Bates College

AMHERST, Mass. -- The Bates football team opened the 2026 season Saturday at Amherst and fell 24-14 in a contest that saw the Mammoths rally from four points down late in the fourth quarter to prevail over the Bobcats.

Bates (0-1 NESCAC) took a 14-10 lead when senior cornerback Payton Francis (Foxborough, Mass.) jumped a route on the far side of the field and picked off a pass from Amherst quarterback Marek Hill, returning it 36 yards for a touchdown. It's the first interception for Francis in his collegiate career and the first interception by a Bates player to be returned for a touchdown since Anthony Costa '22 recorded a pick-six in 2018. Senior Marcos Ruiz (Haskell, N.J.) made the extra point, putting the Bobcats up four with 3:13 left in regulation.

The Bobcat defense did their part, forcing a pair of incomplete passes. An illegal forward pass by Hill when he was in front of the line of scrimmage brought up a fourth down. Facing fourth and 15, the Mammoths were forced to punt. However, the punt hit a Bates player at the Bobcat 45-yard line and Amherst's Ty Kazanowsky recovered the ball. The Mammoths got another chance to rally with 2:34 remaining in the fourth quarter.

On a second and 10 from the Bates 43, an unnecessary roughness call against the Bobcats moved the ball down to the 28. Then Hill found Jadon Davis for 26 yards to the Bates two. Michael Dunmore punched it in from there and Amherst led 17-14 after the extra point with 1:55 to go.

Bates got pinned deep in their own territory on the ensuing kickoff and three pass attempts failed. The fourth pass attempt got picked off by Amherst's Jordan Summers and returned for a touchdown, providing the final margin of victory for the hosts.

The game started well for the Bobcats, as they took advantage of an Amherst mistake on Special Teams. The Bobcat defense forced a three-and-out on the opening drive of the contest and a bad snap on the punt attempt forced the Mammoths to fall on the ball back at their own 11. Bates kept the ball on the ground and six runs later they punched it into the end zone. Sophomore quarterback Jack Gilmore (North Arlington, N.J.) ran it in from one yard out on fourth down to get Bates on the board and Ruiz made the PAT for a 7-0 lead.

Bates forced a turnover on downs on the next Amherst possession, as senior Jack Morrison (Manchester, Vt.) broke up a pass at the Bates six on fourth and 12. 

The Bobcats took over at their own 32 and moved the ball to their own 41. On 3rd and 12, Gilmore found senior captain running back Ryan Lynskey (Cranford, N.J.) in the flat. Unfortunately for Bates, Lynskey went down with an injury on the play and missed the remainder of the game.

Without their All-NESCAC running back, the Bates offense struggled to gain traction against a tough Amherst defense.

The Mammoths (1-0 NESCAC) tied the game at seven with 11:35 left in the second quarter. A 54-yard run from Max Alexander set up Amherst in the red zone and Hill found Davis for four yards and a touchdown. 

Neither team scored again until the hosts took a 10-7 lead with 13:41 left in regulation on a 29-yard field goal from Hudson Fulcher-Melendy. 

Defense was certainly the name of the game on Saturday, as Amherst managed just 248 yards of total offense and Bates finished with 227 yards of total offense. The two quarterbacks threw a combined six interceptions and the defenses combined for four sacks. Bates finished 3-16 on third down and Amherst was 3-13 on third down. Each team recorded 12 first downs apiece in the contest.

Sophomore wide receiver Riley Provencher (Old Orchard Beach, Maine) had a solid game for Bates, catching six passes for a game-high 78 yards. Senior Ryan Gleason (Millbury, Mass.) added four catches for 55 yards. Defensively, sophomore Colton Brisard (Lee, N.H.) paced Bates with seven total tackles, including two solo stops. Sophomore Liam Keaney (Swampscott, Mass.) notched six total tackles, with a team-high four solo stops. He was consistently in the backfield, finishing with 2.5 tackles for loss, including an impressive 1.5 sacks. Senior captain Ryan Rozich (Cromwell, Conn.) added six total tackles of his own, with two solo stops, a pass break-up and a QB hurry. Junior linebacker Carmel Crunk (Lancaster, Calif.) intercepted the first pass of his career and tallied a pair of tackles. 

The Bobcats host Trinity next Saturday at 1 p.m. for their home opener at Garcelon Field.