DOYLESTOWN, Pa. - It was not the outcome Gallaudet University football fans across the country wanted on Saturday but everyone knew that the Bison faced a very stern task going up against nationally-ranked Delaware Valley University in the first round of the 2022 NCAA Division III football championship. The Bison offense never got on track against the No. 8 Aggies as GU got shutout, 59-0, before a crowd of 916 at James Work Memorial Stadium on a sunny and cold fall afternoon in Pennsylvania.
Gallaudet (7-3) entered the game with the No. 6 rushing offense that averaged 273.3 yards on the ground per game but hadn't faced a defense like the one Delaware Valley (11-0) rolled out. The Aggies are the No. 3 defense in the country as they only allowed 179.7 yards per game and 6.5 points per game.
"Credit to them for having one of the best defenses in the country. They all played very, very well," said Gallaudet senior offensive lineman Mitch Dolinar (Las Vegas, Nev.). "The GU offensive group tried our best to manage the situation we had. We couldn't block them well but finally got on track and started to move the ball on a few drives."
The Bison were held to a season-low 83 yards of offense (38 rushing, 45 passing), 47 plays and six first downs. GU still won the time of possession battle with 30 minutes and 36 seconds as the Bison rank No. 13 in the country in that category (33:19 per game).
"I thought the Gallaudet football team is a very good team. They are well coached and put together. Their guys played very hard," said Delaware Valley head coach Duke Greco in his eighth season at the helm. "Today for us, I think our guys were ready for the challenge and stepped up."
The Aggies stepped up in a big way with big tackles in the back field, recovered fumbles, one interception and explosive plays on offense with long runs and receptions.
Delaware Valley jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead just over two minutes into the game. Gallaudet's offense went backwards on the first drive and was forced to punt. The Aggies scored a second time as they used a short field to their advantage and took a 13-0 lead. If there was any flaw in the Delaware Valley game on Saturday it came at special teams as the Aggies missed two extra-point kicks, one was blocked by the Bison, and other miscues forced them to go for two, twice, and both rushes failed.
GU junior kicker Jonathon Waterman (Sebastian, Fla.) attempted a 47-yard field goal at the 6:53 mark in the second quarter and had enough leg but missed the kick right. The Bison defense forced a three-and-out as the Aggies punted for the first time in the game.
On the next GU possession, the Bison put together their best drive of the game and had their best chance to put points on the scoreboard. Gallaudet used eight plays to cover 51 yards and got down to the Delaware Valley 1-yard line. The bulk of those 51 yards came on a 44-yard catch made by freshman wide receiver Jaylen Johnson (Dublin, Calif.) from junior quarterback Nicholas Maccini (San Diego, Calif.). The catch put the Bison in the red zone as they had a 1st and goal from the 10-yard line. A Delaware Valley pass interference penalty put the Bison on the two-yard line but two quarterback sneaks couldn't get Gallaudet in the end zone. On third down, Maccini threw an interception in the end zone as GU came away empty-handed.
The Aggies took a 25-0 lead into halftime and never looked back en route to their first shutout in NCAA playoff history. Delaware Valley is now 13-10 in NCAA tournament games and will next host No. 14 Randolph-Macon College (11-0) next Saturday, Nov. 26, at noon in the quarterfinal round. The Yellow Jackets defeated No. 17 SUNY Cortland (9-2) in the first round, 35-28.
"We never gave up and what a great experience we had here today at this level of play," said senior defensive back Laron Thomas (Orlando, Fla.) through an interpreter during the postgame press conference.
Delaware Valley running back Jay White finished with a game-high 143 yards and two scores while quarterback Louie Barrios IV completed 8 of 15 passes for 129 yards and ran for 44 yards and two scores.
Gallaudet's top rusher was junior superback DeMichael Shelbon (West Monroe, La.) with three rushes for 13 yards followed by sophomore running back Mikka Harvey (Prince Frederick, Md.) with three carries for 12 yards. Sophomore quarterback Brandon Washington (Citronelle, Ala.) got bottled up by the Delaware Valley defense, that featured two All-American defensive ends, as he was limited to 12 rushes for five yards as he lost 29 yards in the backfield, most coming on fumbles and tackles for loss. GU finished the game with seven fumbles and lost three of them to the Aggies. Delaware Valley also had 11 tackles for a loss of 30 yards and one interception for 16 yards.
"It's been a great experience for our players. That is what we wanted. There are only 32 teams playing in the NCAA football playoffs and Gallaudet University was one of them," said Gallaudet head coach Chuck Goldstein, who completed his 12th season leading the Bison. "We have a good team but now we know what it takes to get on the national level like Delaware Valley. They have a great team. We struggled and we knew it was going to be a tough situation but our players didn't quit and they gave everything they had for every play. I couldn't be more proud of this team."
This was Gallaudet's second appearance in the NCAA tournament as the Bison last played in the postseason in 2013 when they lost, 34-7, to No. 7 Hobart College.
"I don't care that we lost. The fact that Gallaudet, the world's deaf team, is up there as one of 32 NCAA playoff teams and other hearing teams didn't make it, shows that we did it and everyone else [who didn't make the playoffs] had to watch us today. There is no better feeling than that," said senior defensive end Rodney Burford Jr. (Brooklyn, N.Y.).
A bright spot for the Bison was sophomore linebacker Jacob Hartman (Petersburg, W.Va.) who made a career-high 14 tackles, nine of which came in the second half. Hartman's 14 tackles were double that of the next GU defender as sophomore Zarek Nathanson (Manor, Texas) recorded seven tackles.
This is the last game for Gallaudet's 12-member senior class includes; Burford Jr., Dolinar, Maccini, Thomas, Stefan Anderson (Little Falls, Minn.), Eric Gregory (Metairie, La.), Austin Hicks (Plattsmouth, Neb.), D'Mitri Lofton (Gaithersburg, Md.), Joseph Mendis (Brook Park, Ohio), Kobe Schroeder (Farmington, Minn.), Marc Wallace Jr. (Panama City Beach, Fla.) and John Werner Jr. (Frederick, Md.).
"The senior group is a special one for sure because many of us didn't start when we arrived. We sat and watched and figured out what it takes to play and win. Unfortunately, we didn't experience a lot of winning the first couple of seasons but never lost focused and things fell into place these past two seasons where we had winning records," said Dolinar.
Coach Goldstein reflected and added about the senior class; "This group of seniors helped to make the foundation for the future. You need to realize that Gallaudet University football, historically, has not had a lot of success. In fact, the football program is the only Gallaudet men's team sport to ever make the NCAA tournament in the school's history and we have done it twice now. This senior group finished their last two seasons with 12 wins and six losses and that is a winning record and something they should be proud of. I know I am."
UP NEXT
This concludes the 2022 season for the Gallaudet football team. The future remains bright for the buff and blue as GU returns a majority of its roster for 2023.
"We are still very young. Some of our best players are only sophomores. We will get back to work in the offseason but I told our players to enjoy this moment and experience. We have a good team and we will build off our success this year. Hopefully, we will back in the NCAA tournament next year," said Goldstein.