Jumbo Football Wraps Up 2011 Season With Home Game On Saturday Vs. Middlebury

Carlo Cervini is one of 16 Jumbo seniors who will be honored on Saturday

MEDFORD - The Jumbos and the Middlebury College Panthers clash on Saturday in the 2011 NESCAC finale. It's Seniors Day at Tufts' Ellis Oval/Zimman Field, as 16 players will be saluted in the final collegiate game of their careers.

The 2011 Tufts seniors are Adam Auerbach, George Brereton, Grady Capobianco, Pat Cassidy, Carlo Cervini, Nick Croteau, Andrew Daley, Nick Falk, Andre Figueroa, Luke Lamothe, Kyle Leggott, Ian Levinsky, Johnny Lindquist, David Lloyd, J.T. Rinciari and Zack Skarzynski. The class played an important leadership role this fall as the program transitioned to new head coach Jay Civetti. The Jumbo Football Class of 2011 will be recognized on the field Saturday.

The Tufts Football family also recognizes honorary seniors Ferras Albitar and Phil Artis, excellent linebackers who would have played this year if not for injuries.

Both Tufts and Middlebury have plenty to play for this afternoon. The Jumbos (0-7) will be looking to avoid a winless season. The Panthers (3-4) need a victory in order to finish at .500 and avoid their first losing season since 2005.

Tufts led 10-7 entering the second half at Colby last weekend. After junior Dylan Haas started the game with a 43-yard kickoff return into Mules territory, the offense covered the remaining 43 yards in seven plays for an early 7-0 lead. Lindquist passed 22 yards to sophomore Pat Nee on the first play from scrimmage. The senior quarterback then converted a third down with a three-yard rush, and later hit fullback Mike Cresham with a five-yard touchdown pass. Sophomore running back Ryan Pollock rushed twice for 12 yards during the series.

After Colby tied the score later in the first quarter, the Jumbos went on a 16-play drive that resulted in a 35-yard field goal by Auerbach. The kick was the 21st of Auerbach's career, which ties the all-time program record set by Chris Wild from 1988-91. Auerbach is four for four on field goals this season. Pollock was a workhorse earlier in the scoring drive, carrying the ball nine times to get it into position for Auerbach's kick. Pollock finished with a game-high 67 yards on 20 rushes, while also receiving six passes for 22 yards.

Tufts had some excellent defensive performances in the game, which Colby rallied in the second half to win 20-10. Skarzynski added 14 more tackles (nine solo) to his league-best total and now has 92. That's the most tackles by a Tufts defender since linebacker Eric Sholds had 96 in 1993. With eight tackles on Saturday, Skarzynski would become the first Jumbo to finish with 100 tackles since Eric Damon recorded 108 in 1986.

Junior Curtis Yancy had the best game of his Jumbo career at Colby, finishing with nine tackles (eight solo), a sack that forced a fumble and a pass break-up. Cervini added an 11-yard sack on the last play of the first half when Colby was on the Tufts 14 looking for more points. The Tufts pass rush has four sacks in the last two games.

The Jumbo defense will face the top offensive team in the NESCAC on Saturday afternoon. The Panthers lead the league with 414 yards of total offense per game, and are tied with Amherst scoring 29.7 points per contest. After Middlebury graduated the best passer in team history last year in Donald McKillop, they have picked up where they left off with Brown University transfer McCallum Foote. He enters Saturday's game averaging 351 yards passing per game with 19 touchdowns. After missing the game against Trinity, Foote returned for the Panthers last week and threw for four touchdowns in a 40-21 win over Hamilton.

The passing Panthers have three of the league's top five for receiving yardage. Juniors Zach Driscoll (49 receptions-610 yards) and Billy Chapman (48-526), along with senior Nick Resor (51-480), are all threats to catch the ball. Middlebury can run it too with junior back Remi Ashkar, who is fifth in NESCAC with 562 yards. He's also gained 316 yards on receptions and is second in the conference with 10 touchdowns. On the line, 6'6", 292-pound junior Ryan Moores is a returning All-NESCAC performer.

Middlebury has been at the other end of the league on defense, allowing 400.9 yards and 33.3 points per game. They are led by junior linebacker Zach Roeder, who has 60 tackles and two sacks this fall.

The Panthers hold the upper hand in the series against the Jumbos with nine straight victories dating back to 2002. Last year, Middlebury racked up 532 yards of total offense on its way to a 42-20 win over the Jumbos in Vermont.

Elsewhere in NESCAC on Saturday, Amherst College is playing for the outright conference crown and an undefeated season at arch-rival Williams. The Lord Jeffs clinched at least a share of the title with a 35-28 win over Trinity last week. Should Amherst lose at Williams and Trinity wins over Wesleyan today, the teams would share the 2011 crown.

TUFTS VS. MIDDLEBURY SERIES
Series Record: Tufts, 27-26
First Game: 1915, Tufts 34-0
Last Tufts Win: 2001, 20-6
Last Middlebury Win: 2010, 42-20
Current Streak: Middlebury, 9 games
Large Margins: Tufts 47-6 in 1953; Middlebury College 41-0 in 1977

#