NEW HAVEN, Conn. — The University of Maine likes to play a tough brand of football that often relies on a little smash-mouth running game.

But with the game on the line Saturday afternoon, the Black Bears couldn’t pick up one yard in two plays, and Yale University went on to a 35-14 win.

Trailing 14-0 in the third quarter, Maine faced a third-and-1 from the Yale 29. On consecutive plays, running back Joe Fitzpatrick ran to the left of the center. On consecutive plays, he was stuffed for no gain.

Yale would take over on downs, then drive downfield to score on a 15-yard run by Trenton Charles that gave the Bulldogs an insurmountable 21-0 lead.

It was the second week in a row that the Black Bears were stopped on a short-yardage play. In their 15-7 loss at Central Michigan, Fitzpatrick was stopped on fourth-and-goal from the 1 with the game still scoreless.

“We can’t run the ball right now in short-yardage situations,” said Coach Joe Harasymiak. “They just beat us up on that short-yardage, too much penetration. To go third-and-1, fourth-and-1, we can’t get a yard, that’s pretty embarrassing. Credit to them. They out-physicaled us up front. And we’ve got to figure this out.”

Yale defensive back Marquise Peggs said the Bulldogs weren’t going to give in anything on that drive. “We go out and want to dominate on every play,” he said.

And that’s what Yale did for the most part. The Bulldogs held Maine to just 264 yards of total offense, just 85 on the ground. Maine was just 3 for 13 on third-down conversions and was 0 for 3 on fourth down.

“We were just getting beat physically,” said Maine tight end Drew Belcher. “They beat us up front. The DBs played well, we got beat in all facets of the game. That’s what it came down to.”

INJURED QUARTERBACK Chris Ferguson (right shoulder) made the trip but did not dress. He came out for early warmups in sweats and did not throw any passes.

YALE HAS three former Maine assistant coaches on its coaching staff: offensive coordinator Kevin Cahill, co-defensive coordinator Jordan Stevens (who also played at UMaine and at Mt. Blue High) and linebackers coach Steve Vashel.

Stevens roomed with Harasymiak for two years before leaving for the Bulldogs after the 2014 season.

Harasymiak said the biggest disadvantage in facing an opposing team with former Maine coaches is the Black Bears aren’t going to sneak up on them.

“They’re not going to have their kids caught off-guard by the Maine identity that we have,” he said. “They know we have kids who work hard and play hard. It’s not so much about the scheme but they know what it takes to be up here and survive up here.”

WHEN THE Yale Bowl opened in 1914, it was the largest athletic stadium in the world, seating over 60,000. The New York Giants played their home games here in 1973 and 1974 while Yankee Stadium was being renovated.

Mike Lowe can be contacted at 791-6422 or:

mlowe@pressherald.com

Twitter: MikeLowePPH

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