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Malin Jaskinski
Arion Owes
34
Winner TCNJ TCN 1-0 , 0-0
12
Eastern EAS 0-1 , 0-0
Winner
TCNJ TCN
1-0 , 0-0
34
Final
12
Eastern EAS
0-1 , 0-0
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
TCN TCNJ 14 7 7 6 34
EAS Eastern 0 6 6 0 12

Game Recap: Football | | Andy Edwards

Prolific Passing Propels Football Past Eastern in Opener

RADNOR, Pa. – A dominant passing attack spearheaded by a trio of fifth-year captains propelled the TCNJ football team to a 34-12 season-opening victory at Eastern on Saturday afternoon.
 
Trevor Bopp matched his career high with four touchdown passes – two to fellow captain Malin Jasinski and another to captain Thomas Burke – and threw for 368 yards for the Lions, who topped the Eagles in the lid-lifter for the second year in a row.
 
Jasinski established new career high with 13 receptions totaling 152 yards and Burke racked up 122 yards on five grabs. After a slow start, senior running back Jayson Schmidt got going in the second half and wound up with 99 yards and a score on 16 carries.
 
After an opening interception, the defense cashed in a turnover as Drew Varlese jumped on a fumble at midfield. Bopp's 13-yard touchdown to Jasinski capped an 8-play drive and staked TCNJ to an early lead.
 
TCNJ came up with another huge defensive play on the ensuing drive as Dominick Nocero stripped an Eastern receiver inside the Lions' 30. A 35-yard connection between Bopp and Burke got the Lions close, and Bopp then found rookie Ryan Mendes for a 22-yard scoring strike on 4th-and-7 to double the advantage.
 
Pinned at its own 1 after an Eastern punt, the Lions effectively put the game away with a methodical 13-play march. Burke picked up 45 yards on a 3rd-and-10 from their own 25, and Burke got down to the 1-yard line on a 3rd-and-10 conversion to set up Schmidt's 1-yard plunge and a 21-0 advantage.
 
The Eagles kicked field goals on each of its next two possessions and found the end zone on their opening trip of the third quarter to get within 21-12. TCNJ answered right back with a 7-play, 89-yard drive in which Bopp hit a streaking Jasinski deep down the left side for a 57-yard touchdown.
 
Bopp's 55-yard run set up a 14-yard touchdown pass to Burke for the game's final points at the 6:12 mark of the fourth.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
  • TCNJ racked up 515 yards of offense at 7.3 yards per play
  • The Lions had 23 first downs, 16 through the air
  • Eastern finished with 400 yards but turned it over three times
  • Bopp finished 25-of-44 with four touchdowns and a pair of interceptions, adding 63 yards on the ground
  • Nocero led the defensive effort with 10 tackles and two forced fumbles, one of which he recovered
  • Dylan Patscher forced and recovered a fumble for the Lions
  • Christian Bennett notched his first career interception
  • Jack Young had a team-high two pass deflections
NOTES
  • Bopp threw four TDs in the season opener against Eastern for the second year in a row.
  • Bopp passed Flip Faherty (1981-82) for fifth on the program's all-time passing yards list with 3,898
  • Jasinski's 13 catches are the most since Vinny Guckin had 15 against St. John Fisher in 2019
  • Burke topped 100 yards for the second time in his career, while Jasinski did it for the first time
  • Dominic Passero averaged 46.7 yards on three punts, with a long of 50, and Tim Willever converted all four of his extra-point attempts
UP NEXT
  • The Lions host Franklin & Marshall in next Saturday's home opener
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