The Fordham football team fell to Georgetown University (GU), 28-24, in the Rams’ Patriot League season opener, giving the Georgetown Hoyas something to celebrate on their Homecoming weekend. The Rams dominated in their last outing against Stonehill College, 44-0, but never seemed to find their footing against an invigorated Georgetown team that was predicted to finish last in the Patriot League prior to the season.
The Rams entered Saturday’s game ranked 15th overall in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), but the team appeared disjointed from the start. Its first possession appeared promising as the Rams drove into Hoya territory, however, a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty on Julius Loughridge, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) ’25, halted Fordham’s progress and forced the team to punt.
Georgetown immediately responded with a smooth drive up the field led by quarterback Tyler Knoop, GU ’24. As the Hoyas continued their push, they ran into a fourth down and boldly attempted to convert it for a first down to keep their drive alive. Fordham seemed to have made the stop to regain possession, but lineman Peter Chalhoub, FCRH ’26, jumped offsides, giving Georgetown a new set of downs. It was not long before Knoop found Isaiah Grimes, GU ’27, wide open for a touchdown. The Hoyas attempted a two-point conversion but failed, leaving them with a quick 6-0 lead.
CJ Montes, FCRH ’26 and a star for the Rams, was quick to reply. Montes and Loughridge made quick work of the short field position they were given courtesy of a strong kick return by Mason Hatfield, FCRH ’26. Their effort finally culminated in a perfectly placed 24-yard touchdown to Garrett Cody, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences ’24, to give the Rams a 7-6 lead.
With a little under six minutes to go in the first quarter, Georgetown received the ball once again and began its answer. Starting their possession at Fordham’s 49-yard line, the Hoyas rapidly pushed all the way into the redzone. As time wound down, however, Georgetown’s offense was met with fourth down and ambitiously went for it again, only to be stopped by the Rams’ defense.
The crowd roared as the Hoyas extended their lead to 21-7.
Neither team found success to start the second quarter. Georgetown drove all the way to Fordham’s 4-yard line only for Knoop to throw an interception in the end zone. Fordham failed to capitalize on this good fortune, giving the Hoyas the ball back with 9:36 to go following a three-and-out.
Knoop marched toward the end zone until he found running back Joshua Stakely, GU ’24, streaking along the sideline on a wheel route for a 17-yard touchdown. This time, Georgetown converted the two-pointer to regain a 14-7 lead. Fordham would later miss a field goal, and the score remained the same entering halftime.
The Hoyas were firing on all cylinders. On the third play coming out of the break, Naieem Kearney, GU ’25 and a running back, broke through the defense for a blazing 70-yard touchdown run. The crowd roared as the Hoyas extended their lead to 21-7.
Montes would not be denied following this momentum-shifting play. The Fordham offense went back to work on a drive that featured 42 passing yards and eight rushing yards from Montes. The quarterback’s final completion of the drive was a 22-yard strike across the middle to Mekai Felton, FCRH ’24, for a touchdown that cut the lead to one possession. The score remained 21-14 heading into the final quarter.
As the third quarter was ending, Fordham was driving deep into Georgetown’s end of the field. The Hoyas had attempted to convert a fourth down with 11 yards to go and failed, gifting the Rams with beautiful field position. As the fourth quarter began, though, Fordham’s drive fizzled out, and it was forced to settle for a field goal, cutting the lead to 21-17.
As the final quarter rolled on, Knoop threw another interception, his third of the game, then the teams traded three-and-outs. The clock continued to tick, and the pressure mounted for the heavily favored Rams.
It was only a matter of time before Knoop and the Hoyas found the end zone, and they did just that with 51 seconds remaining in the game.
The Rams received the ball with 8:15 remaining in the game and made their possession count. Fordham’s offensive unit moved meticulously up the field. Completion after completion pushed Fordham closer to the end zone as the time wound down.
When Montes faced fourth down, he calmly delivered the ball across the middle to MJ Wright, Gabelli Graduate School of Business ’24, for a game-saving conversion. With surgical precision, he connected with Cody for another touchdown to give Fordham a 24-21 lead with 3:54 remaining.
It was simply too much time left on the clock for the electrified Georgetown offense. Everything clicked for the Hoyas. When they faced the fourth down with four yards to go, Knoop found his receiver for a 13-yard completion. When Knoop connected with Grimes for a 20-yard reception deep into Fordham territory, another 9 yards were tacked on due to a roughing the passer penalty.
It was only a matter of time before Knoop and the Hoyas found the end zone, and they did just that with 51 seconds remaining in the game to take the ultimate 28-24 lead.
Fordham trudged off of the field as the party began on the Hilltop. It was not all negative for the Rams. They forced three interceptions and stopped a handful of attempted fourth down conversions. The offense did not turn the ball over and Montes threw for three touchdowns. Ultimately, Fordham suffered from too many short drives resulting in punts and were unable to capitalize on those turnovers and stops that they secured.
Fordham is now 3-2 this year and has dropped out of the FCS rankings, although the university still received votes. There is a long season ahead, and the Rams will look to put this loss behind them as Homecoming weekend against Lehigh University and a matchup with the 12th ranked College of the Holy Cross — who also suffered an upset loss this past weekend — loom later this month.
