c/o Steve McLoughlin Photography
As the temperature drops, the leaves start to pile up on the ground, and the sun begins to set at a ridiculously early hour, it means we are heading towards the winter. With the change in seasons, we are also nearing the end of the football season.
This season started off strong for the Cardinals. The Red and Black jumped to a 6 and 0 record, backed by stellar play from quarterback David Estevez ’22, who is nearing a season with 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 passing yards, leading the team in both categories.
The Cards offense has been aided by running back Charlie McPhee ’22, who has totaled up 482 yards and 11 touchdowns. Wideout Logan Tomlinson ’23, who has tallied 758 receiving yards on 51 receptions with five of those catches ending in touchdowns, has also been a standout for the team. In addition, Tomlinson is averaging over 90 yards a game, leading the rest of the team by nearly 60 yards. Everything was coming up Wesleyan going into Homecoming on Oct. 30.
On Homecoming Weekend, Wesleyan faced off against Little Three rival Amherst, who came in with a 4–2 record. Offensive Coordinator Eric Ludwig spoke to the excitement of the weekend.
“Homecoming at Andrus is always a special event,” Ludwig wrote in an email to The Argus. “Year in and year out we get great crowds which make for such a fun atmosphere to play. Our guys feed off that energy of the crowd!”
Coach Ludwig was right about the Cards feeding off the energy, even on a damp and rainy day. The crowd gave a boost as the Red Birds took a halftime lead of 14–0 over the Mammoths behind two touchdowns by McPhee, one coming from a goal-line run and the other one on a five-yard pass from the hands of Estevez with only 21 seconds left in the half.
In the second half, Amherst proved they weren’t down and out. They took their first possession of the second half and went on a lightning-quick 1:43, 80-yard drive that ended in a touchdown, leaving the score at Wesleyan 14, Amherst 7. After that score, the two teams quickly settled down into a defensive slugfest. Linebacker Isaiah Miller ’22 set a career high with 2.5 sacks, and fellow defensive lineman Jackson Eighmy ’22 added two more sacks of his own. Defensive back Corey Fausto ’22 also got in on the action with a quick fourth-quarter interception, but Amherst still had the ball with 2:46 left, only down by one touchdown. The Mammoths drove down the field and, after converting a 4th and 1 on the Cardinals eight-yard line, set up a first and goal which ended in a touchdown to tie the game at 14 and send the Homecoming game to overtime.
The first overtime period ended with a Cardinals incomplete pass on 4th and a goal from the one-yard line. However, Wesleyan’s defense again stepped up, with Danny Banks ’22 intercepting the Mammoths and forcing a second overtime. After both teams went scoreless they went to a third overtime. As per new NCAA rules, each overtime after the second overtime period gives each team one play to convert a two-point conversion, and finally, in the fourth overtime, the Mammoths converted, earning them a 16–14 victory over Wesleyan.
Ludwig said that though the Cardinals hoped for a decisive victory, the team was prepared for high pressure moments against Amherst.
“We talk about how every week it is going to come down to the last snap,” Ludwig wrote. “In this case it was in 4 overtimes. While it wasn’t the result we wanted, we have been in these types of games all season. Our guys never panicked and are becoming more and more comfortable in high stress situations.”
The Cardinals went on the road to compete against their other Little Three rival Williams on Saturday, Nov. 6, and faced their worst loss of the season, a 25–0 shutout. The Red Birds now sit at 6–2, good for third in the NESCAC, behind undefeated Williams and 7–1 Trinity. They will play their last game of the season this Saturday, Nov. 13, against the Bantams.
Ludwig said that at this point, the team is taking things one week at a time.
“Our goal every week is to get Wesleyan Football better and to go 1–0,” Coach Ludwig wrote.
Rocky D’Antonio can be reached at rdantonio@wesleyan.edu.