DOYLESTOWN, Pa.— Eastern Unviersity Football (3-1, 3-0) scored the final 21 points of the game to claim a 21-7 win at Delaware Valley University and to move into the top spot in the MAC heading into the the bye week.
Jeremiah Avrilien rushed for 177 yards and a touchdown and
Brett Nabb ran for 144 and a score as the Eagles fought the wet and windy weather with 365 rushing yards.
DonJuan Clark III led a steady Eastern defense with a six tackles, and interception, and a sack.
The Eagles drove deep on their opening drive but lost the ball on downs deep in Del Val territory. After a series of backwards plays, Del Val punted on 4th and 29. The Aggies (2-2, 2-1) got the first big break of the day with a fumble recovery near midfield. The hosts then went seven plays for 45 yards and went up 7-0 on a 14-yard touchdown catch by Joel Perez. That 46-yard drive represented nearly a third of Delaware Valley's offensive output for the day. For the game, the Aggies rushed for 32 yards and completed only 5-of-16 passes for 113 yards. The Eagles finished with 43 minutes of possession.
Despite a 91-0 edge in first-quarter rushing yards, the Eagles trailed 7-0. Through three games, Eastern had not had a turnover.
The Eagles again pushed deep, but a Nabb interception ended that 10-play drive deep in Aggie territory. The Aggies worked the ball out of their end and seemed to be in good shape when they punted deep.
Chris Rivera ran a return out to the 21, but the Eagles were still far from leveling the score.
Avrilien changed that with a 50-yard run through the middle. It was his fourth run over 45-yards this year. After a Nabb rush for nine yards, Avrilien ran twice more to get the ball to four. His helmet came on the second rush, so it fell to Nabb to carry the ball home for his 28th career rushing touchdown.
John Nolek converted the extra point to tie the game.
Another three-and-out from the Eastern defense gave the Eastern offense a chance to drive for the lead. A 23-yard from Rivera set the Eagles up near midfield. The Eagles started the drive with
Eric Smith earning yards on the ground. A roughing-the-passer penalty negated what could have been another turnover. With less than 30 seconds left in the half, Avrilien rushed in from four yards out for his 28th career rushing touchdown. Avrilien ran for 100 yards in the second quarter.
Despite the two turnovers, the Eagles took a 14-7 lead to the locker room.
After halftime, the Aggies had a pair of three-and-outs on either side of a four-yard Eastern drive. Through the first 11 minutes of the second half, neither team team moved the ball. The Eagles finally started progressing on their third drive of the half. A 35-yard yard scamper from Nabb sparked a drive and the Eagles got to the eight yard line before the quarter ended. Eastern's defense held the Aggies to five yards in the quarter.
After a pair of penalties pushed the Eagles back, Nabb completed a pass to
Malachi Wyche on a crossing for the important insurance points. The 19-yard completion was the first career catch for Wyche. It is the first passing touchdown this year for Nabb.
On the next play,
DonJuan Clark III intercepted a pass after
Logan McGowan tipped the ball. The two teams traded three-and-outs once more before the Eagles ground out the final nine-and-a-half minutes with a 12-play drive. A
Curtis Johnson 22-yard rush on a fake punt kept the drive alive.
Today marked the ninth time that Avrilien and Nabb each rushed for over 100 yards in a game. Both players are hovering around 2800 yards rushing for their careers.
Eastern came into today as one of three unbeaten teams in the league. When King's scored with eight seconds left to beat Widener,15-13, the Eagles became the lone team in the MAC without a conference loss. Five teams, including an Alvernia team that beat Lebanon Valley in double-overtime today, are a game back at 2-1. Misericordia remained in the chase with a 15-14 win at Albright. The Cougars trailed 14-3 in the fourth quarter and needed a 10-play, 86-yard drive for a touchdown in the final 90 seconds to earn the win.
The league is off next week. Eastern will host King's College in 12:30 homecoming game on Saturday, October 10.
