Blue Hens would lead by 11 after one-quarter of FCS playoff action.
The game started with Delaware getting possession of the ball first on their own 25-yard line. It would not take the Hens long to score as they drove 75 yards down the field in six plays to end, with quarterback Nolan Henderson rushing 13 yards for the first touchdown of the game to give his team a 6-0 lead with 12:42 left in the first quarter. UD only led by six because the offense attempted a two-point conversion, and it failed.
One of the highlights on the scoring drive came on first and ten at the University of Delaware’s 37-yard line, where quarterback Nolan Henderson would find wide receiver Chandler Harvin for the 37-yard reception to push them to the Red Flash’s 30-yard line.
After St. Francis would go three and out on their first drive in this matchup, it was the Blue Hens’ turn, and they would continue their scoring ways.
Delaware’s next drive would start at their own 16-yard line with 11:39 remaining in the opening quarter. The Hens would march 84 yards on nine plays to end, with Henderson hitting Chandler Harvin for the 30-yard touchdown catch to extend their team’s advantage to 14-0 with 7:19 left in the first quarter. UD went for two on the second straight scoring drive, and this time this attempt was successful for the team.
Quarterback Nolan Henderson was on target with his throws on this scoring drive as he completed all four passes for 69 yards.
Fast forward to the 4:31 minute mark in the opening quarter, where the Red Flash would start on their first scoring drive of the game. Saint Francis would march 76 yards down the field in ten plays to end with Alex Schmoke making a 22-yard field goal attempt to cut the lead to 14-3 with 48 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
UD leads by 28 at the end of the first half.
The Blue Hens’ next scoring drive would start on their own 32-yard line with 10:02 left in the second quarter. UD would continue to drive down the field with ease, as the team went 68 yards in eight plays to end with quarterback Nolan Henderson finding wide receiver Thyrick Pitts for the ten-yard touchdown reception to expand the team’s advantage to 18 points (21-3) with 6:15 remaining in the first half.
The highlight play on this scoring drive came on first and ten on Delaware’s 32-yard line when running back Marcus Yarns busted out for a 51-yard run to set up his team at Saint Francis’ 17-yard line.
The last touchdown drive of the first half would come from the blazing-hot UD offense, who would start their series at their own 36-yard line with 3:23 remaining in the second quarter. Delaware continued to push around the Red Flash’s defense as they went 64 yards on seven plays to end, with Henderson finding wide receiver Chandler Harvin for his second receiving touchdown of the half to push the team’s lead to 28-3 at the end of the first half.
Delaware would extend their lead by 25 after three-quarters of play.
The third quarter would be the only time in this game where the Blue Hens did not score double digits in points.
Delaware’s only touchdown drive in the third quarter came at the 13:45 minute mark, where the team started at their own 39-yard line. The University of Delaware quickly moved down the field as the team went 61 yards on two plays to end, with quarterback Nolan Henderson finding his wide receiver Chandler Harvin for his third touchdown reception of the day. Harvin’s 58-yard score would give the Hens a 35-3 advantage with 12:56 remaining in the third quarter.
Fast forward to the 9:40 minute mark of the third quarter, where Saint Francis would go on its first touchdown drive of the game. The Red Flash would be set up at Delaware’s 46-yard mark after their defense intercepted Nolan Henderson’s pass on his team’s drive.
Saint Francis would drive 46 yards down the field on 11 plays to end with their quarterback Justin Sliwoski finding wide receiver Dawson Snyder for a 12-yard touchdown catch to slice the lead to 35-10 at the end of the third quarter.
Blue Hens win 56-17!
In the early minutes of the fourth quarter, the high-flying Hens offense would be off on another scoring drive as the team would drive 60 yards in ten plays to end with running back Quincy Watson taking it in for the one-yard score to push his team’s advantage to 42-10 with 14:09 left in the game.
A critical play on this scoring drive happened on fourth and three at SFU’s 31-yard line, where quarterback Nolan Henderson found wide receiver Brett Buckman for the 23-yard reception to set their team up at the Flash’s one-yard line.
No matter what the Saint Francis defense tried to do, they could not find a way to stop the well-oiled machine of UD’s offense, as the team would start another scoring drive at their own 37-yard line with 9:03 left in the game. Delaware would march 63 yards in six plays to end with running back Khory Spruill running ten yards for a touchdown to expand his team’s lead to 49-10 with 6:01 remaining in the fourth quarter.
On the kickoff return after the touchdown, the Red Flash would fumble the ball, which Delaware’s Brandon Dennis would scoop up and take it in for the score to push his team’s advantage to 56-10 with 5:45 left in the game.
Right after the Blue Hens’ touchdown, Saint Francis would have a scoring drive of their own, as they marched 75 yards in six plays to end with quarter Justin Sliwoski finding Makai Jackson for a 45-yard touchdown reception to cut the lead to 56-17 with 3:18 left in the game.
All that was left for UD to do was kneel to seal dominating 56-17 FCS playoff win over the Red Flash. Delaware will take on the South Dakota State Jack Rabbits in the second round of the FCS playoffs on December 3rd.
Team Stats:
First Downs: UD 27 SFU 11
Third Efficiency (%): UD 4 of 9& SFU 3 of 16
Total Offense: UD 586& SFU 258
Net Yards Passing: UD 303 & SFU 185
Net Yards Rushing: UD 283 & SFU 73
Penalties: UD 1-15 & SFU 5-46
Fumbles: UD 2 & SFU 1
Sacks: UD 3& SFU 1
Interceptions: UD 0 SFU 1
Time of Possession: UD 31:53 & SFU 28:07
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