Printer Friendly Version - Hand Football Scores 49 Straight Points in 49-14 Rout of Guilford

Junior quarterback Nick Van Dell was 19-of-22 with his passes for 222 yards while he threw for three scores and ran for another in Hand football’s 49-14 victory over Guilford on Nov. 25 at home in the Tigers’ final game of the season.

While it may have seemed strange for Hand football to end the campaign on its annual Thanksgiving week clash against Guilford, the Tigers made sure they went out with a bang before heading into the offseason.

Hand hosted its rival Indians at the Surf Club on Nov. 25 and emerged victorious by a 49-14 final to earn the Tigers their eighth consecutive decision over Guilford. The visitors went ahead 7-0 less than a minute into the contest, although Hand responded with 49 unanswered points. Despite that fact that it will miss the postseason for the first time in five years, Hand ended its season on a two-game winning streak and with an overall record of 5-6.

Junior quarterback Nick Van Dell threw the ball 22 times—completing 19 passes for 222 yards—as he also notched four touchdowns (throwing for 3 of them). Following the opening Guilford edge, the Hand defense held its opponent to just 35 yards of total offense in the first two quarters.

The Indians (2-9) wasted very little time grabbing that one-score lead when junior quarterback Jack Jankura sprinted 85 yards to the house on the second snap of the evening 59 ticks into it.

Junior running back Reid Sweitzer set the Tigers up for the tie on special teams by taking a punt return to the 3-yard marker of Guilford prior to Van Dell taking it in on his own from two yards away at 11:55 of the second period.

The Tigers offense wasn’t done after that possession as it worked the field for 80 yards on eight snaps for its next drive with Van Dell hooking up with junior wide out Andrew Fitzgerald on a 9-yard TD reception to give Hand the lead for good 7:48 before intermission.

Hand went ahead 21-7 just over four minutes later thanks to a 57-yard, 10-play possession that concluded with a short 1-yard dash past the goal line by senior Ryan Whelahan. Fitzgerald made it 28-7 at halftime on a TD catch of five yards.

A dozen ticks apart in the third, the Tigers found pay dirt twice. First, Van Dell tossed the ball 31 yards to senior receiver Tom D’Annolfo as 7:40 was left to go in the frame, and then Sweitzer scooped up a Guilford fumble on its kickoff return and raced seven yards with it to a 42-7 Hand command.

Sophomore Brett Bilcheck finished the offensive night for the Tigers on his 18-yard TD rush during the third before junior running back Mike Filley had a 6-yard scoring run in the fourth.