Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Drew Saxton threw three touchdown passes to Colt Morgan as visiting Case Western Reserve University opened its 2019 football campaign with a 37-6 victory over the University of Rochester. The pair hooked up for a nine-yard TD in the first quarter, a 19-yard scoring play in the second, and a six-yard TD play midway through the fourth.
CWRU, which is among others receiving votes in the pre-season poll of D3football.com, defeated Rochester, 38-10, last year in Cleveland. The Spartans are 1-0. Rochester, bolstered by three transfers and 48 first-year players, is 0-1. CWRU was 8-2 last year, Rochester 1-9.
Saxton finished 17 of 30 for 209 yards. Ryan Coolidge, in fourth period mop-up work, was 0-2. Saxton was sacked once. Morgan caught nine balls for 146 yards. Mario Robaina had five catches for 49. CWRU rolled up 315 yards in offense. Rochester totaled 287 in offense. Quarterback Steven Genova threw for 115 yards, hitting 14 of 20 passes. He was sacked once. Ryan Eaamer hit 5 of 13 passes for 48 yards for UR late in the fourth quarter. He was intercepted once. Genova led Rochester on the ground, gaining 48 yards on 13 carries.Nile Jones rushes 16 times for 47 yards.
Aaron Whitley (4 catches, 42 yards) and Henry Josephson (4 catches,17 yards) led the Yellowjacket receivers.
The CWRU defense made several clutch plays – one produced a turnover and a TD. The other kept Rochester out of the end zone as the first half came to a close.
Saxton took CWRU down the field, covering 70 yards in eight plays, for a 7-0 lead. Mason Gee-Montgomery scored on a one-yard run. Rochester had a three-and-out on its first possession. CWRU's Travis Johnson blocked the punt at the 16. It was recovered by Michael Amadio at the 12 and he ran into the end zone for a 14-0 lead.
Morgan made his first TD catch of the game on the next possession, building the visitors lead to 21-0. In the second quarter, CWRU's Skyler Wadas broke up a pass for UR's Noah Shinaman at the two-yard line and CWRU took over at its own 33. The Spartans marched 67 yards in 13 plays for a 28-0 lead.
Genova mixed in runs of 8 yards and 10 yards around passes to Whitley as he directed Rochester to a first-and-goal situation near the end of the half. Case stopped four rushes, three of the stops by Patrick Crossey, to keep Rochester off the scoreboard at halftime.
The Yellowjackets did get field goals from Dawson Klinger in the second half – a 29 yarder early in the third period and a 32-yarder early in the fourth.
The evening kickoff attracted a crowd of 3,131, Rochester's largest home attendance in football since 2008 (4,124 vs. St. John Fisher in 2008).