The 12th-ranked Jays football team took on 23rd-ranked Muhlenburg on Saturday in a Centennial Conference powerhouse matchup. Needless to say, the game did not disappoint. Hopkins (4-0, 3-0 Centennial) took home a 42-26 victory while handing the Mules (3-1, 2-1) their first loss of the season.
Leading the way for the Jays was senior quarterback Braden Anderson, who had a career day under center, which included an early score just six minutes into the game. Anderson started the scoring with a 38-yard touchdown pass to sophomore Quinn Donaldson before another score at the beginning of the second quarter to junior running back Brandon Cherry to open the game up with a 21-0 lead. Additionally, sophomore Stuart Walters split carries with Cherry and barreled his way for a touchdown from six yards out.
The 21 points notched by the Jays in the first half alone were more points than the Muhlenberg defense had allowed all season long, having held their previous opponents to just 17 points throughout three games. It appeared that there was no way of stopping the Hopkins high-octane offense.
The Jays knew they were going up against a nationally-ranked defense, and Anderson took the full week of practice to prepare. “We really approached this week the same we would any game,” the quarterback said. “I think our normal practice routine helped everyone stay focused given that it was such an important game.”
Anderson credited the coaching staff for the team’s success on the field on Saturday. “I give a lot of credit to Coach Chimera. He had a great game plan that allowed us to get the better of what was a very good defense,” Anderson said.
The Mules were able to slow down the Jays’ scoring trend as Connor Winter added 28- and 37-yard field goals at the end of the first half, the second of which came directly at the buzzer.
Hopkins was able to extend the lead to 22 points on the first drive of the second half, in which the Jays found space early and often, moving the ball fluidly over 73 yards on just six plays. The drive was capped off when Anderson found Donaldson in the back of the end zone on a six-yard pass.
Muhlenberg got right back in the game, coming within five points without scoring an offensive touchdown. Their scoring run started when Josh Messina blocked a punt, which he returned 41 yards for a touchdown to make it 28-13. The Mules pulled even closer when Jeremy Thomas intercepted a deflected pass 66 yards to the house to make it 28-20.
The Mules completed their 17-point run when Winter’s 47-yard field goal hit the cross bar before popping through the uprights to make it 28-23. The Jays’ defense held Muhlenberg to a field goal after the Mules recovered a Jays fumble on the Hopkins 33-yard line.
After the Jays punted to the Muhlenberg 46-yard line, the Mules had a fourth-and-four situation just inside Hopkins territory. Sophomore Jack Campbell and freshman Lance Hammond stuffed Muhlenberg’s Max Cepeda just inches shy of the first down marker to take over near midfield.
The Hopkins offense took full advantage of the good field position with a drive led by Anderson, who completed all three of his passes on the drive. The drive featured an 11-yard completion to sophomore Boone Lewis, Jr. on third-and-five and another completion to Lewis for 13 yards on a gutsy fourth-and-three from the 15. Cherry topped off the drive with a short touchdown run to open the game back up to 35-23.
Muhlenberg struck back with another field goal to get within nine points at 35-26 with 4:55 left in the game. In a tough third-and-seven situation, Anderson hit Munday for their 13th connection of the day before Munday took it the distance for a 56-yard touchdown reception, pushing the game out of reach for the Mules at 42-26. The score would remain unchanged for the rest of the game.
Anderson, who before Saturday had a career high of 218 passing yards in a single game, threw for a total of 359 yards going 29-of-38 with four touchdowns.
Munday caught 13 of those passes for 150 yards, a career-high for the talented receiver. Donaldson caught four passes, two of which were touchdowns, while accumulating 93 yards on the day.
The Jays benefitted from strong defensive play from junior Brady Watts, who tallied up nine tackles while senior Ryan Rice, sophomore Jack Toner and Campbell all had six stops on the day. Rice and junior Curtis Antrum both broke up two passes as the Jays broke up seven total passes on the day. Watts gave tremendous credit to the entire defensive unit. “It was a true team effort,” he said. “I think our ceiling is high, and we have to continue to improve if we want to get where we want to be.”
Hopkins will look to extend its winning streak on Saturday, Oct. 4 when the Jays host Juniata.
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