The #5 Delaware Blue Hens outscored the Maine Black Bears 17-0 in the second half on Thursday night, and walked away with a season opening 34-24 win at Alfond Stadium in Orono. It was an electric atmosphere and the first time that Maine played in front of a crowd at home since the fall of 2019, and was also the 2021 Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) football conference opener for both schools.
Delaware started real strong, and dominated the first quarter and the first 3:30 of the second quarter to take a 17-0 lead. A 15 yard touchdown run by quarterback Nolan Henderson in the first, and a second quarter Ryan Coe field goal made it 10-0. It looked like the visitors would pull away when Maine quarterback Joe Fagnano was intercepted on the next Black Bears possession after the Coe kick. The Blue Hens wasted no time, and on the first play after the turnover turned that into seven points when Henderson found a streaking Gene Coleman II down the left sideline for a 55 yard touchdown. The hosts though would explode over the next 11 minutes, scoring all 24 of their points of the game to take a halftime lead. Fagnano found Michael Monios for a 28 yard touchdown to cap off a 75 yard drive in just under three minutes to get Maine on the board. The defense continued to stiffen, and Fagnano and the offense converted again this time on a 59 yard TD pass to Zavier Scott down the right sideline to cut it to 17-14 with 3:12 to go before intermission. Delaware then went three and out from deep in their own territory, and on the ensuing punt Monios came up with a block at the four yard line that was recovered and taken into the endzone for a score by Montigo Moss to put the Bears ahead. Jonny Messina added a late 32 yard field goal in the closing seconds for a seven point advantage.
After Maine drove to midfield with the first possession of the second half and had their drive stalled, Henderson on the third play from scrimmage hit Thyrick Pitts across the middle who outraced the defenders to tie it for the Blue Hens with a 66 yard scoring strike. A Coe field goal gave Delaware the lead for good with a little less than five minutes to play in the third. The Black Bears looked like they would take the lead back however when Fagnano hit Devin Young near the goal line on the last play of the period, but in his stretch and attempt to score Young would fumble out of the endzone to turn the ball over. The scoring was finished off on a 77 yard Delaware drive helped by a unsportsmanlike conduct and a pass interference penalty on Maine, and Khory Spruill found paydirt on a two yard run with 8:01 to go. Fagnano and the offense did try to bounce back and drove to their opponents 49 yard line, but the QB was intercepted for the second time on the night to put the icing on a Blue Hens victory.
Fagnano finished 24-41 passing with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Elijah Barnwell led a stagnant rushing attack with 10 carries for 37 yards. Young made six receptions, while Scott led in yards receiving with 73 on the night including his long touchdown. Ray Miller led the Black Hole defense with 12 total tackles and a half sack. Henderson went 14-29 passing for 262 yards and two touchdowns in the win for Delaware. He also added four carries for 15 yards and the one score. Dejoun Lee led the Blue Hens backfield carrying 16 times for 59 yards. Coleman and Pitts both had five catches and each had a touchdown, with Coleman going for 120 yards and Pitts 116. Colby Reeder had seven total tackles, a half sack, and the fourth quarter interception to anchor the defense. Next up for Maine is a trip to play at CAA preseason favorite and #2 in the country James Madison on Saturday, September 11 at 4 p.m.
