Football Too Much for Norwich, 49-13
NORWICH, Vt., November 13, 2004 -- Springfield College wrapped up the 2004 regular season with a 49-13 victory over Norwich in an Empire 8 Conference game on Sabine Field this afternoon.
The Pride (7-2, 4-2 Empire 8) all but clinched a post-season bid. On Monday, the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) will announce the six teams that will compete in three ECAC championship games. This would be the Pride's third-consecutive post-season berth, a first in the program's 111-year history. SC competed in the NCAA Division III Tournament in 2002 and '03. The Pride last played in an ECAC bowl in 1995, a 49-26 win over Cortland (N. Y.).
SC rushed for a season-high 517 yards against Norwich. Junior
Andre Clayton (Manchester, Conn.) led SC's ground game with a career-best 178 yards on 19 carries. Senior quarterback
Ryan Sylvia (Marion, Mass.) scored three second-half touchdowns, and became SC's all-time leading scorer with 288 points.
The Pride defense allowed just 55 yards on the ground and forced two turnovers. Senior linebacker
Justin Fletcher (Orwell, Vt.) had a team-high six tackles, and senior defensive end
Curtis Schmidt (Whitesboro, N.Y.) had two-tackles-for-loss and one sack. Schmidt's blocked punt with 3:21 left in the first half resulted in a safety and gave SC a 23-6 lead. After getting the ball back on a free kick, Clayton capped a four-play, 47-yard drive with a five-yard TD rush to give the visitors a 30-6 lead at the half.
The Pride controlled the clock with a commanding 39:22 to 20:38 time of possession advantage.
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Head Coach Mike DeLong
Michael C. “Mike” DeLong ’74 enters his 32nd season as a head football coach in the fall of 2013. He enters his 30th year at Springfield College alone. For the past 28 years, he has been the head coach at Springfield, his alma mater. Mike had also been the head coach at Maine Maritime in Castine, Maine in 1979 and 1980.
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Contact Head Coach Mike Delong
E-Mail | Phone: 413.748.3156
