Sewall Carries Bears as Columbia Threatens Late in Game

Brown’s Bobby Sewall provided the majority of the Bears’ offense on Saturday with 23 carries and 12 receptions, accounting for 163 of their total 373 yards. But he also allowed Columbia to pull within two points four minutes into the fourth quarter.

On Brown’s first possession of the fourth quarter, Lions defensive end Matt Bashaw’s hit on Sewall popped the ball loose at the Columbia 29-yard line. Senior Eugene Edwards recovered, streaking down the sideline 69 yards to put seven points on the board and cut the Bears’ lead to two, 24-22.

“I just did my job, running to the ball and saw it pop out at the last minute,” Edwards said. “And in my mind I just thought, ‘There’s no way I’m going to jump on it.’ It was crazy out there. ... When that play happened it was a spark, just the rest of the sideline, looking out into the crowd, everyone was into the game.”

The sideline erupted, with coaches frantically trying to keep players off the field. The entire crowd at Wien Stadium was on their feet and the noise seemed threatening for the first time this season.

Columbia head coach Norries Wilson decided to go for two to try and tie the game at 24. Senior quarterback Craig Hormann’s pass intended for sophomore wide receiver Austin Knowlin drew a pass interference call, and the Lions had another chance to tie it up. But Hormann’s second attempt, a quarterback keeper, failed.

“Going for two wasn’t a big deal—we were either going to be down two or down one,” Wilson said. “So might as well try to tie it up so if we can hold them out, we can go to overtime with it. We didn’t get that done.”

With almost 12 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, Columbia, who had all but rolled over in the first half, seemed destined to pull off the upset. A defense that allowed 21 points in the first quarter alone kept Brown from establishing a rhythm on offense in the second half, keeping them off the board for the entire third quarter. “I think we just got off to a slow start in general,” senior cornerback JoJo Smith said. “It wasn’t really a change in the game plan. We just started to go up and make some plays, like they asked us to do.”

The defense forced the Bears to a three-and-out on the ensuing possession, and the Lions started to march downfield. Three plays later, a Hormann interception put the Bears at first-and-goal on the Columbia 9-yard line. The defense again held up, limiting Brown to a field goal and keeping it a one score game.

“We just went out there and asked the defense to give us some stops,” Wilson said. “Put the defense at first-and-goal on the nine, come up with a field goal. ... I can’t be upset with that. They gave up six points in the second half. Maybe if the dumb head coach kicked four field goals in the first half, maybe we win the game by a point.”

Once they got within four points, the Lions’ offensive wheels came off. A grounding penalty, another Brown field goal, and a tipped ball that was intercepted left the Lions in desperate straits with 42 seconds left on the clock. Three plays later, Hormann threw his third interception of the game.

After the first quarter, the Lions seemed to wake up, something that’s been consistent throughout the season. After allowing 193 yards in the first quarter and only gaining 50 yards themselves, Columbia turned it around, keeping the Bears to only 180 yards for the other three quarters and moving the ball up and down the field for over 300 more yards.

“We played forty-five minutes twice,” Wilson said. “We played forty-five minutes at Princeton, we played forty-five minutes today. We play sixty minutes of football, we can win some football games. And I’m going to find a way to get them to play sixty minutes of football.”