| What a ride! The
sixth year of Curry football
under Head Coach Steve Nelson began on
August 17 in Milton with the opening of
pre-season camp, and ended on November
22in Troy, NY, where the Colonels did
their school and their conference proud
despite falling to RPI in their first-ever
NCAA Tournament game.
The intervening 14 weeks were nothing
short of magical. After 20 days of
preparation in the heat of summer,
Curry opened the2003 campaign on
the road at Division II Stonehill on
September 6. Junior transfer
Malcolm Wynn's fourth-quarter,
22-yardinterception return for a
touchdown gave the Colonels a
come-from-behind, 22-16win and set in
motion the team's drive toward an undefeated
regular season.
On September 13 at Fitchburg,
Curry's defensive squad gave
notice that it was more than
ready to dominate any New
England Football Conference
(NEFC) offense, holding the
opposition to 170 yards of
total offense during a 23-5
rout of the Falcons. In
addition, it was during this
contest that rookie signalcaller
Kevin Holleran emerged, igniting
an offensiveunit that by season's end
wouldgo on to shatter
nearly everyschool
record.
Playing its third-
consecutive road game
to start the season,
Curry traveled to the
friendlyconfines of
Ritchie Field in Castine,
Maine on September 20.
In what was nearly a
replayof their 2001
performance at Maine
Maritime, the Colonels piled up a school record 57 points, including
40 points alone in the second quarter. This game, like most during
2003, showcased a balanced offensive onslaught, as Curry threw for
261 yards and rushedfor 219.
|
The
year's first major test came in the team's home
opener on September 27 against defending
NEFC Champion and Boyd Division
nemesis UMass Dartmouth. In a battle
of unbeaten squads where a victory
was likely to result in a shot at a
conference championship in
November, the Colonels
refused to lose. The fourth
quarter opened with a
14-12 Curry edge, but the two
teams were essentially battling to a
draw. On the Corsairs' next-to-last
possession of the game, a Brian
Robitaille sack on 4th and three gave
the Colonels the ball on visitor's 36-yard
line. Three plays later, Holleran found
Ben Bascon in the end zone and the UMass
Dartmouth "monkey" was finally off
Curry's back.
Victories in Week 5 and Week 6
were
nearly carbon copies of one another.
Hosting M.I.T. on October 4, the
Colonels amassed a school record
536 yards during a 49-14 trouncing
of the Engineers. Seven days later
on October 11, Curry rolled over
host Salve Regina with 500
yards of offense and an
identical margin of
victory, 48-13. Now
cruising at 6-0 and gaining
attention and respect around Division
III football circles in New England, the Colonels
traveled to Dudley, Mass. to face
what was likely to be
their final hurdle
before capturing a
first-ever Boyd
Division crown.
During the Nelson
Era, the Bison had
always proven to be
a thorn in Curry's
side, and the October
18 showdown was no
exception. In what
was otherwise a dead-
even match-up, one
player chose to put his team on his back and lead it to victory
Continued >. |
