Eighteen seconds into Saturday’s game against Rochester the RPI football team found itself in a situation previously unheard of this season—behind. After one half, the Engineers trailed 19-7 and appeared completely outclassed.
Appearances, though, can be deceiving.
RPI came out of the locker room and took over the game, scoring 24 unanswered second-half points to beat Rochester by a score of 31-19 and remain undefeated in 2002.
The Engineers’ rally began on the opening kickoff of the second half, when defensive back Brent Hanson fielded a short kick and returned it 38 yards into Yellowjacket territory. As it has all season, the RPI offense struck immediately as quarterback Dan Cole hit Flynn Cochran with a 48-yard pass, closing the gap to just five points.
The defense followed up on Rochester’s next drive, forcing a fumble by fullback Gerard Hopkins. Hanson came up big again, recovering the fumble and returning it 53 yards for the touchdown that put RPI ahead for good.
The Engineers’ first score also came on a big play, and a familiar one at that: Pat Hughes caught a screen pass late in the first quarter and outran the Rochester defense for a touchdown.
This was the only bright spot for Rensselaer in the first half, though. RPI’s offensive line was totally ineffective, allowing Cole no time to throw. The Yellowjackets’ running game, meanwhile, easily sliced through the Engineers’ defense, and only a slew of Rochester penalties kept the RPI deficit to 12 points at halftime.
The Engineers will face their toughest challenge to date this weekend when they play Union in the annual Dutchman’s Shoes game in Schenectady. Union has proved to be fallible this season; the Dutchmen are coming off two straight losses, to Hobart and Alfred. However, Union has not lost a home game to RPI in several years, and this weekend is homecoming for the Dutchmen.
Saturday’s game will be the 100th contest between Union and RPI. A win by the Engineers would set up a likely showdown in the final game of the season between RPI and the unbeaten Hobart Statesmen for the UCAA title.
