Nov. 6, 2004

Box Score

BALTIMORE, MD -- Johns Hopkins senior running back Adam Cook (New Freedom, PA/Susquehannock) rushed for a career-high 185 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Blue Jays to a stunning, 38-14 victory over 11th-ranked Hampden-Sydney Saturday afternoon. The Tigers are the second-highest ranked team Johns Hopkins has ever beaten in football and the Blue Jays improve to 7-2 with the victory. Hampden-Sydney slips to 7-2 and had a four-game winning streak snapped.

Johns Hopkins will host McDaniel, a 7-6 winner over Muhlenberg earlier today, next Saturday with a share of the Centennial Conference title on the line.

The Blue Jays turned an early 7-0 deficit into a 24-7 halftime advantage as Cook rushed for 156 yards and both of his touchdowns in the first half. After missing a field goal on their opening possession, the Blue Jays got on the board when junior T.J. Lyons (Paramus, NJ/Paramus) capped a 14-play, 51-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown run with 13:41 remaining in the second quarter. The Blue Jays converted a pair of third downs and one fourth-down attempt on the drive, during which Lyons rushed for 30 yards.

After the Blue Jay defense forced a quick punt, Hopkins needed just five plays to go 49 yards to take the lead for good. Cook accounted for all 49 yards on five carries with his seven-yard run capping the drive that made it 14-7.

Hampden-Sydney, which gained 80 yards on its opening possession of the game, but just three net yards the remainder of the first half, was forced to punt on its next two possessions after Cook's touchdown made it 14-7 and was in position to get through the first half down just a touchdown before the Blue Jays scored 10 points in the final 1:51 of the second quarter.

Cook rushed for 26 yards on an eight-play, 68-yard drive that included a 34-yard completion from Zach DiIonno (West Caldwell, NJ/James Caldwell) to senior Brian Wolcott (Harding, PA/Wyoming Area) and a four-yard Cook touchdown run with 1:51 remaining made it 21-7. The Blue Jay defense came up with its fourth, three-and-out effort of the first half on HSC's next drive and DiIonno executed the two-minute drill to perfection as he orchestrated an eight-play, 64-yard drive that was capped by a Ben Scott (Pittsburgh, PA/Shady Side Academy) 28-yard field goal as time expired in the first half. The field goal was Scott's 11th of the season, which leaves him just one shy of Todd Bencivenni's single-season school record of 12 (1996).

Any hopes the Tigers had of getting back in the game were dashed early in the second half as the Blue Jays moved 72 yards on 10 plays on the first possession of the third quarter to take a 31-7 lead. Back-to-back DiIonno passes to Wolcott covered 10 and 13 yards with the 13-yarder resulting in a touchdown to polish off the drive. DiIonno and Wolcott hooked up again later in the third quarter from 39-yards out to account for the final Hopkins touchdown.

Hampden-Sydney's Drew Smith (Richmond, VA/Mils Godwin) caught a 16-yard touchdown pass from Brett Delk (Columbus, MS/Caldonia) in the corner of the end zone with 11:46 remaining in the fourth quarter to cap an impressive 12-play, 64-yard drive to make it 38-14 and the Tigers had the ball inside the Blue Jay 10-yard line with just over seven minutes remaining, but junior Jim Sanders (North Lima, OH/South Range) intercepted a Delk pass at the five-yard line and the Blue Jays ran out the remaining time in the game to seal the victory.

The Tigers had taken a 7-0 lead on an impressive 12-play, 80-yard drive to open the game. Johnny Junes' (Richmond, VA/Mils Godwin) one-yard touchdown run capped the drive on a fourth-and-goal, but Hampden-Sydney ran just 18 more plays in the first half for a net gain of just the three yards as the Blue Jay defense stiffened while the running game got untracked.

Cook's 185 yards rank as the ninth-highest single-game total in school history and are the most by a Johns Hopkins running back since Scott Martorana rushed for 226 yards against Swarthmore in 2000. The 185 yards improve his career total to 2,572, which leaves him just 63 yards shy of second-place on JHU's career rushing list and 129 yards shy of Adam Gentile's school record of 2,700. Cook also became JHU's career leader in all-purpose yards as he ran his total to 3,972 to surpass Brad McLam (3,921) as JHU's all-time leader.

Cook's 185-yard effort fueled a Johns Hopkins ground game that amassed 330 yards on 62 attempts. Lyons added 77 yards on 21 carries and senior fullback Nate Readal (Allison Park, PA/Hampton) rushed six times for 44 yards. This is the first time Johns Hopkins has rushed for more than 300 yards in a game since the Blue Jays churned out 386 in a 41-0 victory over Franklin & Marshall in 2001.

DiIonno was 8-of-16 for 143 yards and the two touchdowns, while Wolcott had four receptions for 96 yards and the two scores. Defensively the Blue Jays were led by junior defensive end Alan Cody (North Bergen, NJ/St. Peter's Prep), who had seven tackles, including four for losses and two sacks, and also picked up the first interception of his career midway through the third quarter. His interception led to Hopkins' final touchdown of the game.

Hampden-Sydney's C.W. Clemmons (Covington, VA/Alleghany) rushed for 52 of the Tigers' 95 yards and Delk was 14-of-28 for 137 yards with the one score, but HSC totaled just 138 yards of total offense before picking up 125 on their final two possessions of the game. Clemmons entered the game averaging 119 rushing yards per game. His 52 yards improve his season total to 1,005 yards and he is now the first Hampden-Sydney running back to rush for over 1,000 yards in back-to-back seasons.

The Johns Hopkins-McDaniel game next Saturday at Homewood Field will be the third straight between the two teams with Centennial Conference title implications. A McDaniel win would give the Terror the outright championship, while a Blue Jay win would assure Hopkins a share of its third straight championship. In that scenario, the Blue Jays would share the title with at least Muhlenberg and McDaniel. Dickinson and Franklin & Marshall can force a five-way tie for the title with wins next week as well.

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