Football Tops Columbia 22-13 to Move to 2-1 Overall on the Season

Senior running back James Mallory rushed for 128 yards and scored twice and senior quarterback Aubrey Norris was a perfect 8-for-8 passing and rushed for 75 yards as the Central Connecticut State University football team topped Columbia 22-13 on Saturday afternoon in New York City. CCSU, now 2-1 on the season, was facing a team from the Ivy League for the first time in its history. CCSU will play its first home game of the season next Saturday at 12 noon vs. Sacred Heart.

The Blue Devils trailed 13-0 following the second offensive touchdown of the game for the Lions. The extra-point was blocked by CCSU, one of three blocked kicks in the first half for the Blue Devils, and Dominique Rose picked up the ball and ran the 95 yards to the other end zone for the two-point conversion for CCSU.

The offense responded for the Blue Devils, as Norris entered the game for the first time as the signal caller. Norris drove the team 79 yards in nine plays for their first touchdown of the game, and cut the lead to 13-9 before the half. Norris's 28-yard scamper put the ball in the end zone. He rushed for 48 yards on the drive.

CCSU received the kickoff in the second half, and again Norris drove the team to the end zone to give CCSU its first lead. This time the drive went 10 plays for 77 yards and was capped by a one-yard scoring run by Mallory, giving the Blue Devils the 16-13 edge.

Mallory scored the final touchdown of the game with 11:41 on the clock in the fourth quarter, giving the visitors the 22-13 lead. CCSU scored 22 unanswered points to cap the victory, all of which came with Norris at quarterback.

"I think Aubrey came in and gave us a great burst of energy," head coach Jeff McInerney said in the post-game press conference. "We were able to get him out on the edge, and he became the difference in the game. That is not a knock on Hunter (Wanket), but Aubrey had what we needed offensively against this defense and he certainly became a play maker when we needed him to be."

The CCSU defense was also the difference in the second half as they held Columbia to only 71 total yards after halftime and just 24 on the ground.

The Blue Devils rushed the ball for 325 yards on the day, an average of 5.3 yards per carry. Mallory led the way with 128, his 12th career game with 100 yards rushing or more. He also scored two touchdowns, giving him five on the season and 23 for his career.

Norris added 75 yards on the ground and was an impressive 8-for-8 in the air, for 135 yards. Senior Nick Colagiovanni had five catches for 82 yards in the win, including a big 37-yard gain on the final scoring drive of the game in the fourth quarter.

Junior Brian Fowler added 67 yards on the ground on only eight carries. He had a 37 yard run late in the game to help preserve the nine-point lead as CCSU dominated the time of possession in the second half.

The Blue Devils held the ball for a total of 38:22 in the game, including 22 minutes in the second half. Columbia had the ball for only three minutes in the third quarter and ran just eight offensive plays and punted twice. During that time CCSU scored 14 points and took the 16-13 lead.

"Aubrey's touchdown was huge for us," Mallory said following the win. "It gave us the confidence we needed to be successful on offense and we fed off of that. When I saw him trying to score (on the 28-yard touchdown run in the second quarter) I just wanted to catch up with him and throw a big block. I couldn't even catch him. But we celebrated in the end zone together, so it was great."

Norris, the most proficient passer in school history, did not miss a pass on the day and used his legs to help lead the Blue Devils to the victory.

"I was just waiting for the call, I am always ready to contribute," Norris said. "I just wanted to make a play and when I saw a lot of green in front of me I wanted to make sure I got to the end zone. This is a great win for us."

Jeff Marino led all tacklers for CCSU with nine stops in the game, including three solo and one for a loss. Alondre Rush added seven stops while Roberto Rodriguez and Ray Saunders each had a sack. Rodriguez added his second blocked kick of the season. Mallory also added a block on a punt in the second quarter.

CCSU returns home for the first time this season on Saturday, hosting Sacred Heart at 12 p.m. They will celebrate homecoming and the game will be televised on MSG Plus, Cox Sports Television and Fox College Sports Atlantic.