On a cold November afternoon in New York, the now 9-2 Butler Bulldogs went into Marist and picked up a 28-point victory in pursuit of the Pioneer Football League title. Butler extended its win streak to four in a row over Marist through a dominant defensive performance.
Butler by far had one of its best defensive games this year and it showed in the box score. The defense — led by senior defensive lineman Jayden Norris and senior linebacker Jackson Stratton — held the Red Foxes scoreless, forced two turnovers, seven total sacks, 193 yards of offense, and a 3 for 20 stat line on 3rd and 4th down conversions.
On the first drive of the game, the defense stopped Marist in the red zone, forcing a turnover on downs. Following the stop, neither Butler nor Marist could stir up anything on offense, as the first quarter resulted in three change of possessions and a 0-0 start.
This all changed, though, as Butler had the ball on Marist’s six-yard line to start the second quarter. Sophomore running back Michael Dellumo was given the ball and broke the plane into the end zone to give the Bulldogs a 7-0 lead early in the second quarter.
Another sequence where both teams traded punts set up Marist with the ball in the middle of the second. Graduate quarterback Sonny Mannino led the Red Foxes down the field and all the way onto Butler’s 13-yard line. The very next play, Mannino dropped back and threw a bullet, which was intercepted by junior defensive back Andrew Lieske.
Using this boost of momentum, Butler attempted to end the half on a score but could not convert. First-year kicker Evan Windley lined up for a 43-yard field goal at the end of the half and kept it right of the upright, keeping the score at 7-0 in favor of the Bulldogs.
Coming out of the half, it was more of the same as both teams punted on their opening drives.
Twenty-one minutes of no scoring was halted when Butler took the field on Marist’s 13 yard-line after a 22-yard return by sophomore defensive back Madden Beriault. It only took three rushes, all by Dellumo, to give the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead, as he punched in his second touchdown of the day from three yards out.
A 14-point lead was then taken into the final quarter as Butler continued to shutdown Marist on both sides of the ball.
Butler’s offense was then led out by junior quarterback Gabe Passini in pursuit of adding on another score. Passini did exactly that as he threw for 36 yards and ran for another 12 on the drive. He capped off his best drive of the day with a one yard touchdown run, putting the Bulldogs in a commanding 21-point lead.
Butler continued its extraordinary defensive performance when sophomore cornerback Tristan Johnson made a stellar read on the quarterback and returned an interception to Marist’s six yard-line. Then, graduate senior running back Desmin Jackson punched in a touchdown to extend Butler’s lead to 28.
From there, the game was over as the rest of the fourth quarter was solid defense displayed from both teams which ended with the Bulldogs in victory formation.
Butler continues to rack up conference wins and they will come home for senior day to play Morehead State on Nov. 21 at 1 p.m.