sunday night for more commentary on this one.
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