NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Yale's offense has thrived against Brown in recent years. That was certainly the case again on Saturday at Yale Bowl, Class of 1954 Field. On this day, though, the Bulldogs' defense was equally dominant. That resulted in a memorable day.
Yale amassed 558 yards of total offense and two scored two defensive touchdowns in a 69-17 thrashing of Brown on an unseasonably mild November afternoon at the Bowl.
The 69 points scored were the most in a game for the Bulldogs since an 89-0 win over Vermont in 1929.
"It was an incredible effort for all four quarters," said
Tony Reno, the Joel E. Smilow '54 Head Coach of the Bulldogs. "I thought we played a complete game. We were fortunate enough to make some plays in the first half that put us in a great position going into halftime."
Yale (6-2, 4-1 Ivy) raced out to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter, erupted for 35 points in the second and had a 52-3 halftime lead.
The 52 first-half points were four shy of Brown's Ivy League record for points in a half. The Bears scored 56 in the second half against Columbia in 1994. The NCAA record for points in a half is 73 set by Montana State in the first half of a victory over Eastern Oregon in 1985.
There were a number of contributors to the offensive success. On the ground,
Tre Peterson rushed for two touchdowns, while
Joshua Pitsenberger and
Austin Tutas each added one.
Quarterback
Nolan Grooms was an efficient 12-of-16 passing and threw for three touchdowns in only a half of work.
David Pantelis, Jay Brunelle and
Jackson Hawes each had a TD catch.
Defensively,
Hamilton Moore had a 19-yard fumble recovery for a score, and
Joseph Vaughn added a 35-yard interception return for a touchdown.
The Bulldogs seized control in the final five minutes of the second quarter, scoring 28 points and turning a comfortable lead into an overwhelming 52-3 advantage.
Brunelle's 25-yard TD reception started the onslaught. Pressure from
Reid Nickerson then forced Brown quarterback Aidan Gilman into a fumble, which Moore scooped up and returned for a score. With 30 seconds left in the quarter, Hawes caught a 13-yard touchdown pass from Grooms. Then pressure from
Alvin Gulley, Jr. forced Gilman to hurry a throw, which Vaughn picked off and returned for a touchdown with 22 seconds left.
The big halftime lead allowed Reno to get a look at some of the younger Bulldogs.
"In the second half, we played a lot of our backups, and they got some really great experience and that will help us as we move forward this season," he said.
Dating back to last Friday's game at Columbia, Yale has now outscored its opponents 86-17 in its last six quarters.
"We talk about consistency and intensity. You have to have both to be an elite football team. Starting with the second half of the game last week, we really showed that was the decision we wanted to make, and it carried forward."
The Bulldogs are now 4-1 in Ivy play and tied with Penn for second place. Yale hosts first-place Princeton (5-0) next Saturday at the Bowl. Kickoff is slated for noon.
