Brockport, NY – To celebrate Homecoming and Family Weekend, the Golden Eagles dominated Hartwick at Bob Boozer Field, 56-0. They start Empire 8 play 1-0, improving to 3-1 overall on the season.
It was all Brockport right from the start, with Daniel Manneh lighting up the scoreboard three times in the first quarter. Manneh started the contest with an 80-yard return on the opening kickoff for his first touchdown of the day. Later in the first, Manneh took a screen pass 23 yards for a second touchdown. Just minutes after, he took a punt all the way back for a 67-yard score for touchdown number three. Manneh's offensive firepower put the Golden Eagles up 21-0 early in front of the homecoming crowd.
The Brockport defense made life difficult for the Hartwick Hawks all game long, pitching its second shutout of the season. The home team held Hartwick to just 10 rushing yards (158 total yards) for the contest, keeping the offense to 0.4 yards per rush. Brockport forced two turnovers in this one, starting with an interception from Liam Nealy in the first quarter. Later in the first, it was Jayson Thomas who recorded the strip sack and allowed Luca Friedman to come up with the fumble recovery.
Following Manneh's trio of scores and the defense's pair of takeaways, the offense would add to the lead before the end of the first. Isaiah Simmons got involved with a 26-yard rushing touchdown to make it a 28-0 lead for the Green and Gold going into the second quarter.
Both defenses stepped up early in the second quarter to force punts, but the Golden Eagles still found the endzone for a pair of scores before halftime. Ben Gocella found Luke Lockhart for an 11-yard touchdown pass to give the home team a 35-0 lead. Then just before the break, Simmons scored once again on a 20-yard rush to make it a 42-0 halftime lead.
Simmons would finish up the game with 90 rushing yards on 13 carries, scoring a pair of rushing touchdowns. Gocella totaled 133 yards threw the air on 11-for-17 passing, with two touchdown passes. Manneh had three catches for 45 yards and a touchdown to go with 148 return yards and two touchdowns on special teams.
With a huge lead going into the second half, Brockport would continue to control the game through the finish line. The defense forced a turnover on downs on Hartwick's opening drive for the half. This led to a 39-yard touchdown run from Quamir Jenkins, his first of the season, that put Brockport up 49-0.
Up next, the homecoming fans would see the Golden Eagle defense force a 3-and-out. This would bring the ball back to the offense, with a chance to put one last touchdown on the board in the third. Zymier Jackson would throw the first touchdown pass of his career, linking up with Tyler Ronk for a 49-yard touchdown. Brockport would go up 56-0 and keep it that way through the final horn for the decisive win over Hartwick on homecoming.
Brockport's offense showed off a balanced attack with 216 yards rushing and 224 yards passing. The squad totaled 440 yards of offense, scoring three touchdowns on the ground and through the air. Jenkins finished with 60 yards rushing and a score on 10 touches. Jackson threw for a touchdown and 91 yards on 4-for-5 passing, to go along with 43 yards rushing on six carries.
Jonathan Cranker, Jahmere Clarke, and Felton Howard each totaled five tackles for a team-high on the day. Alan Ramirez-Jimenez, Carroll Dolshun, and Jayson Thomas each got after the opposing quarterback for a sack. Howard also contributed to the pass rush, earning credit for one QB hurry.
In the secondary, the Golden Eagles had six pass breakups to go with the interception from Nealy. Kanye Davis deflected a pair of pass to force incompletions. Jayson Thomas, Jah-Quil Thompson, Brady Schnell, and Kyle Slywka each had a breakup for the defense.
The Brockport special teams group had a great outing on Saturday at Bob Boozer Field. Not only did the unit produce two touchdowns from Manneh on the kick/punt return, but the kickers were perfect on the day. Sal Montaperto was 7-for-7 on extra points and Zach McGowan was 1-for-1.
Up next on the schedule for Brockport is the annual Courage Bowl matchup against St. John Fisher. This special event is set for a 12pm kickoff out in Rochester, NY on Saturday, October 4th.