Boxscore
Photo Courtesy of Mark Campbell

ORONO, Maine -- The University of Delaware finally revived its struggling running game and in the process picked up its first Colonial Athletic Association football victory of the season Saturday night as the Blue Hens ran past host University of Maine at rainy Alfond Stadium.

The Hens, who had rushed for negative two yards in a 30-20 loss at William & Mary a week ago and entered the game last in the CAA in rushing offense, picked things up in a big way against Maine as Delaware churned out season-highs of 512 total yards, including 183 on the ground, to improve to 3-2 (1-2 CAA) and move back into the conference race.

Maine (2-3, 1-1 CAA), who had defeated Delaware each of the last two meetings, including the Hens’ last trip to Orono in 2005, lost its third straight game as the Black Bears managed just 326 total yards and the Hens picked off quarterback Warren Smith twice.

“We had two themes this week with the kids,” said Delaware head coach K.C. Keeler, who improved to 4-2 all-time vs. Maine. “We told them not to look at the clock until the end and just concentrate on going 1-0 this week. We knew if we did that it would be a good week. Every game in this league is like a championship ballgame and we are happy to get out of here with a win.”

Redshirt freshman running back David Hayes (bottom right) ignited the running game for the Hens as he ran 17 times for a career-high 106 yards and clinched the win with a 25-yard dash for a touchdown on a fourth-down play with 3:57 left to play. Leon Jackson (top right) also played a big part in the improvement as he ran for 61 yards and scored two touchdowns.

Blue Hen quarterback Pat Devlin guided the Hens to their highest yardage total of the year and most since the 2007 season as he completed 21 of 31 passes for 329 yards for his second straight 300-yard effort. The big play was a 79-yard scoring toss to senior Mark Duncan that opened the scoring midway through the first quarter. Duncan finished the night with four catches for 145 yards, posting his sixth career 100-yard receiving effort and first since the 2007 campaign.

“We knew we had to show we had a running game,” said Hayes, who also caught four passes for 49 yards on the soggy night. “Last week when we ran for negative yardage, that was unacceptable. We work too hard and we knew we had to get better. I knew we would have a breakout game sooner or later and it couldn’t have come at a better time than tonight.”

Delaware put in a solid defensive effort as well as the Blue Hens held Maine to just 326 total yards - 68 on the ground - and allowed 18 first downs. The Black Bears managed just 100 total yards in the second half when they converted only one of six third down attempts. Senior defensive tackle Brandon Gilbeaux led the Hens with eight tackles, including a sack, and Anthony Bratton and Ricky Tunstall each recorded interceptions.

Maine quarterback Wendell Smith completed 23 of 36 passes for 258 yards and two touchdowns with Landis Williams pulling in 10 passes for 104 yards. Derek Session led the Black Bear ground game with 57 yards on 14 carries, well under his average of 88 yards per game entering the game.

After Maine took its only lead of the night at 17-14 on a 35-yard field goal by Jordan Waxman with 9:14 left in the third quarter, Delaware took over and raced to the victory. The Hens went ahead for good at 21-17 when Jackson capped a 71-yard drive with his second score of the night, a two-yard dive with 2:27 remaining in the third quarter.

Delaware then iced the win when Hayes’ stormed up the middle on a fourth down play, scoring on a 25-yard jaunt with 3:57 left to play to push the lead to 27-17. A 48-yard pass play from Devlin to Duncan down to the Maine 23-yard line started the drive.

Bratton then ended any comeback hopes by the Black Bears on the next possession as he posted his second interception of the season at the Maine 45-yard line. The Hens then ran out the clock, keeping it on the ground with Hayes posting runs of five, five, and six yards and Jackson gaining four more yards.

Delaware and Maine played to a 14-14 halftime tie in an evenly played 30 minutes of action that produced almost identical team statistics.

The Blue Hens, who opened the scoring on a 79-yard bomb from Pat Devlin to Mark Duncan in the first quarter and later used an eight-yard jaunt by Leon Jackson to give Delaware a 14-7 lead with 5:12 left, held a narrow 241-226 edge in total yards for the stanza.

Maine used two big drives of 77 and 82 yards to get on the board in the opening half, answering each Delaware touchdown with a 45-yard scoring toss from Wendell Smith to Desmond Randall that tied the score at 7-7 with 1:30 left in the first stanza and responding with a nine-yard toss from Smith to Tyrell Jones in the back of the end zone that knotted things at 14-14 with 1:40 remaining before intermission.

The Black Bears moved effortlessly in their first drive - thanks to five straight completions by Smith - but came up empty when Jordan Waxman missed wide left on a 30-yard field goal attempt midway through the opening stanza.

That opened the door for the Blue Hens, who came back with a quick 80-yard scoring drive of its own. After taking possession at the 20-yard line, David Hayes gained a yard on the Hens’ first play.

But Delaware hit it big on the next play as Devlin hit Duncan across the middle and senior outran the Maine defense for a 79-yard scoring play, the 10th longest pass play in UD history and longest since Duncan hauled in an 84-yarder from Joe Flacco against Richmond in 2007. The score gave the Hens a 7-0 lead with 6:37 left in the first period.

Maine answered two possessions later, getting on the board with a 77-yard drive that was capped by a 45-yard scoring toss from Smith to Randall. Smith hit Randall in the flat on the seven-yard line and the junior faked out two Delaware defenders and waltzed in for the score to tie the game at 7-7 with 1:30 left.

The two teams traded scores again in the second quarter as the Hens went up 14-7 with 5:12 left on an eight-yard touchdown by Jackson, who moved to his left, cut back and dodged into the end zone. Delaware had wasted an opportunity minutes earlier when an interception by Blue Hen freshman Ricky Tunstall - his first career pick - gave UD the ball at the Maine 46-yard line.

An 18-yard pass play from Devlin to Rob Jones and an eight-yard gain by Jackson off a Devlin pass to the UM three-yard line, but the Hens were stopped on four plays inside the three-yard line, including Devlin being stuffed at the top of the pile on a sneak from the one-yard line with 9:03 left.

Maine could get nothing going from the one-yard line and was forced to punt. Despite a 59-yard punt by Waxman to the Delaware 37-yard line, the Hens needed little time to regain the lead. The Hens drove 63 yards on seven plays, including an 18-yard scramble by Devlin and consecutive runs of 13 and 8 yards by Jackson for the score.

Maine then tied things up at 14-14 going into halftime as Smith’s nine-yard toss to Jones in the back of the end zone with 1:40 left capped an 82-yard drive. Jones went high in the air above Blue Hen redshirt freshman cornerback Marcus Burley to haul in Smith’s toss.

Smith hit on 12 of 20 passes for 162 yards for the half while Devlin was 10 of 16 for 171 yards.