Yellow Jackets Fall in Home Opener to Adrian, 14-0

DEFIANCE, Ohio - The Defiance College football team fell to Adrian College 14-0 Saturday afternoon in the Yellow Jackets home opener at Justin F. Croessel Stadium.

Defiance College (0-2) put up bigger offensive numbers for the second week in a row, leading Adrian (1-1) 300 to 207 in total yards, along with 17 first downs to eight for the Bulldogs, but turnovers proved to be a deciding factor in the defeat.

The Yellow Jackets failed to score on three red zone trips. The three drives ended with two failed fourth down conversions and a fumble. The fumble was picked up by Adrian's Deontae Bridgeman and returned 91 yards for a touchdown and the first points of the game with 39 seconds remaining in the first half.

The two failed fourth down conversion attempts in the red zone were a part of five turnovers on downs for the Yellow Jackets in the game. The Yellow Jackets first failed in the red zone on a 4th-and-2 play from the Adrian 6-yard line in the first quarter. DC also failed on a 4th-and-2 from the Adrian 13 in the third quarter. 

Adrian's other score in the game came on an 89-yard touchdown pass from Aaron Tenney to Nathan Hartline in the fourth quarter.

Aside from the long touchdown pass, Defiance's defense limited the Bulldogs to only 118 yards of total offense (74 rushing, 44 passing). Andrew Feldhaus stripped and recovered a fumble for the defensive unit and Tony Sierra picked up his 11th career interception. The defensive unit gave up only 8 first downs in the game, with one coming from a penalty.

Andre Leverenz, Feldhaus and Eric Strickland each had seven tackles for the DC defensive unit. Leverenz also had 1.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for a loss. Strickland combined on a sack and had three tackles for a loss in the contest. In total, the defense had four sacks for 25 yards in the game.

Sean Washington started for the Yellow Jackets at quarterback and was 15-of-29 for 101 yards through the air. The sophomore also had 112 yards rushing on 22 carries. Washington and backup quarterback Mark Boggs each threw an interception in the game.

Aaron Spence was the big gainer on the ground for the Yellow Jackets, averaging 8.5 yards per carry on six attempts, totaling 59 yards. Daniel Collins had nine carries for 30 yards and Trevon Burrell carried the ball four times for 13 yards. In total, the Yellow Jackets had 196 yards rushing on the ground.

Brian Mircovich was the leading receiver for DC on the day, catching five passes for 40 yards. Spence also had four grabs for 11 yards and Trey White had three catches for 15 cards. Cody Wilson caught two passes for the Yellow Jackets, leading the team with 11.5 yards per catch in the game with 23 total yards receiving.

The Yellow Jackets will return to action next Saturday with the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference opener at Rose-Hulman. The kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET in Terre Haute, Ind.