Williams spoiled Bowdoin's homecoming festivities on Saturday afternoon with a decisive 35-17 road victory over the Polar Bears.
Jon Oris and Owen Johansen continued to lead the way on offense for the Ephs, gashing Bowdoin for a combined 214 rushing yards – their third game with 190+ combined yards this season. Oris especially shined, with 144 yards on 13 carries.
The win marks the second straight for Williams against Bowdoin and continues a long string of success for the Ephs against the Polar Bears. Other than a loss in 2023, the Ephs have defeated Bowdoin in every matchup dating back to 2008.
"Our offensive line is really starting to execute well," Head Coach Mark Raymond said. "The combination of our running backs and Owen has really created a lot of problems for the defense."
The Ephs established their offensive rhythm immediately. After receiving the opening kickoff, Johansen took the first play for 20 yards on a read option, then sprinted for another 23 yards on another read option a few plays later. Oris capped the drive by darting up the middle for 17 yards, carrying a would-be tackler into the end zone for a touchdown to give the Ephs a 7-0 lead less than four minutes into the game.
The offense continued to hum later in the first quarter, as Johansen rolled left and hit Henry Machnik, who tiptoed down the sideline for a first down on 3rd-and-11. Two plays later, Oris burst through a hole and down the left side for a 42-yard scamper. On the next play, the first of the second quarter, Johansen found Machnik again for a 14-yard touchdown over the middle – the first touchdown of Machnik's career – to give Williams a 14-0 lead.
Bowdoin was able to get on the scoreboard in the second quarter, taking advantage of a Williams fumble in their own territory to drill a field goal and cut the deficit to 14-3 with 5:52 to go in the half.
But the Ephs responded instantaneously with a 75-yard touchdown drive. Oris began the drive with two chunk runs for a combined 26 yards, and then a key third-down penalty on the Polar Bears gave the Ephs a new set of downs in the red zone. Johansen waltzed into the end zone untouched for a 15-yard touchdown on the second play after the penalty to give the Ephs a 21-3 lead that they would take into halftime.
By halftime, the rushing game had already proven highly effective for Williams. Oris had rushed for 94 yards, while the Ephs were averaging 8.6 yards per carry on the ground, in contrast to Bowdoin's 1.9.
Williams opened the second half by forcing a quick Bowdoin punt. The Ephs then took over at their own 38 and scored in a flash. Oris popped a 26-yard run straight up the middle on the drive's first play, followed by a nice play-action completion from Johansen to Daven Bailey over the middle. Oris then charged for 18 more yards down to the one-yard line, and Johansen found paydirt at the goal line to extend the lead to 28-3, with 10:24 still to go in the third quarter.
Defensively, Williams kept the pressure on during Bowdoin's next drive. A high pass over the middle on third down was intercepted by George Papadopoulos, whose nice leaping grab was his second forced turnover of the game – he also recovered a fumble in the first half.
The Ephs' offense capitalized on the turnover with its final scoring sequence of the game. After a series of short, positive runs, Johansen took a shot on a second-and-nine from the Bowdoin 39 yard line. On a play-action, he dropped back near the 50 and unleashed a perfect deep ball to a streaking Zach Falls, who made a sprinting, outstretched catch for his second touchdown in as many weeks.
The big play gave Williams a 35-3 lead, and after another Papadopoulos interception on the ensuing Bowdoin drive, Johansen and Oris were subbed out of the game at the beginning of the fourth quarter. In the fourth, Bowdoin was able to score a pair of touchdowns before the Ephs closed out the win.
Despite allowing the late touchdowns, the Ephs' defense played impeccable football all day. The team forced four turnovers – of which Papadopolous had three – and Luke Mangini produced an incredible 15 tackles, including four for loss. Zakkai Moore added six tackles, while Will Gale and Connor Acheson each had big sacks during the win.
Next week, the Ephs return home to face Middlebury, with kickoff set for 2pm at Farley-Lamb Field.
