Tigers get much needed rest after blowing lead late

BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Towson’s week off during the football season could not have come at a better time.

The Tigers entered the season with aspirations of qualifying for the 16-team Football Championship Subdivision playoffs and contending for the CAA title. But in an injury-filled season that was made even worse when defensive players Eric Clark and Trent Covington were arrested two weeks ago on drug charges, the Tigers (3-5) need a mental break this coming weekend, just as much as a physical one.

“Over the course of four games in five weeks, we’re a little nicked up” Towson Coach Gordy Combs said. “You get a little more tired in the game.”

Towson was poised to return to .500 and keep its slim chances of a playoff berth alive when it took the field at Colgate on Saturday. However, the Tigers squandered a four-point lead in the fourth quarter to fall to the Raiders, 27-17.

The loss in Hamilton, N.Y., snapped the Tiger’s 13-game non conference winning streak. Colgate (4-3) gave the Tigers a steady dose of running back Jordan Scott — the nation’s second leading rusher who ran for 133 yards and two touchdowns on 37 carries — but Towson did plenty to hurt itself. The Tigers committed four turnovers and gave up three sacks to suffer their fifth loss in the past six games.

Quarterback Sean Schaefer’s struggles continued, as he completed just 16-of-36 passes for 183 yards and 3 interceptions. It was just the fourth time in 29 starts Schaefer has failed to throw a touchdown pass, but the third time this season. For the year, he has passed for 1,712 yards and nine touchdowns, but leads the CAA with 16 interceptions — 12 of which coming losses.

“We made too many mistakes and we can’t win like that,” Coach Gordy Combs said in a press release. “We turned the ball over, we missed tackles. we dropped passes and we had too many penalties.”

Linebacker Brian Bradford continues to be a steadying force on the defense, making 13 tackles against Colgate. On the season, he has made a CAA-high 97 tackles, an average of more than 12 per game.

“We’re definitely holding together pretty well” linebacker John Webb said. “Our defense kind of understands where we’re at. We have a quiet confidence about us, we know we can battle with any team.”

dcarey@baltimoreexaminer.com

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