Football stampedes Owls in Homecoming win: Rams keep their perfect 5-0 conference streak

By Izabela Gage

Sports Editor

Adrien Gobin / THE GATEPOST

The Framingham State Rams set the tone early and never trailed in their Homecoming win Oct. 18, defeating the Westfield State Owls 35-24 in a MASCAC matchup.

The Rams remain undefeated in the conference, 5-0, and their overall record is now 5-1.

Sophomore running back Jaheim Daniels said, “This win sets a strong tone for the rest of the season because it shows that we can handle business when we stay focused. 

“It feels great to be 5-0 in the conference for a young team, but there’s still work to do,” he added.

Westfield State opened the game at its own 35-yard line, testing the Framingham defense with a steady mix of runs from their offensive line. 

The Rams’ front line, anchored by linebacker Blake Barron, a senior, and defensive lineman Korrey Barron, a sophomore, quickly asserted itself. 

After yielding a first down near midfield, Framingham forced a punt, halting the Owls after just 11 yards on their opening drive.

Taking over at their own 18-yard line, freshman Ransford Adri and junior Scotty Brown contributed rushes for small gains, but Framingham’s first drive ended after Brown was sacked for a loss of seven. 

Westfield’s Brandon Paquette fumbled on the return, and sophomore defensive end Gabe Grzyboski recovered at the Owls’ 47-yard line, giving the Rams excellent field position.

Framingham couldn’t capitalize on the turnover, though, stalling out on downs at Westfield’s 28-yard line after a short fourth-down completion. 

But the defensive line continued to dominate, forcing a three-and-out on the Owls’ next series.

Moments later, the Rams began methodically moving the chains. A 36-yard connection from Brown to junior wide receiver Mathias Fowler jump-started a late-quarter drive. 

On the next play, Brown connected with Fowler again for an 18-yard touchdown with 1:54 left in the first quarter. 

Kicker Dillon Mangus, a senior, made the extra point to make it 7-0 Rams.

On the ensuing Westfield possession, quarterback Miles Foerster lost control of the ball on a run, and Framingham’s sophomore safety James Wilder pounced on it for another recovery at the Owls’ 29-yard line.

Freshman quarterback Michael Marcucella wasted no time, and on the first play of the second quarter, he fired an 18-yard touchdown pass to junior tight end Alex Maia, stretching Framingham’s lead to 14-0 just six seconds into the second quarter.

Westfield answered quickly, with a 29-yard touchdown run and a fumbled rush attempt to cap their 53-yard drive, bringing the score to 14-6.

Pinned deep at their own 5-yard line following the kickoff, the Rams responded with a composed 40-yard drive. 

Daniels carried the offense with a series of powerful runs, while Brown connected with junior wide receiver Ayden Ramirez for a first down. 

But after Westfield called a timeout on fourth-and-two, the Rams came up short, turning the ball over on downs at midfield.

Westfield couldn’t take advantage of their possession, failing to work against Framingham’s swarming defense, which set the stage for another scoring drive for the Rams.

With Marcucella back under center, Framingham benefitted from a Westfield face-mask penalty that moved the ball into Owl territory. Moments later, he took off on a 22-yard scramble to the 15-yard line. 

Daniels finished the job on the next play, sprinting into the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown. 

Daniels said, “We knew that Westfield’s defense is aggressive, so we focused on staying disciplined with our blocking and hitting the holes hard.”

Mangus’s extra point extended the Rams’ lead to 21-6 with 5:39 left in the half.

Westfield put together a promising series late in the second quarter, aided by a pass interference penalty against Framingham that pushed the Owls to midfield. But a sack from defensive lineman Mitchell Purter snuffed out the drive, forcing a punt.

With just over a minute left in the half, Framingham hoped to add to its lead. Marcucella connected with Maia and Fowler for short gains, but the drive stalled near midfield. 

The Rams punted with 16 seconds left, and Westfield ran out the clock, trailing 21-6 at halftime.

Framingham opened the second half right where it left off. After receiving the kickoff, Daniels picked up 6 yards on the ground before Marcucella found Ramirez for a short gain. 

On third down, Marcucella connected with junior wide receiver Stephen Gallant in stride for a 64-yard touchdown, electrifying the Rams’ sideline and stretching the lead to 28-6 less than two minutes into the third quarter.

Westfield responded with its best drive of the game. Foerster led the Owls downfield with two pass completions for a total of 50 yards, and running back Manny Mengata powered the running game with two carries for short gains.

The Owls capped the 77-yard march with a 3-yard touchdown run, trimming the deficit to 28-12 after another failed conversion attempt.

But the Rams’ offense proved unstoppable. A 30-yard completion from Marcucella to sophomore wide receiver Adrian Sarrette and a series of runs by Daniels quickly pushed the Rams back into scoring position. 

On first-and-17 following a holding penalty, Marcucella made his third connection of the possession - this time for a 29-yard touchdown pass, extending the Framingham lead to 35-12 with 3:35 left in the third quarter.

Westfield managed to advance the ball to Framingham territory before the quarter ended, but the Rams’ defense again stood firm, forcing an incompletion on fourth down.

A pair of penalties and a sack pushed the Rams deep into their own territory, culminating in a safety that gave Westfield two points and the ball back with 11:55 remaining in the game.

The Owls appeared ready to capitalize. Foerster connected with two of Westfield’s running backs to move the chains, but a crucial red-zone turnover stalled the momentum. 

After Framingham was flagged for holding on an interception return, Westfield regained possession at the Rams’ 10-yard line. 

But the Rams’ defense refused to break - stopping four consecutive goal-line attempts, including a recovered fumble at the 2-yard line to deny the scoring play.

Sophomore defensive back Tyrell Fuller said, “All week, our defensive coaches have preached, ‘Just do your job.’ So, focusing on winning your individual battle on the field would naturally create those big play opportunities and they did just that.”

Pinned near their own end zone once again, Framingham suffered another safety after a failed fourth-down snap made it 35-16 with just over six minutes left.

Westfield continued to fight. The Owls made some successful short passes and rushes, and with a 19-yard touchdown run from wide receiver Will Brewster and a subsequent two-point conversion, they narrowed the score to 35-24 with 3:08 remaining.

But that was as close as Westfield would get. Daniels, who finished as one of the game’s most consistent contributors, closed out the win with a series of first-down runs to drain the clock. 

His 16-yard dash on third-and-eight sealed the victory, and a Westfield unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in the final minute allowed Framingham to kneel out the game.

Marcucella led the aerial attack with three touchdown passes, while Brown contributed a first-quarter touchdown following a pass from Fowler.

Marcucella said the chemistry between the quarterbacks and the wide receivers this season has been “awesome. I love those guys. They’ve been amazing in helping me through some of my early growing pains. Saturday, specifically, they took advantage of their matchups and did what they do best - making many big plays.”

Fowler said, “The best part of this team is how deep our quarterback room is.”

He added all of the extra work the receivers and quarterbacks put in during the week forms the cohesion displayed on the field on Saturdays. 

Gallant said the team has worked on limiting mistakes and having open communication between the quarterbacks and wide receivers.

He added he thinks it’s important to “get the ball around to everyone because there is a lot of talent in the receiver room.”

Daniels said, “It really started up front. The [offensive line] set the tone early, creating space and winning at the line of scrimmage. Once we got that rhythm, everything started to click. They just trusted their reads, stayed patient, and kept executing.

“Every week, Coach TK talks about getting better and staying consistent, and this game was a great step forward,” he added.

The Rams travel to Mass. Maritime to face the Buccaneers in a conference match Oct. 25.

Fuller said this type of work is “the standard. We worked hard all offseason for this and more. But, all of that is in vain if we don’t finish. So, we are gonna keep our 1-0 mentality each week and finish!”

Fowler said winning against Westfield shows the potential of what the team can become. “I don’t think we’ve hit our ceiling yet.”

He added, “We know there’s a target on our back and that we are going to get every opponent’s best shot, and we look forward to it.”