AMHERST, Mass. – Clutch play by the Mammoths' defense and a 17-point second half by the offense sealed the win at historic Pratt Field Saturday, as the Amherst College football team battled their way past Tufts University, 24-21, to improve to 2-1 on the season.

FIRST HALF HIGHLIGHTS

• Forcing a turnover on downs to take over the ball at their own 25-yard line, the Mammoths needed just 1:11 to march 75 yards downfield on their opening possession and take a 7-0 lead. Faking the handoff on their first offensive play, sophomore quarterback Brad Breckenridge eluded two defenders before breaking away for a 69-yard gain to set up a first-and-goal at the Tufts 6. A two-yard gain by Kellen Field '22 brought Amherst within four yards of the goal line before Breckenridge finished off the drive with a TD run and Conor Kennelly '23 drilled the PAT with 10:31 on the clock.
• The next eight possessions went without points being added to the board, with the teams combining for six punts and two turnovers on downs via a Charlie Parkinson '24 sack of Matt Crowley and a stop by the Tufts defense on a fourth-and-two.
• Getting the ball back with 2:50 remaining before halftime, the Jumbos sent the sides into the break in a 7-7 deadlock as they put together an eight-play, 66-yard scoring drive. A 28-yard connection between Crowley and Philip Lutz kicked off the drive before a Crowley 13-yard rush set up Tyler Johnson for the one-yard TD run.

SECOND HALF HIGHLIGHTS

• Holding the home team to a three-and-out to begin the second half, Tufts grabbed their first lead of the game on the ensuing possession. Starting the drive at the Amherst 42, three rushes by Johnson moved the Jumbos to the 31 before two complete passes for 26 yards gave the visitors a first-and-goal. Notching his second TD of the contest, Johnson found the end zone on the next play from scrimmage, barreling over the goal line on a two-yard rush to make it 14-7.
• Looking to chip away at the Tufts lead on their next possession, Amherst made their way to the Tufts 22 behind nine plays for 53 yards, but the Mammoths' field goal attempt sailed just wide.
• Unflinching, the Amherst defense needed just 1:10 to get the ball back, limiting Tufts to only two yards via tackles from Joe Kelly '22 and John Schiano '23 and an incomplete pass before forcing a punt.
• Retaking the advantage, Amherst moved 78 yards to the end zone in 1:47. Dropping back at the Amherst 22, Breckenridge found Michael Immerman '22 cutting across the field for a 38-yard gain before rushes from PJ Clementi '22 (9 yards), Jack Roberge '25 (10 yards), and Field (6 yards) set up a second-and-four at the Tufts 15. Logging his third run of 15-yards-or more on the day and his second touchdown, Breckenridge opted to keep the ball himself before running left and sprinting to the pylon to make it 17-14.
• Threatening to draw the sides back into a tie with 1:30 on the clock in the third quarter, four complete passes by Michael Berluti and four rushes set the Jumbos up for a 24-yard field goal attempt to even the score. Making a game-changing play, senior captain Ricky Goodson cut around the left edge and dove to get his hand on the ball to block the kick before Raymond Dixon '24 scooped up the loose ball and darted 71-yards upfield to give the Mammoths' offense stellar field position at the Tufts 19.
• Capitalizing on the turnover, Amherst upped the point differential to 24-14 as Breckenridge made his way across the goal line on a quarterback sneak to collect his third touchdown of the matchup with 13:52 remaining in regulation.
• A Michael Jeffery '22 interception, Breckenridge fumble, and Tufts turnover on downs put the ball back in Amherst's hands with 10:00 to play. Taking 4:11 off the clock and forcing Tufts to use two timeouts, the Mammoths executed nine rushes on the next 10 plays from scrimmage to get to the Jumbos' 11-yard line. Amherst was unable to add insurance points to the board however, as the 28-yard field goal attempt drifted wide left.
• Getting back within striking distance with time winding down, the Jumbos drove 80 yards in 12 plays before Berluti found Billy Dunn in the endzone to set the score at 24-21 with 3:12 remaining.
• Trying for an onside kick, Tufts' attempt on the kickoff proved unsuccessful as senior Matt Durborow smothered the ball at the Amherst 45. Using two timeouts and running three plays, Amherst successfully brought the clock down to just 49 seconds before leaning on their defense to successfully defend a final push by the visitors and lift the Mammoths to the 24-21 victory.

BY THE NUMBERS

• Averaging 4.9 yards per play, the Mammoths put up 454 total yards of offense behind 17 first downs.
• Amherst held possession for 27:42, going 4-for-13 on third down conversions and 3-for-4 on trips to the red zone.
• Tabbed with the start, Breckenridge went 7-for-11 for 120 yards behind center while also posting a game-high 103 net rushing yards, including three rushing TD's. Mike Piazza '24 saw action in one series, going 3-for-5 for 29 yards.
• Hauling in three receptions, Carson Ochsenhirt '23 led Amherst receivers with 60 yards on the day, while Immerman's 38-yard catch stood as the longest connection in the game.
• Durborow and sophomore Ryan Monteleone paced the Mammoths on the defensive side of the ball, who the duo each registering a contest-best 12 tackles behind five solo and seven assisted stops. Tim Swope '24 had another strong week for Amherst, notching 11 tackles to log nine-or-more tackles for the third consecutive game, while Kelly added nine stops, including two tackles for loss.
• First-year Michael Mitchell excelled in five punt opportunities for the Mammoths, racking up 192 total yards to average 38.4 yards per punt. His punt of 40 yards to the Tufts' 12 with less than a minute remaining in regulation pinned the Jumbos inside their own 20 to start what stood as their final drive of the contest, and four of his five punts on the day had Tufts starting their drives from inside their own 35-yard line.
• At QB for the Jumbos, Berluti finished 24-of-40 for 256 yards with a touchdown and an interception, while Matt Crowley went 8-for-14 for 81 yards through the air and added 39 yards on the ground. With two touchdowns, Johnson recorded a Tufts-leading 77 rushing yards, while Phillip Lutz's seven receptions for 118 yards were both game-highs. Johnathan O'Neal and Spencer Alligood led the Jumbos defense, logging 11 and 10 tackles, respectively.

The Mammoths return to action this Saturday, October 9 when they travel to Middlebury College (1-2) for a bout at Youngman Field at Alumni Stadium. Opening kickoff is slated for 2:00PM.