The Dickinson football team ceThe Dickinson football team fell to longtime rival Franklin and Marshall for the second season in a row in the battle for the coveted Conestoga Wagon on Saturday, Oct. 5 by a score of 35-14.

Quarterback Cole Ahnell ’15 threw for 166 yards and two touchdowns on the day as well as rushing for a team-high 90 yards. Wide receivers Colin Rodgers ’14 and Eric Ondo ’15 both caught touchdown passes, and tight end Todd Smolinksy ’14 led the team with 48 yards receiving. Running back Cedric Madden ’16 added 40 yards on the ground and averaged 5.0 yards per carry.

The Diplomats jumped out to an early lead to excite their homecoming crowd in Lancaster thanks to a 73-yard punt return for a touchdown by Jordan Zackery. On the ensuing possession, Ahnell threw an interception on the Dickinson 41 yard line, giving F&M a short field to work with. Four plays later, Diplomat quarterback E.J. Schneider connected with Zackery on a 14-yard touchdown pass to put F&M up 14-0.

The Red Devils then answered on their next possession to cut the deficit in half. Ahnell connected with Smolinksy on a key third down to take the ball into Diplomat territory. A few plays later, he tossed a beautiful 31-yard touchdown strike to Rodgers to make the score 14-7.

After trading punts for the majority of the second quarter, the Diplomats drove the ball deep into Red Devils territory and into the red zone. With the ball on the Dickinson 9-yard line, the Diplomats chose to go for it on a fourth down and 1 instead of attempting a short field goal. The Red Devil defense stepped up and came up with a big stop, forcing a turnover on downs and preventing F&M from adding to the lead before half time.

Up 14-7 at the break, the Diplomats received the second half kick-off and wasted no time scoring again. Schneider threw a 20-yard pass to receiver Tim Muller to get the drive started, and then capped the drive with another strike to Muller, this one for 30 yards and a touchdown to stretch the lead to 14 points again.

The Red Devils put together a scoring drive on their first possession of the half as well. Ahnell connected with Smolinksy on two separate 19-yard pass plays to move the ball into Diplomat territory. After a 9-yard run by running back Madden, Ahnell tossed a 25 yard touchdown pass to Ondo to make the score 21-14 with just under eight minutes to go in the third quarter.

The Red Devils’ defense stepped up once again on the next Diplomat possession. F&M attempted to go for it on fourth down and 1 again, this time on their own 45-yard line but were stopped short for the second time. With a short field and a chance to cut into the F&M lead or even tie the game, Ahnell led the offense down to the Diplomat 20-yard line. However, on what turned out to be the biggest play of the game, Ahnell threw an interception and defensive back Chris DeStefano returned it 85 yards for a touchdown to stymie the Red Devils’ comeback attempt. The Diplomats added another touchdown late in the fourth quarter on a 10-yard run to make the score 35-14, put the game away and retain the Conestoga Wagon.

Schneider led the way for F&M all day, completing 25-36 passes for 276 yards and two touchdowns, as well as adding 56 yards rushing. Receivers Zachery and Muller each caught a touchdown pass, as well as Zachery’s punt return for a touchdown.

Linebacker Michael Miller ’14 led the Red Devils’ defense, leading the team in tackles with 12, including 9 solo. Safety Jake Meyers ’16 had a solid game as well, recording 11 tackles, and cornerback Mark Manganaro ’16 had the lone Dickinson interception.

The Red Devils enter their bye week at 2-3 overall, including 2-2 in the Centennial Conference. Their next game is on Friday night, Oct. 18 in Baltimore at 7:00 p.m. against defending Centennial Conference champion and perennial powerhouse Johns Hopkins.