Post-Game - Delaware 45, Delaware State 0

Jake Giusti returns a DSU
fumble for a Touchdown

I really do hope that they warmed up the bus during that 4th quarter because this was o-v-e-r early!  Now, for all the fun this beat down was for the casual fan, the real truth here is that no problems were really "solved."  I'll get into that in a bit, but first, here is your game rundown:

• Quick Start - Donnelly to Naugle right off the bat! Great start to the game after forcing a quick 3-&-Out for DSU.
• Pierce, Table for Six – 4 yard score on a 96 yard drive that ate up over 7 minutes of game clock. 14-0, Delaware.
• I'll take that! - Pick by Ricky Tunstall for the Hens to end yet another Hornets drive.
• One Quarter Down – The Blue Hens are up 14 after the 1st, 218 yards for UD to 12 yards by DSU.  Ouch.
• The Ninja is back! - 11-yard pass from Donnelly to Nihja White for a touchdown.  It was a 4th down play that kept the drive alive (Hens were in that long FG/short punt range) and the Hens made the most of it. 21-0, Delaware.
• Rout 1 – Jake Giusti returns a Delaware State fumble 32 yards for a Blue Hens TD! OIne of the best stories of the season after he had ACL surgery 7 months, 3 days ago (blew it out during the game in Frisco last season).  Keep that scoreboard rolling! 28-0, Delaware.
• When it rains, it pours. – Another DSU fumble (at UD 40) recovered by Andrew Harrison puts the ball back in Donnelly's hands.  A 59-yard pass play to White left the Hens at the 1-yard line.  No surprise that the ball was put back into Pierce's hands as he punched it home for his second score and the 35-0 lead!
• Halfway there – 35-0 Blue Hens going into the locker rooms.  At this point, UD holds a 301-95 advantage in yardage, and a 14-4 advantage in first downs. Wow. Nihja White has been a beast so far, going 5 for 97 and a TD in the first half. A big welcome back from the bad thumb!  This isn't to take anything away from Donnelly either, having only one incompletion in the half.  Borderline perfect half of football.
• As you were... - Andrew Pierce snags his third and final score of the day, a 7-yarder to put the Hens up 35-0.  That run also made Pierce the fastest player in Delaware history to reach to 2000 yards. FYI: this being his 3rd of the game… you can expect some gloating later.
• Bring out your bench… - The next Blue Hens drive sees Justin Burns debuts at QB for Delaware as the Hens finally get their game where the bench can get some work done.
• Going the distance - Sean Baner hits a 47-yard field goal to give the Hens 45-0 lead, which they hold at the end of the 3rd quarter.
• Game Over - At this point, the Hens have a solid lead and let the backups do their thing.  Of note is Walter Davis, going for 109 yards on the ground as the Hens literally ran out the clock on Delaware State.
• FINAL SCORE: Delaware 45, Delaware State 0

This was a well played game by the Hens.  Tim Donnelly finishes 13-14 for 221 yards and 2 touchdowns.  Andrew Pierce finally had his breakout game, rushing for 106 yards and 3 scores, and after missing the West Chester game due to injury, Nihja White put up 122 yards and a score of his own.  But a great point was made by the WDSD guys during the broadcast and it was that this game really did not prove if the Hens have fixed their problems on both sides of the ball.  This game was expected to be a lot closer than it was, and Delaware State failed to live up to their end of the bargain.  I feel like this gave the offense a chance to work through things under much less pressure than a CAA opponent, but that does not mean the same mistakes won't become apparent again next week vs. Old Dominion.  Same goes for the defense.  Were they really that dominant for one or was Delaware state just awful?  These questions will all remain until and probably be revisited this week leading up the the start of the conference schedule.

The only other issue now is when Trevor Sasek will be back to 100%, and when that time comes (possibly next weekend), if Tim Donnelly is shown the bench.  I love what Donnelly has done in relief since Sasek was injured for the second time vs. Navy, but this was Trevor's job to begin with and he has already performed well vs. CAA competition in the past.  Should be an interesting debate if Sasek is back at practice this week.

Not too much else to go over here (it was a blowout, after all), so let's get on with my gloating:

REVIEWING MY PREDICTIONS

My Over/Under for UD vs. DSU

• Total Points: 50.5 points - Not exactly how I saw it going down, but 5 points off is a win for me
• DSU Passing Yards: 234.5 yards - 115 yards.  Way to live up to expectations DSU.
• Delaware Passing Yards: 184.5 yards - 243 yards.  I figured a run-heavy attack would be needed to get through this game, but Donnelly was almost perfect, and Burns added some extra yards to boost this statistic.

Bold Prediction:  Andrew Pierce has at least three TD's.
(I know he'll punch in two scores, but I have a hunch
he'll break out this weekend.)
THIS WAS AWESOME!!! Pierce needed a break out game badly.  I figured that one of these would be a long score, but he got the work in the red zone and it paid off immensely for the Hens (and myself!).

Projected Score:  Delaware 31, Delaware State 20
(Time to wake up, Delaware! The time is NOW!)
On one hand, the Blue Hens did wake up.  But Delaware State was awful and could not generate any offense throughout this game.  Did I mention enough times in my preview that DSU was a kneel down from being beaten by a D-II school?

I'm technically 3-0 on results, but I'm harsh on myself and 0-3 on projecting the actual game.  I'll eventually get one.

Game Articles

• BlueHens.com - #7 Delaware Jumps Out Quickly, Cruises to 45-0...
• Delaware Online - Blue Hens drub Hornets 45-0
• Delaware Online - UD Dominates in Third Meeting Against Hornets
• Delaware Online - Playing field isn't quite level yet
• Delaware Online - Giusti beats odds, has an impact
• BlueHens.com - Video Recap of Delaware State Game (below)