The University of Maine football team gave a great effort against an FBS team on the road on Saturday afternoon, falling 22-16 to Boston College at Alumni Stadium in Chesnut Hill, Massachusetts.
The Black Bears, who were 38.5 point underdogs, gave up 16 first quarter points to the Eagles to fall behind 16-0, but would pretty much silence the hosts the rest of the way to stay in the game. The defense forced two interceptions of Boston College quarterback Mason McKenzie, but Eddie Buehler also threw two for Maine. Buehler tossed two touchdowns of 5 and 7 yards to Nick Laughlin (Cape Elizabeth), and Samuel Tremblay also added a field goal for the guests, while also having an extra point blocked. The Bears second touchdown by Laughlin (with that XP blocked) cut it to that six point margin with 4:34 left to play. The Eagles (2-1) drained the clock with a pair of first downs however to seal the victory.
Running back Evan Dickens and wide receiver Johnathan Montague Jr. were the offensive standouts for Boston College. Dickens rushed for 102 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown, while Montague Jr. hauled in five catches for 72 yards and a score. Buehler ended up 22-32 passing for 201 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions in the Maine loss. It was tough going out of the backfield as Laughlin had 38 yards on 10 attempts, while Rashawn Marshall carried 12 times for 37 yards. Laughlin (42 yards, two touchdowns) and Evan Wallace (46 yards) both had six receptions. Sam Oppenheimer, who is one of top tacklers in all of FCS, had another big performance with 11 total stops (7 solo) and an interception. Amari Mack added a sack, and Jamaree Gibson had the other interception on the day. They held the Eagles to 4-12 on third down, while they converted on 7-15 of their own which is a big improvement over last Saturdays 1-12 effort in a home loss to Merrimack. It is their ninth straight defeat to an FBS team. The Black Bears (1-3 overall, 1-0 Coastal Athletic Association) now plays league games for the rest of the year beginning next Saturday at Elon. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.
Photo from UMaine Athletics
