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Mitchell Ivatts catches a pass over a Tufts football defensive back
Photo: Josh McKee (https://www.mckeephotoarts.com/)
Mitchell Ivatts '29
28
Hamilton HAM 0-1 , 0-1
42
Winner Tufts TUF 1-0 , 1-0
Hamilton HAM
0-1 , 0-1
28
Final
42
Tufts TUF
1-0 , 1-0
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
HAM Hamilton 0 14 7 7 28
TUF Tufts 6 15 14 7 42

Game Recap: Football | | Jim Taylor

Football scores 28 points in 2026 season-opening setback at Tufts

Etienne '30 scored three touchdowns in his first game for the Continentals

SOMERVILLE, Mass. – Tufts University's Christian Shapiro ran for 110 yards and four touchdowns in the Jumbos' 42-28 NESCAC win against the Hamilton College Continentals at Tufts' Ellis Oval/Zimman Field on Saturday afternoon, Sept. 19.
 

Season Update

Saturday's game was the 2026 season opener for both teams.
 

How It Happened

  • The Jumbos scored the first 13 points and never relinquished the lead. Hamilton muffed the punt after Tufts' opening drive and gave the Jumbos great field position at the 23-yard line. Six plays later, Hudson Weidman completed an 11-yard touchdown pass to Granville Anderson II on third-and-10 with 8:33 left in the first quarter. The extra point was no good and Tufts led 6-0.
  • Shapiro ran 17 yards for a touchdown on the second play of the second quarter and completed a drive that took seven minutes off the clock. Weidman scrambled 12 yards on fourth-and-five on the last play of the first quarter and kept the drive alive. The PAT was good and the Jumbos had a 13-0 advantage.
  • The Continentals scored their first touchdown of the season on a 31-yard pass deep down the middle of the field from Luke Kurzum '27 to Matthew Kearns '28 with 11:07 remaining in the second quarter. Carmelo Velardo '27, who made all four of his extra-point attempts, made it 13-7.
  • Tufts had another short field to work with after a short kickoff and an unnecessary roughness penalty on Hamilton put the ball at the Continentals' 42-yard line. A defensive pass interference penalty gave the Jumbos an automatic first down at the 18 and Shapiro ran it into the end zone from two yards out four plays later. The pass was complete on the two-point conversion and Tufts had a 21-7 lead with 7:15 to go.
  • Hamilton responded with a nine-play drive that culminated in a one-yard touchdown run by Ace Etienne '30 in his first collegiate game with 2:33 left.
  • After four straight drives that resulted in touchdowns, the Continentals were able to force the Jumbos to punt in the final seconds of the first half, and Tufts took a 21-14 lead into the locker room.
  • The Jumbos received the opening kickoff and marched 77 yards for a touchdown. Shapiro punched it into the end zone from the one with 8:44 remaining in the third quarter. Tufts completed an 11-yard pass on fourth-and-six and Hamilton was flagged for defensive pass interference on consecutive plays.
  • The Continentals registered another touchdown less than three minutes later. A 21-yard pass completion and a personal foul penalty on Tufts moved Hamilton 36 yards on one play. Etienne ran 11 yards to the left side for another touchdown and pulled the Continentals within 28-21 with 6:03 to go.
  • The Jumbos made it a two-score cushion again just two plays later. Keller Rogers caught a short pass from Weidman at the 50 and scampered into the end zone for a 63-yard touchdown.
  • Following an interception deep in its own territory, Tufts went 89 yards and held the ball for more than six minutes in a drive that all but clinched the win for the Jumbos. A 57-yard catch by Rogers was the big blow, and Shapiro bulled his way into the end zone from the two with 4:55 left in the fourth quarter.
  • Hamilton went to its hurry-up offense and chewed up 77 yards in just six plays. Jack Hoag '27 made a 31-yard catch-and-run and on the next play, Etienne caught a short pass and sprinted six yards into the end zone for his third touchdown.
  • The Continentals still trailed 42-28 with a little more than two minutes remaining, and there just wasn't enough time to mount a comeback.
 

Notes

  • Etienne finished with 33 yards on the ground and six catches for 47 yards. His three scores were the most by a Hamilton player in one game since Lucas Perez-Segnini '25 had three touchdown receptions against Bates College on Nov. 9, 2024.
  • Kurzum was 28-of-37 for a career-high 346 yards and two touchdowns.
  • Mitchell Ivatts '29 tied a career best with nine catches and set a career high with 123 receiving yards.
  • Kearns finished with five catches for 60 yards including his fifth career touchdown reception.
  • Mat Bucher '27 led all players with 12 tackles.
  • Ryan Torello '29 was credited with a career-high nine stops.
  • Tufts' Weidman was 13-of-19 for 218 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 51 yards.
  • Rogers finished with a game-high 129 yards receiving on just four catches.
  • Lucas Gonzalez intercepted a pass and Justin Keller recovered a fumble.
  • The Jumbos had 176 yards rushing while the Continentals ended up with 28.
  • Tufts had the ball for 37 out of 60 minutes.
 

Next Game

Hamilton hosts Amherst College (1-0) for Family Weekend on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 1 p.m.
 
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