It was not a perfect day for football Saturday at Delaware Stadium, and the Blue Hens had plenty of imperfect moments.
Some may have been weather-related; others resulted from Coastal Athletic Association newcomer North Carolina A&T being more formidable than their 1-4 record may have indicated.
“Today was by far the worst that we’ve had out of the three games, as far as how it affected us,” Delaware coach Ryan Carty said after a third straight wet Saturday. “You could see the snaps were a problem, early in particular.”
FOURTH STRAIGHT WIN:
But Delaware found the way around those obstacles, mainly by running the football to gain command and taking it away to finish the task.
It resulted in a 21-6 win that improved eighth-ranked Delaware to 5-1 overall and 3-0 in the CAA.
“We’re always gonna continue to get better and learn from our mistakes,” Carty said. “There were a lot of things out there that we needed to be better. And if we run up against somebody that might be able to take advantage of that, then we're gonna have a less of a fun conversation postgame."
With road games at Hampton and Towson up next, that’s a helpful reminder.
Five takeaways from Saturday’s win:
CAA STANDINGS: Blue Hens perched high
Running attack does the job
Delaware’s 322 rushing yards Saturday were the most in its last 35 games dating to the spring 2021 win at Rhode Island when it had 361.
It had been even longer since Delaware had a pair of 100-yard rushers in a game, as Kyron Cumby had 144 yards on 20 carries with two touchdowns and Marcus Yarns gained 126 on 15 carries, all in the first half. The last was Dejoun Lee getting 103 and Will Knight 101 in a 2019 win over New Hampshire.
“You have to have the mindset to control the line of scrimmage, not take too many chances and I think sometimes you have to try some things and see what you can do and can’t do in a safe way,” Carty said.
“I think early on we kind of realized how bad it was when we had that interception early, off Chandler’s [Harvin] chest. The ball was wet and it was uncatchable almost.”
Yarns suffered a minor injury when he blocked a punt early in the third quarter and didn’t have any second-half carries.
“We got great players on the o-line and in the backfield,” Cumby said. “So when it’s a rainy day, I’m a running back, I’m gonna want the ball. We know we’re good at that.”
Yarns had his fourth 100-yard rushing game this season and Cumby's was the third in his UD career.
“We have the ability to be a balanced football team,” said Carty, before adding: “We’re not always going to be able to get away with running the ball as much as we did.”
Not to be ignored (defense)
Jackson Taylor had 15 tackles including four for lost yardage. Three of Chase McGowan’s seven takedowns were TFLs, including the Blue Hens’ lone sack.
Delaware had 12 tackles for lost yardage overall. The Hens also had key second-half fumbles forced by Keyshawn Hunter and Nic Ware and recovered by Hunter and Tyron Herring.
“We start every practice, the first 10 minutes, on a turnover circuit,” McGowan said, “catching balls, recovering fumbles, and that just shows up in a game.”
MAN IN THE MIDDLE:Hunter has been ideal for rebuilt Delaware defense
Not to be ignored (offense)
Elijah Sessoms, the redshirt freshman tight end out of Dover High, continued to earn opportunities and make plays, getting two catches for 17 yards.
Quarterback Ryan O’Connor had two key blocks to help spring Cumby, including on his 25-yard TD run after it appeared he might be stopped.
Not to be ignored (special teams)
Jojo Bermudez, in addition to leading Delaware with three catches for 28 yards, had a 52-yard kick-off return.
Ryan Kost averaged 46 yards on his three punts despite a slippery ball, some pressure and imperfect snaps.
“We got away with some because Ryan’s so athletic and talented,” Carty said.
In addition to his big day running, Yarns also blocked a punt.
Reunion relished
Carty spoke at Friday night’s 20th anniversary reunion for the Blue Hens’ 2003 NCAA Division I-AA title team, for which he backed up Andy Hall at quarterback.
“It was just special,” Carty said. “There were 53 RSVPs. Our roster must have been 100. We're talking about 20 years later, people all across the country with jobs. … We have more than half the team show up and want to be celebrated and want to celebrate together. It’s a testament to how special the accomplishment was, but also how close the team became during that time.”
Have an idea for a compelling local sports story or is there an issue that needs public scrutiny? Contact Kevin Tresolini at ktresolini@delawareonline.com and follow on Twitter @kevintresolini. Support local journalism by subscribing to delawareonline.com and our DE Game Day newsletter.
