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Last year, if you told anyone that Colby College would be the lone undefeated NESCAC team after facing Williams College and the Cardinals, no one would believe you. On Saturday, this became a reality as Colby (3-0) handed Wesleyan it’s first loss, 29-7. The Cardinals season record fell to 2-1.

"We knew coming in that Colby was a tough team," said Head Coach Frank Hauser. "We made them look even better than they are with our poor play."

Wesleyan prepared all week for Colby’s strong offense and defense. On both sides of the ball, the Cardinals adjusted their game plan to take advantage of match-ups Coach Hauser and his staff thought they could win.

One such adjustment was starting frosh quarterback Brennan Carney over junior Kevin Cornish. It was Carney’s first collegiate start, while Cornish had started Wesleyan’s previous two games.

"I didn’t find out that I was starting until Friday," Carney explained. "We had been getting equal practice time all week, so it wasn’t like I was unprepared."

According to Hauser, the final decision was made by him.

"All personnel decisions are based on playing the players who we think give us the best chance to win," he said.

"He’s going to be a hell of a player," said wide receiver Todd Themistocles ’01. "He looked a little nervous out there, but he really reminded me of Jake Fay ’00. He can scramble and
throw the ball downfield like Jake."

The offense prepared for a Colby defense that blitzes less frequently than most teams, forcing the quarterback to throw passes into tighter coverage.

"I feel we prepared well, we knew what they were going to do," Carney noted. "We just didn’t capitalize; penalties forced us to punt and put our tired defense back on the field."

The offense got off on the wrong foot right away. In their first drive, the Cardinals turned the ball over.

"Turnovers were what killed us," said tight-end Quad-captain Larry Woolard ’02. "Fumbles, interceptions and penalties really took us out of the game."

Throughout the game, the Wesleyan offense had trouble maintaining drives. Offensive penalties ended drives quickly, forcing the Cardinals to punt away. The Colby offense controlled the ball for thirty-five minutes, forcing the Wesleyan defense to remain on the field far longer than normal.

"The defense kept us in the game in the first half," Themistocles said. "It’s not like they’re not used to being on the field for a long time; they are in most of our games. One fourth quarter Colby drive really took it out of them, though."

With 11:27 to go in the fourth quarter, the Colby offense conducted a massive 80-yard, 23 play drive, consuming nine minutes off the clock. The drive culminated with a pass from Pat Conley to receiver Ian McPherson from the Wesleyan two-yard line.

"That drive was a direct result of our lack of offense forcing the already tired defense out on the field," Hauser said.

In the first quarter, Colby capitalized on a Wesleyan fumble in Colby’s end of the field. They took the early 7-0 lead on a 57-yard halfback option pass from Danny Noyes to Lee Carlson.

Late in the first quarter, Wesleyan had an opportunity to balance the score. Lined up on the Colby 44, Carney found George Thompson ’02 open inside the 10, but he was unable to catch
the pass.

"Had we gotten that score, we would’ve been in it," Carney noted. "The game might have gone down to the wire and we could’ve won it."

At the end of the half, Colby increased its lead to 14-0 on a Pat Conley touchdown pass to fullback Don Williams with 45 seconds left.

In the third quarter, Colby moved the ball 66 yards in nine plays and capped it off with a quarterback sneak at 9:10. On the ensuing extra-point kick, a high snap by the center forced halfback Danny Noyes to run it in for the two-point conversion, increasing the lead to 22.

After Colby’s 80 yard drive in the fourth, which increased the score to 29-0, Hauser made a call to the bench and gave the ball to Cornish.

"Coach benched me," Carney explained. "He was looking for a change."

Cornish initiated a 61-yard, six play drive, in which he completed three passes for 42 yards. The series was topped off with a two-yard run by running back Young Douglas ’04, putting
Wesleyan on the board, 29-7. The late score offered the team no consolation.

"There’s nothing positive about this game," Themistocles noted. "The coaching staff and all the players are going to forget about it."

The Cardinals will get a chance to redeem themselves against Bates College this Saturday, but the task will not be as easy as the Bobcats 0-3 record suggests. Bates played close games against Trinity College and Tufts University, and lost to the always-strong Williams team in overtime.

After the loss to Colby, Wesleyan will take every challenge seriously.

"We’re certainly not going to walk over them if we play like we did this past weekend," Woolard said.

"Our team has a lot of talent," Themistocles commented. "We’re going to go out there against Bates and show the rest of NESCAC that we have what it takes to be the number one team in our conference."