The Butler football team used the atmosphere created by its first night game since 1941 to fuel a 42-13 win over Franklin College on Saturday.

“The energy on campus all week has been outstanding, and the band and the cheerleaders and all that really made it special for us,”  Butler coach Jeff Voris said.

“There was just a lot of energy around it, and that made it a little more exciting for us,” Butler wide receiver Brendan Shannon said.

Shannon had 134 yards receiving, including two touchdowns on eight catches. Shannon said the Bulldogs (1-1) used the energy to start faster than they did in last week’s loss at Western Illinois.

“It was a great team effort on offense to come out like that, and we just wanted to keep going with that,” Shannon said.

Butler led the Grizzlies (0-2) 27-0 at halftime.

Matt Lancaster, redshirt junior quarterback talllied 354 yards of total offense and five total touchdowns for the Bulldogs.

Lancaster was the leading rusher with 96 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.

“Matt definitely brings (the running) element to the game,” Voris said. “Last week, we were able to avoid pressure and do some things, so we took the next step this week and had some planned runs in there for him.”

Lancaster, a transfer from Illinois State, said the team fed off the energy in the Butler Bowl.

“(There is) nothing better than being under the lights,” Lancaster said. “Our team came ready to play.”

The Bulldog defense also had a strong showing in the home opener. Butler led 33-0 at one point during the third quarter and held Franklin to four first downs in the opening half.

Sophomore defensive back Bryce Barry had an interception for the Bulldogs.

“For the second week in a row, our defense was solid,” Voris said.

Butler will head to the East Coast next week to face Dartmouth, an Ivy League school.

Voris said the team is used to the traveling aspect but expects a good experience from the contest.

“(It will be) just a unique atmosphere as far as being on an Ivy League campus and being in that environment,” Voris said.

The game will be the season-opener for Dartmouth, who is projected to finish sixth in the Ivy League by media outlets.

Even with senior quarterback Andrew Huck throwing a career-high 381 yards, the Butler football team was not able to stop the running game of Pioneer Football League foe Campbell, dropping Saturday’s game 38-23.

“In any game, you’re going to get your ups and downs, and that’s kind of how our game went,” freshman cornerback  Jimmy Schwabe said.

The Bulldogs (3-3, 1-2) started the game off on the right foot—senior kicker David Lang’s—with two consecutive field goals in the first half, giving Butler an early 6-0 advantage.

Campbell’s offense rallied during the second quarter and took the lead from the Bulldogs, driving 54 yards in seven plays.

The Fighting Camels (2-3, 1-2) reached double-digit points with a field goal, but Lang came through with his third field goal of the half to make it a one-point game going into the locker room.

“We were in control the first half,” sophomore safety Jayme Szafranski said. “Then  they made a couple of plays [in the second half], and the momentum just kept going.”

The Fighting Camels stepped up their running game in the third quarter, scoring back-to-back touchdowns and boosting their lead to 24-9.

“In the second half, they  really went back to their running attack,” Schwabe said. “That was their philosophy.”

Campbell ended the game with 247 rushing yards compared to Butler’s 79.

Photo by Maria Porter

The Bulldogs were hampered by the losses of senior running back Trae Heeter and sophomore wide receiver Brandon Grubbe, who both left with injuries.

The game went on, however, and the Bulldogs ended the third quarter with a 67-yard touchdown pass from Huck to senior wide receiver Zach Watkins.

It was déjà vu for the Bulldogs in the fourth quarter.

Butler was able to end the game on a high note with a 41-yard pass from Huck to senior wide receiver Jeff Larsen.

However, the Fighting Camels scored two more touchdowns in the quarter to seal the victory.

Huck is now the second Butler quarterback to throw for more than 6,000 career yards after hitting the 6,020 mark on Saturday.

He also completed a career-best 34 of 47 passes against Campbell.

Huck wasn’t the only Bulldog to have a career-best performance during the game.

Sophomore wide receiver Brendan Shannon had a career-high 10 catches for 87 yards, and junior linebacker Jordan Ridley, who was later named the PFL Defensive Player of the Week, recorded a career-high 19 tackles.

Senior defensive back Andy Dauch also had a career-high 10 tackles.

Butler will play next at home, competing in the “Hoosier Helmet” game against Valparaiso on Saturday at 1 pm.