Sept. 21, 2002

Box Score

BALTIMORE, Md. -- Senior running back Kevin Johnson (Baltimore, MD/City) and sophomore running back Adam Cook (New Freedom, PA/Susquehannock) both rushed for two touchdowns and senior quarterback Rob Fernand (Wayne, NJ/Depaul) rushed for one and threw for one as Johns Hopkins knocked off visiting Rochester, 41-28 at Homewood Field Saturday afternoon. The Blue Jays, who have now won four straight games dating back to last season, are now 2-0, while Rochester dropped its sixth straight dating back to last season and falls to 0-2.

Hopkins needed just 54 seconds to take a 6-0 lead as Johnson capped a quick two-play, 11-yard drive with a five-yard touchdown run after the Blue Jay defense came up with a fumble on Rochester's first play of the game. The lead was short-lived however as Rochester scored back-to-back touchdowns in a span of less than three minutes midway through the first quarter to take a 14-6 lead. Senior running back John Breedy (Webster, NY/Webster) took a screen pass from freshman quarterback Pat Manuel (Elmira, NY/Elmira Notre Dame) and turned it into an 86-yard touchdown and junior wide receiver Brian Ferris (Hamburg, NY/St. Francis) hauled in a 37-yard scoring pass from Manuel on Rochester's next possession to give the Yellowjackets a 14-6 less than eight minutes into the game.

Hopkins then took the lead for good by scoring the next 20 points over a span that lasted until late in the third quarter. Johnson's one-yard touchdown run with 32 seconds left in the first quarter made it 14-13 and Cook's first score of the day, a two-yard scamper with 9:25 remaining in the second quarter, gave JHU a 20-14 lead at halftime. When Fernand connected with senior wide receiver Ben May (Glastonbury, CT/Glastonbury) on a 13-yard scoring pass to cap a 10-play, 69-yard drive to open the second half, the Blue Jays appeared to have a comfortable 26-14 lead.

However, Rochester turned a pair of JHU turnovers into touchdowns late in the third quarter and early in the fourth to make things interesting. After coming up with a fumble recovery, Rochester needed just three plays to go 16 yards to pull within 26-21 with 1:01 remaining in the third quarter. Manuel's five-yard touchdown pass to tight end Dave Sanok (Orchard Park, NY/St. Francis) provided the scoring on the drive.

Hopkins pushed its lead back to 12 at 33-21 when Fernand scored on a one-yard run less than three minutes later to cap a seven-play, 65-yard drive with 13:30 remaining. After exchanging possessions, Rochester's Craig Pipal (Rochester, NY/Greece Arcadia) intercepted a Fernand pass and returned it to the Hopkins 24-yard line, and the 'Jackets took advantage. Faced with a fourth-and-10 from the 24-yard line, Manuel completed a 21-yard pass to junior Patrick Roman (Pittston, PA/Pittston, Area) down to the Hopkins three-yard line. Junior Gerard Hopkins (Rochester, NY/Irondequoit) scored on a two-yard run two plays later to make it 33-28 with 9:10 remaining in the fourth quarter.

The Blue Jays took over after the ensuing kickoff at their own 16-yard line and proceeded to take 6:15 off the clock with a 12-play, 84-yard drive that culminated with a nine-yard touchdown run by Cook. Cook added a successful run on the two-point attempt to account for the final scoring. The Blue Jays ran the ball on 11 of the 12 plays on the drive and converted a pair of third-and-four situations to keep the drive alive.

Cook and sophomore Nate Readal (Allison Park, PA/Hampton) led a Johns Hopkins rushing attack that churned out 269 yards on 62 attempts. Both rushed for 85 yards, with Cook's coming on 20 carries, while Readal had 13. Johnson rushed 20 times for 66 yards and the two touchdowns, while Cook had a team-high four receptions for 27 yards, one punt return for 19 yards and three kickoff returns for 45 yards to go along with his 85 yards on the ground. Fernand was 13-of-24 for 145 yards and the one touchdown. He was also intercepted four times.

Manuel was 15-of-35 for 264 yards with the three touchdowns and two interceptions. Hopkins led the way on the ground for Rochester as he rushed 16 times for 29 yards. Ten other rushing attempts netted a negative five yards for the Yellowjackets, who managed just 24 net yards rushing in the game. With an overwhelming advantage on the ground, Johns Hopkins held a 37:39-22:21 advantage in time of possession. Overall, Johns Hopkins outgained Rochester, 453-288 and ran 87 offensive plays to just 61 for Rochester.

Johnson's 66 yards give him 1,138 in his career, which moves him past Phil Sutley into 15th-place on the all-time rushing list at Johns Hopkins. The Blue Jays are now 2-0 for the fifth time in six years and improve to 19-7 (.731) in games played in the month of September since 1995. In addition, Hopkins improved to 41-4 (.911) under head coach Jim Margraff when scoring 24 or more points.

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