By Jose Carrasquillo
Framingham hosted Curry College at Bowditch Field on Nov. 18 in the 2017 New England Bowl.
Curry began their drive with a rush for a yard and then a completion of seven yards before turning the ball over. Cody Wlasuk intercepted the pass and returned it nine yards, giving the Rams great Feld position.
Adam Wojenski opened the drive with an 18-yard connection to Napoleon Miller. Quron Wright and Will Cowdrey rushed for five yards combined, forcing a third-and-five situation. Wojenski’s pass fell incomplete, but on fourth down, he threw a 24-yard touchdown strike to Shaquille Joseph. With the extra point, the Rams took a lead of 7-0.
Alex Corvese began the drive for the Colonels with a five-yard completion. Following a rush of two yards, Corvese found Nick Villanueva for 27 yards to keep the drive alive. After back-to-back rushes losing three yards, Corvese completed a 23-yard pass to Spencer Tyler. In the red zone, the first two plays gained only one-yard combined. But on third down, Corvese threaded the needle for a nine-yard touchdown strike. Following the extra point, the score was tied at 7-7.
The following drives for each side after the touchdown both resulted in three-and-outs.
Framingham’s next drive began with a 14-yard rush from Wright, followed by a Wojenski connection to Joseph for 10 yards. After two consecutive rushes from Wright for Fve yards, Wojenski connected with Wright for an additional nine yards. Wright followed Wojenski’s eight-yard completion for a yard. On third-and-short, Wojenski’s pass fell incomplete, but a pass interference penalty kept the drive going. After an incompletion on first down and a false start penalty on second down, Wojenski connected with Joseph for five yards, forcing a third-and-long situation. Wright capped the drive off with a 13-yard touchdown catch off the pass from Wojenski. Following the extra point, the Rams extended the lead to 14-7.
The Colonels’ next drive began to gain steam until the drive was ended shortly due to a Kenneth Bartolo interception.
Framingham rushed for back-to-back plays, gaining a total of Fve yards. After a Wojenski completion of nine yards, Wright gained five yards to keep the momentum going. On second-and-five, Wojenski hooked up with Khaneil Bruce for a 61-yard touchdown strike. With the point after, Framingham’s lead grew to 21-7.
Curry’s next drive was more of the same as they failed to get positive momentum and ended the drive with a punt.
The Rams’ juggernaut offense kept it going as they began the drive with back-to-back six-yard completions. Following an incompletion on first down, Wojenski scrambled for 43 yards moving the ball
into the red zone. After a false start penalty, Wright gained nothing on the ground, forcing a second- and-long. Wojenski’s pass fell incomplete on second down which forced a third-and-long situation.
Wojenski connected with Wright for a 21-yard touchdown strike to give the Rams a comfortable lead of 28-7.
The Colonels’ next drive began with a four-yard rush by Corvese, following an incompletion on the next play, Corvese was strip sacked for a loss of 14. Darian Belizaire recovered the ball for 29 yards down to the Colonels’ three-yard line. After a timeout from Curry, Wojenski gained nothing on the ground, forcing a second-and-goal with 22 seconds remaining. Wojenski found Khaneil Bruce for a three-yard touchdown pass. Framingham ended the half with a 34-7 lead following the blocked point after attempt.
The following three drives for both sides ended with the teams turning the ball over or punting the ball away.
Following a Wojenski thrown interception, Corvese and the offense finally began clicking as they began the drive with 18 yards on his two completions. Following a first down false start penalty, Corvese’s
pass fell incomplete before Sean Amaru gained Fve yards. After Corvese’s completion forced a fourth-and-six, he found Villanueva for 25 yards. After a Corvese incompletion, he connected with Mike DelGais for six yards. Tyler connected with Corvese for a two-yard touchdown. Curry cut the lead to 34-14.
The Colonels’ touchdown in the third quarter was their last of the day as they were shutout in the fourth quarter. Framingham kept the offense going as they scored two more touchdowns before the game ended with a final score of 48-14.
Wojenski led the way with 246 yards, five touchdowns and one interception thrown. It was a backfield by committee as four different players rushed for 40 plus yards. The defense played a great game as they forced four interceptions and a fumble.
Senior Joe Wilder who was selected as MASCAC Offensive Lineman of the Year was also selected to the 2017 New England Football Writers (NEFW) Division II/III All-New England Team. Sophomore Josh Onujiogu was also selected to NEFW for Division II/III. He had 11.5 sacks and 18.5 tackles for loss on the season.
The Rams’ season ended with a record of 10-1 and a second consecutive New England Bowl
championship.