Marist football marched into Des Moines, Iowa, and defeated the three-time reigning Pioneer Football League champion Drake Bulldogs, 27-22. The Red Foxes are the only remaining unbeaten team in PFL play with a 3-0 record for the third time in school history.
A career day for sophomore defensive back Jace Williamson was crucial in stopping the scorching Drake offense. Williamson tallied two pass breakups and nine tackles through just 30 minutes of play. The Nashville native finished the matchup with 10 stops, by far his career high.
Graduate student Isaiah Simmons got the start again at running back today, but most of the yards on the ground for Marist came from graduate student quarterback Sonny Mannino. He topped off a beautiful, four-minute inaugural drive with a rushing touchdown, his seventh of the season. The 6-foot-5, 245-pounder finished with three total scores, as well as two turnovers this afternoon.
The Bulldogs’ strong first drive ended with a 31-yard field goal by senior kicker Griffin Kollhoff.
Heading into today, opponents were 21/24 in the red zone against Drake, a trend that continued in this contest — Marist got into the red zone four times and scored on every one of them.
Drake graduate student quarterback Riley Warzynski fired a laser that found junior wideout Hank Foley in the back of the end zone, making the score 9-7 late in the first. A false start pushed the point-after attempt back five yards.
The Marist special teams unit leads all of Division I football in blocked kicks — they did not block this one, but after a good initial pushback on the line, Kollhoff’s kick went wide. This was just one of Kollhoff’s three misses in the game.
After 134 straight passes without an interception, a QB-spy in junior defensive back Taye Proctor stepped in front of a deep shot from Mannino. The Bulldogs took advantage of the momentum as sophomore utility man Kyle Cottee punched in a three-yard run. Kolhoff’s kick was true, putting Drake up 16-7 with 13:20 left in the first half.
Mannino bounced back with his legs again, fighting his way in from two yards out. Freshman kicker Luke Stenson hit the extra point, putting Marist back within two.
A creative drive midway through the second half from Warzynski and the Bulldogs ended in another missed kick, giving the ball back to the Red Foxes; Mannino quickly threw another interception before Kolhoff missed another one, this time from 42 yards out. The score remained 16-14 in Drake’s favor heading into the break.
In the third quarter, a 13-play, 64-yard drive for the Red Foxes ended with just three points. Junior slot receiver Zach Garmont took a drag route for 31 yards to set up Marist inside the five, then created a ton of separation in the end zone, but a Mannino misfire ultimately led to fourth down and the kick to put the Red Foxes in front, 17-16.
A blunder of an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against Drake graduate student receiver Mitchell January led to a Bulldogs punt. On the ensuing possession, the Red Foxes went up by eight on a 58-yard touchdown catch by Garmont.
Drake tried to work its way back; 12 plays, 92 yards and a 23-yard touchdown caught by January brought Drake within two points on its next drive. However, they failed to convert on the two-point attempt, keeping the score at 24-22.
Marist then churned down the field to allow Stenson to hit again from 37 yards, giving the Red Foxes some more cushion.
With a 27-22 lead and just under five minutes left in the game, Warzynski suffered a lower-body injury. This brought in backup true freshman quarterback Braylon Wilson, who picked up two first downs but failed to convert on the game-sealing fourth down.
The five-point victory puts Marist atop the PFL. They will return home to face St. Thomas next Saturday. Kickoff is set for 12 p.m. at Tenney Stadium.
Edited by Max Rosen
Photo by Michael O’Neil
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