Perfection. A word rarely used in our language, but it does describe the Amherst College football team’s 2014 season. The 17-9 victory over Williams on Saturday, Nov. 8 sealed the unblemished season for the Jeffs and earned the team a NESCAC championship all to themselves. “Ending the career as undefated NESCAC champs with this group of seniors is a dream come true,” Colman Duggan ’15 said. “There’s been some comparisons between this team and the team that went undefeated our freshman year; both groups had some awesome wins with a lot of memorable moments but I think for me the difference was really the camaraderie of our team this year.”
It unclear from the beginning that the Jeffs would be victorious as Amherst once again struggled offensively. Williams outpaced the Jeffs in terms of offensive yards, netting 290 to the Jeffs’ 267. The Jeffs also turned over the ball three times, while the Ephs lost possession only twice. Ultimately, the Jeffs defense was able to hold the Ephs to only nine points through the four quarters for an Amherst victory. Senior captain Chris Tamasi praised the strength of the defense all season, “We had a special group on defense this year. Everyone committed to doing their job and our defense was able to keep our team in games based off the outstanding effort by our guys. Our guys took pride in our operation and never gave up when faced with adversity,” Tamasi said.
The first Amherst drive, led by senior Max Lippe, did not last long as sophomore Nick Kelly fumbled the football on third down. Williams was able to recover the football on the Amherst 33-yard line. Although deep into the Jeffs’ territory, Williams was only able to attempt a field goal after a few shots at the endzone. The kick was good, and the Jeffs trailed 0-3 for the remainder of the first quarter.
With only three minutes left in the half, Lippe and the Jeffs took control of the ball again on their own 47-yard line. Lippe relied heavily on Gene Garay ’15, as he has all season, to move the Jeffs down the field. Lippe dropped back to pass on a second down and 14 play and found junior receiver Jackson McGonagle ‘16 in the end zone for a touchdown. Senior kicker Philip Nwosu’s extra point attempt was good and lifted the Jeffs to a 7-3 lead. The score would remain the same moving into the locker-room for halftime.
Knowing a four-point lead was not good enough, the Amherst offense came out firing in the second half. Lippe found two of his favorite receivers, McGonagle and Garay, for 13 and 36 yards, respectively, which helped motor the offense down into Williams territory. The Jeffs capped the drive with a 14-yard completion to Garay in the end zone.
On the next Amherst possession, Lippe once again strung together an impressive drive relying on a combined running attack from Myles Gaines ’17 and Raheem Jackson ’17. Lippe also worked in sophomore Devin Boehm for a big gain of 27 yards on the drive. In the end, the Jeffs settled for a field goal attempt that Nwosu made easily.
The Ephs threatened the Jeffs lead late in the fourth quarter. Williams scored a touchdown with three minutes left in the game narrowing the Amherst lead to eight. Tamasi made a huge play on the extra point attempt, blocking the Ephs’ kick and putting the game out of Williams’ reach.
With the 8-0 season, the senior class ends their careers with a 29-3 record, making them the winningest class in Amherst history. When asked about their favorite moments from the weekend, almost all the seniors remember walking off the field as a unit and playing their last game together.
“I am so happy most of all for the other guys in my class, that we were able to accomplish everything we could have asked for in our time with the program,” Jonathan Woodrow ’15 said. “Perhaps more importantly, we were able to do it together in a way that I believe embodies the spirit of Amherst, its entire athletics program and the men we are all striving to become.”
“I wouldn’t want my last season, our last season as a class, to have gone any other way.” senior captain Scott Mergner commented. “I feel a special bond with all of my teammates this year, but especially the seniors, who have done this together for four years. It’s an amazing way to go out.”
“It is so special to finish our careers at Amherst with an undefeated season, and recounting the challenges faced in each game makes it even more memorable,” Tamasi added. “We battled every game and did what we had to do to win. I love our group of seniors and am so proud of what each of them have accomplished individually and what we have been able to do as a collective unit. A 29-3 record is one hell of a run, and I couldn’t imagine spending four years with a different group of guys.”
Mergner, Garay, Deane, Tamasi, Lehrman, Spears, Nwosu, Kelly, Duggan, and Johnson all received All-NESCAC honors.
