The Colonels football team’s bid for an upset victory over Division I-A opponent South Florida came up short with a 27-17 loss on the road in Tampa, Fla. last Saturday.
Leading 17-7 at halftime, the Colonels (1-1, 0-0 SLC) surprised many of the 26,460 spectators packed in Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. In a press release from the South Florida sports information department, USF head coach Jim Leavitt said he spent much of last week worrying about the Colonels.
“We beat a darn good team. I don’t think I watched so much film in my life. I was up all week long, told players I was worried, I can’t sleep and my stomach is killing me. I said, ‘This team is very good.’ They are the best option team I have seen,” Leavitt said.
Although the Colonels had the momentum at halftime, USF (1-1) controlled the second half by outscoring the Colonels 13-0 to clinch the victory. The Colonels are now 1-8 under Daye against Division 1-A opponents.
Despite seeing the game slip out of their hands, Daryl Daye, Colonels head football coach, said the Colonels are ready to put the USF game in the past.
“This is a game we have to put on the back burner. I am proud of our kids. They gained a lot of confidence from it, and they realized they could play with some Division 1-A schools of that caliber. And a lot of 1-A schools out there are not as good as South Florida,” Daye said.
Since playing a larger school with more depth usually brings the fear of injuries to smaller school coaches, Daye said the Colonels wanted to do more than just show up to play.
“The effort and courage was acceptable, but we didn’t go there to leave with a pat on our back. I told our players never to accept a pat on the back for a good game. We expected to win. We had our chances to win the game, but we just could not get it done,” Daye said.
Senior running back Rudy August, who rushed 12 times for 70 yards, led the Colonels offensively. August received Southland Conference honors for his efforts against USF by being named to the offensive honor roll list.
Junior running back Colt Colletti rushed 13 times for 62 yards and two touchdowns; senior running back Travis Felder rushed twice for 23 yards.
Senior quarterback Josh Son completed five of 12 passed for 48 yards, and junior wide receiver Vince Butler caught two passes for 15 yards.
Defensively, Penn Morris, who notched 10 tackles with two pass breakups, led the Colonels. Morris was named to the Southland Conference defensive honor roll list for his efforts against USF. Senior defensive back Chris Thompson added six tackles with one blocked field goal.
This Saturday, the Colonels will travel by plane to Portland, Ore. to take on Portland State University (1-0). Portland State, whose nickname is the “Vikings,” is a member of the Big Sky Conference of the Division I-AA. Portland State defeated Texas A&M-Kingsville 34-21 last Saturday.
Portland State is led offensively by running back Ryan Fuqua, who is first in the Big Sky with 133 rushing yards per game and one touchdown. Quarterback Joe Wiser is second in the Big Sky with 205 passing yards per game and three touchdowns.
Defensively for Portland State, linebacker Joey King leads the team with 17 tackles and one sack for the season. He earned Big Sky Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors this week.
Daye said the Portland State game poses a challenge for the Colonels offensively and defensively.
“They are a solid football team. They have a good tight end, big and physical offensive line, and they have a good leader at quarterback. Obviously, they are going to be hard to stop,” Daye said.
“Defensively they are solid in the interior of their four-man front, and they have a couple of good athletes at linebacker and in the secondary.”
Since Portland State averages 158 rush yards a game, Daye said the winner would have to control the trenches.
“It is going to come down to whoever can run the football. Whoever establishes the run is going to be in control of this football game.”
The Colonels will leave Thursday for Portland. The distance from Thibodaux to Portland is 2,035 miles. Since half the Colonels’ players and coaches were born and raised around the Southeastern portion of America, Daye said the Colonels’ plan to tour the Pacific Northwest.
“Our kids have never been up there, and probably none of our coaches have been up there. It is going to be a cultural experience itself. I don’t like to leave the kids in the hotel. We might take a bus around town and take a little tour to see what Portland looks like,” Daye said.