Oct. 20, 2007

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ADRIAN, Mich. - The Adrian College football team dropped its third straight with a 24-14 home loss to Hope College on Saturday. The visiting Flying Dutchmen used a steady rushing game to chew up minutes and keep the ball out of the hands of Adrian. Hope rushed for 169 yards on 57 carries which averages out to three yards per rush. Adrian did a good job of limiting the big play but Hope did have the ball 13:14 more than the Bulldogs which kept a tired defense on the field in the fourth quarter.

Hope began the scoring in the second quarter as reserve running back Brent Jones plunged into the end zone from one yard capping off an eight-play, 55-yard drive in 3:32 to give the Flying Dutchmen a 7-0 lead. The score remained that way going into halftime as Adrian was outgained 198-110 in the first half.

Adrian College tied the game with a quick touchdown drive on their second possession of the third quarter. The drive was just two plays and lasted 34 seconds as Mike McGee found Desmond Upshaw on a 39-yard completion to the Hope 19-yard marker and Troy Niblock carried for a 19-yard touchdown with 10:13 left in the third quarter.

Adrian got the ball back after a punt when misfortune struck as McGee fumbled the shotgun snap at his own three-yard line and Hope's Drew Weigl recovered at the one-yard line. Adrian's defense stiffened for the first three plays but the Flying Dutchmen went for the end zone on fourth down and David Booko rush around left end for the score giving Hope a 14-7 lead with 5:21 left in the third.

Hope added a 37-yard field goal by Chris Bowen on their next possession putting Adrian down two scores at 17-7 with 2:40 left in the third. Niblock's fumble at the Adrian 25-yard line setup the short field on the previous possession. The Bulldogs took their second possession of the fourth quarter and marched 65 yards in just three plays. McGee felt a blitz on third and 13 from the Adrian 32-yard line and found Niblock out of the backfield for a 68-yard scoring strike making it 17-14 with 9:35 left in the game.

The turning point came on the ensuing kickoff as Hope's Joey Goeb fumbled at the Hope 22-yard line but the Flying Dutchmen came away with the ball at the Hope 31-yard line. The visitors took the ball down the field in eight plays and Jones found paydirt again in the game on a 26-yard touchdown burst up the middle to put the finishing touches on the game's scoring. Adrian could only manage to advance the ball on offense to their own 45-yard line on their final possession but McGee was intercepted to end any comeback hopes with 2:27 to play.

Adrian finished the game with 304 total yards including 212 passing yards. McGee was 8-of-19 for 149 yards while Niblock was 2-of-5 for 63 yards. Niblock led the ground attack with 21 carries for 45 yards. On the special teams side, punter Kevin Allaer booted a career-long 73-yarder and averaged 43.1 yards on eight punts. The Adrian defense was led by senior Kyle Dunaj's 17 total tackles including nine solo stops. Senior Aaron Kieltyka was next on the stat sheet with 13 tackles and two tackles for loss. The Bulldogs host Wisconsin Lutheran next Saturday for a noon kickoff from Performance Stadium.