The stage was set and the fireworks lit up the sky for another exciting Carleton Ravens football game Oct. 11 at Keith Harris Stadium.
This time it was Friday Night Lights against the undefeated Guelph University Gryphons.
The Ravens managed to keep the Gryphons somewhat in check during the first half, but they could not hold their offence for the entire game and lost 48-12.
The Gryphons came into the game with a record of 6-0, ranked fourth in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport. Carleton was not ranked and had a record of 0-6, but early on the game seemed evenly matched.
Ravens kicker Andrew Banerjee scored the first points of the game with a 26-yard field goal, giving the Ravens their first lead this season.
After the Gryphons responded with a field goal of their own and a touchdown, Ravens first-year quarterback Nick Gorgichuk hit Dexter Brown deep for a 49-yard touchdown pass to tie the game. It was Gorgichuk’s first touchdown pass, as well as his first start, as a Raven.
“Dexter Brown just blew right past his guy,” Gorgichuk said. “It made my job easy to just put it up and let him go get it.”
Things started turning around for Guelph following a touchdown scored by Gryphons quarterback Jazz Lindsey to put them up by seven.
Not long after that, a low snap to Banerjee forced him to kick the ball away in a hurry, and it was caught on the fly by Gryphons linebacker Andrew Graham and returned for a touchdown.
The Ravens’ defence scored its first safety of the season in the third quarter, when Ravens first-year defensive back Tanaka Chakwesha tackled Lindsey in his own end zone.
Despite this, the Ravens were facing a 19-point deficit going into the fourth quarter, and the Gryphons kept piling it on.
Carleton attempted to turn things around with a fake punt, but Banerjee was tackled short of the first down, and was hurt on the play.
For Carleton, receiver Nate Behar was named the game MVP with 12 catches for 152 yards.
“I think it was just my turn now. Our quarterback got me the ball and it worked out,” Behar said.
Solid play from Behar and the Ravens’ defence did not help them in the end, and Guelph prevailed over Carleton to maintain their undefeated record.
The Ravens still remain winless, and are staring down a record of 0-8 approaching their final game of the season but the coaching staff remains confident about the team’s potential.
“You have to understand that the expectation this year was not to win the Vanier Cup, it was just to make sure that the potential we have focuses itself in the future,” Ravens offensive co-ordinator Jean-Philippe Asselin said.
The Guelph Gryphons rise to 7-0, while the Carleton Ravens fall to 0-7.
The Ravens are slated to face the McMaster University Marauders Oct. 19 at Keith Harris Stadium for their final game of the season.
