Brown Athletics

SMITHFIELD – Brown Bears sophomore running back Qwentin Brown said that he remembered being told in Pop Warner that you play to the whistle. He did exactly that on Friday night after scoring on a 26 yard touchdown run that gave the Bears a 29-19 lead and was an examination point to a second half comeback. Brown was initially stuffed at the line of scrimmage but kept his feet moving and emerged from the pile to hit pat dirt in a play that was SportsCenter Top Ten worthy.

“Just keep running those feet,” Brown said. “I know my guys aren’t going to quit either. They just kept pushing me.”

The play encapsulated a strong second half by the Bears that saw them outscore Bryant 29-7 in the third and fourth quarters.

Bryant dominated the first half thanks to strong play by their offensive and defensive lines. They out gained Brown 146 to 3 on the ground en route to a 12-0 lead thanks to two Elijah Eliott touchdown runs.

Perry and his staff however made the necessary adjustments to turn the game around at halftime but he credits the players for the swing in momentum.

“There’s no way these guys do what they did without tremendous leadership and character,” Perry said. “You’re playing a terrific team and you’re down at halftime. I’m so proud of them.”

The second half was a different story however. Instead of panicking and throwing the ball all over the place, Brown stuck to their plan and committed to running the football with Brown and Matt Childs. The decision paid off as the Bears imposed their will and took the game over.

Ironically enough, Brown’s first score of the night was on a pass play when quarterback James Murphy connected with wide receiver Trevor Foley on a 47 yard touchdown pass. After a Bryant three and out, the Bears would take their first lead of the night on a one yard touchdown by Childs.

Trailing 15-12, Bryant would respond. Quarterback Jaden Keefner would hit wide receiver Aldrich Doe along the left sideline on a 16 yard touchdown pass to put the Bulldogs back on top, 19-15.

The Bears would once again respond after the defense forced another three and out. Murphy would connect with wide receiver Michael Nesbit to get Brown into plus territory. A personal foul against Bryant put the Bears in the red zone. Childs would score on first and goal up the middle with 8:59 left to put the Bears up 22-19 and seal the deal.

The win marks the first time since 2013 that the Bears won three straight games against out of league opponents. The Bears are unofficially “State Champs.” after beating Rhode Island last week and Bryant this week.

“First time in a long time,” Brown said. “We always play these two teams very close. I think it’s just about time we got over the hump and beat both of them.”

The Bulldogs put forth a much better effort this week after getting blitzed by Maine at home last week but as Head Coach Chris Merritt pointed out, his team needed to put together a four quarter effort in order to win.

“I realize it’s who leads after the fourth quarter and not the first three that matters,”

Merritt said he told his team at halftime to expect their counter punch once their coaches make adjustments.

“We told them in the locker room, ‘They saw our best punch,” Merritt said. “‘Now you’re going to get their counter. Now you’re going to get their adjustments.”

The Bears did adjust and picked up another win, improving to 3-1 on the season and matching last season’s win total.

Brown hosts Princeton next week while the Bryant has a bye before traveling to Kingston in two weeks to take on Rhode Island.