Football team falls to Adrian, 19-7, in season-finale

The Olivet College football team fell to Adrian College, 19-7, tonight in its season-finale under the lights at the Cutler Athletic Complex in Olivet.

Adrian scored its first touchdown on a 7-yard run by Jomar Jackson with 3:38 left in the opening quarter. The PAT kick was wide right. The Bulldogs added another touchdown at the 5:42 mark of the second quarter when Troy Niblock connected with Patrick Reagan for a 29-yard scoring stroke. The two-point conversion attempt failed.

The Comets answered on the ensuing possession. On the third play from scrimmage, junior Pat Clasgens (Livonia/Stevenson) dashed 60 yards down the visitors sideline for a touchdown. Senior Kyle Zabel (Sturgis) nailed the PAT kick. There was no more scoring in the second stanza and Adrian led 12-7 at halftime.

The Bulldogs scored their final touchdown on a 2-yard run for Niblock with 1:59 remaining in the third quarter. Justin Warner's PAT split the uprights.

For the game, Olivet had 174 yards of offense. Clasgens rushed for 135 yards on 18 carries and also caught three passes for four yards. Freshman Nick McCleary (Battle Creek/Harper Creek) completed 7-of-13 passes for 49 yards. Senior Nathaniel Woodson (Battle Creek/Lakeview) caught two passes for 35 yards.

Defensively, senior Justin Hughes (Marshall) had a team-leading 13 total tackles (nine solo and four assisted). Junior Hakeem Yakubu (Kalamazoo/Central) was second with 12 tackles, including five quarterback sacks for minus 13 yards. On special teams, sophomore Ryan Patten (Charlotte) punted the ball six times for 287 yards, a 47.8 average.

Adrian finished with 283 yards of offense, led by Niblock, who carried the ball 29 times for 83 yard and completed 8-of-14 passes for 89 yards. Jomar Jackson and Jackson Hanks each had 24 rushing yards. The leading receiver was Reagan with three catches for 50 yards. Chris Maguire and Bobby Watson collected six tackles a piece.