HAMILTON, N.Y.- Monmouth University's football team dropped its 2010 season opener to #22 Colgate University on Saturday night at Andy Kerr Stadium.

Monmouth battled back from double-digit deficits twice in the game and had an opportunity to go ahead with 1:34 left in regulation on a two point conversion.  After a huge fourth down stop, MU drove 52 yards down the field to the seven yard line where Kyle Frazier (Gaithersburg, Md./Damascus) hit tight end Tyler George (Berkeley Heights, N.J./Governor Livingston) in the end zone to close the gap to 30-29.  Head coach Kevin Callahan decided with momentum on MU's side he would go for two and the potential win.

Quarterback Andrew Mandeville (Hazlet, N.J./Raritan) would get the call on the PAT, taking the QB draw off the right side but was stopped by safety Brad Keele inches short of the goal line.  Monmouth's ensuing onsides kick was unsuccessful and Colgate was able to run out the clock to preserve the win.

"I am happy with the way our players responded to adversity," said Callahan.  "We battled back out of a hole and had an opportunity to go for the win with under two minutes remaining.  At that point in the game we had the momentum and I told our kids we were going for the win."

The Hawks trailed 23-7 with just over 10 minutes left in the third quarter but gained a bit of momentum when fifth year senior Bobby Giles (Burlington, N.J./Burlington Twp.) returned the ensuing kickoff 90 yards for the score.  A quick Colgate score put the home squad ahead 30-13 but MU would hold the Raiders scoreless for the final 22 minutes while putting up 16 unanswered points.

Trailing 17-7 at the start of the second half, the Hawks attempted and recovered an onsides kick but an illegal formation penalty negated the play.  After a series of runs got the ball to midfield, Raider QB Greg Sullivan connected with senior Doug Rosnick for a 50 yard scoring strike.  The score put Colgate up 23-7 with 10:28 to go in the third quarter.

On the ensuing kickoff, Giles went virtually untouched 90 yards to cut the lead to 23-13 with 10:13 to play.  Monmouth went for its first two point conversions, which was unsuccessful.  It was the first time a Monmouth returned a kickoff for a touchdown since David Jiles returned one against LaSalle on Sept. 10, 2005.

Colgate answered immediately with a kickoff return to the MU 35, finishing the drive with a touchdown three plays later on a Sullivan TD run.  Colburne converted the PAT, pushing the score to 30-13.

Monmouth put together its best drive of the night up to that point late in the third quarter, converting a pair of fourth and shorts to move down to the Colgate 16.  The drive ended with a 33-yard Eric Spillane (Howell, N.J./Colts Neck) field goal.  The 14-play drive took 7:01 off the clock and the Hawks trailed 30-16 with 47 seconds left in the third frame.

Defense held for the Hawks, forcing Colgate to punt for the first time all game with 13:19 showing on the clock.  MU took over on their own nine, with Mandeville engineering Monmouth's hurry up offense.  The fifth-year senior quarterback capped the 11 play, 91-yard drive with a 20 yard touchdown run to cut the lead to 30-23 with 8:54 to play in regulation.

With the clock showing 4:21, Colgate was faced with a fourth and one from the MU 48, Eachus ran the ball up the middle where linebacker Joe Valenti (Bayonne, N.J./St. Peter's Prep) snuffed out the play to force the turnover on downs.   The Hawks worked all the way down to the seven, with Tyler George (Berkeley Heights, N.J./Govenor Livingston) making a pair of first down catches on the drive. On second and goal from the seven, Frazier found George all alone in the endzone setting up the climactic two point conversion.

Colgate struck first with a substantial drive on its first possession marching 72 yards on eight plays, which ended in a four yard Nate Eachus touchdown run.  The three-minute 58-second drive was propelled by a 36 yard pass from Sullivan to Daniel Cason to set up a first down from the MU 15.

After a MU punt, 'Gate drove the length of the field again scoring a 16 yard Sullivan touchdown run with 37 ticks left in the first quarter.  Sullivan's run capped a 13-play 77 yard drive that took 7:10 off the clock.

MU's offense got on track with help from Colgate's kicker who sent the kickoff out of bounds.  Working from their own 40, the Hawks complete three straight passes to work down to the Raider 28.  Two plays later Frazier connected with Chris Hogan (Wykoff, N.J./Ramapo/Penn State) on a slant for a 17 yard TD. The grab was his first reception as a Hawk and it cut the Raider lead to 14-7.

On the following drive Eachus rumbled 35 yards on a third and short down to the Hawk three yard line.  MU's defense dropped the Raiders on three straight plays, forcing a Colgate field goal by Evan Colborne ending the first half scoring 17-7.

The Hawks were just 1-for-8 on third down, while Colgate was 8-for-14.  Colgate racked up 424 yards of total offense, including 244 on the ground.  The first half ended with 'Gate holding a 272-83 advantage in total yards.  Monmouth finished with 285 yards of total offense, almost identically split at 142 yards rushing and 143 yards through the air.  'Gate led in time of possession 38:27-21:33, including  holding the ball for more than 22 minutes in the first half alone. 

Frazier went 10-of-16 with 105 yards and two touchdown passes. Mandeville was 5-of-7 for 38 yards but slashed the Raider defense for 55 rushing yards on seven carries, including the 20 yard TD scamper.  Giles led the Hawks on the ground with 66 yards on 12 carries for 5.5 yards per carry.  George was the leading receiver, with four catches for 46 yards, while seven other Hawks had receptions.

Junior linebacker Chris Mastrangelo (Randolph, N.J./Randolph) had a career-high 13 tackles in the game, while defensive back Kendall Haley (Olney, Md./Good Council) finished with eight stops.

Sullivan was 11-for-14 for 180 yards and a touchdown while racking up74 yards on the ground with a pair of rushing scores.  Eachus finished with 145 yards on 30 carries with a touchdown.

MU will look to rebound next Saturday when they host the University of Maine at Kessler Field.