Box Score

GENEVA, N.Y. - Junior running back Isaac Williams (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) scored from one-yard out with nine seconds left in the fourth quarter to give Rensselaer a 35-31 win over Hobart in the Liberty League football opener for both teams.  The Engineers, who fell behind by three points with 48 seconds left, improve to 3-0 overall.  The Statesmen fall to 1-2 on the season.  

Following Hobart's 33-yard field goal with 48 seconds left in the fourth quarter, RPI marched to the three-yard line on pass completions of 17, 12 and 35 yards.  Williams then rushed two yards to the one before capping off the game-winning drive, which covered 67 yards on five plays in 35 seconds.

The Hobart College football team rallied from a 21-7 fourth quarter deficit to take a 31-28 lead with 48 seconds remaining, but Rensselaer drove for the win to snap a five-game losing streak to the Statesmen.

After getting shutout in the second and third quarters, Hobart staged a fourth quarter comeback. Freshman tailback Andrew Marlier (Lake Forest, IL/Lake Forest) recorded his second rushing touchdown of the day less than two minutes into the final frame to get the Statesmen within seven, then the defense forced the Engineers to punt, setting Hobart up at its own 20.

On second and 10, senior quarterback Andrew Strom (Novato, CA/Novato) scrambled away from defensive pressure and found junior wideout Ryan LiDrazzah (San Diego, CA/Kent School) wide open. He caught the pass near the Hobart 40 and outran the pursuit for an 80-yard touchdown that tied the game, 21-21.

RPI answered with a nine-play, 88-yard drive, capped by a 14-yard scramble by junior quarterback Jimmy Robertson (Yonkers, NY/Iona Prep), that put the Engineers back in front by seven.

Following punts by both teams, Hobart junior tailback Anthony Hobaica (Utica, NY/Utica-Proctor) gained 15 yards and a first down. The Statesmen then ran three times for a total of two yards to set up senior Dominick Ancona’s (Garden City, NY/Chaminde) 33-yard field goal that put the Statesmen in front, 31-28, with 47 seconds left.

Robertson completed three straight passes to move RPI from its own 33 to the Hobart 3. All three completions ended up out of bounds to stop the clock. The last catch, by senior Chris Graef (Bethel, CT/Bethel), was a fortunate carom that bounced off a teammate and a Hobart defender before Graef emerged from the fray with the ball. Two plays later, Williams barreled in from one-yard out for the winning TD.

Marlier’s first scoring run put the Statesmen in front midway through the first quarter, but RPI answered with a scoring drive of its own, capped by a 1-yard dive by freshman tailback Bob Munier (Wyckoff, NJ/Ramapo). The Engineers took the lead with 5:19 remaining in the half with a 13-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a 1-yard Williams run.

Williams finished with a career-high 114 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries along with 15 receiving yards to lead the way.  Robertson completed 21-of-31 for 240 yards and a touchdown with a pair of interceptions. Senior wideout Brendan McGowan (Mesa, AZ/Mountain View) was his top target, making eight catches for 78 yards and a third quarter touchdown.

Defensively for RPI, which won at Hobart for the first time since 1998, senior Anthony Casale (Troy, NY/Troy) had a team-high ten tackles, including six unassisted.  Junior Alex Kelsen (Skaneateles, NY/Skaneateles) added six tackles, all solos, including two sacks (10 yards lost).

Hobart junior linebacker Justin Hager (Salamanca, NY/Salamanca) logged a game-high 15 tackles, including a sack.  Senior cornerback Corey Cage (Henninger/Syracuse, N.Y.) registered both interceptions of Robertson in the second quarter, but the Hobart offense was unable to capitalize.

Strom was 17-of-28 for 245 yards and two touchdowns with one interception. LiDrazzah was his top receiver with four catches for a game-high 114 yards. Hobaica was the Statesmen's leading rusher with 70 yards on 16 carries in his first collegiate start.

Hobart is back in action on Sept. 29, when the Statesmen visit WPI for a 1 p.m. kickoff, while RPI travels to Susquehanna for a 1:30 p.m. start.