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HAMILTON, NY (9/4/10) – Junior running back Nate Eachus (Drums, Pa.) rushed 30 times for 145 yards and one touchdown, while the No. 22 Colgate Raiders opened the 2010 season with a 30-29 win over Monmouth, Saturday night at Andy Kerr Stadium.

Colgate built a 30-13 lead with 7:53 remaining in the third quarter before the Hawks made a furious fourth-quarter charge. Monmouth quarterback Kyle Frazier connected with Tyler George in the end zone with 1:34 remaining to make it a one-point game, the Hawks then decided to go for two but were stuffed short when senior Brad Keele (Jacksonville, Fla.) met Andrew Mandeville on a quarterback sneak at the goal line.

Senior quarterback Greg Sullivan (Monroe, N.Y.) threw for 180 yards on 11-of-14 passing, while senior wide receiver Doug Rosnick (Langhorne, Pa.) stepped up for the Raiders with seven receptions for a career-high 103 yards. Colgate massed a total of 424 yards of offense and controlled the ball for 38 minutes.

Colgate (1-0) wasted no time getting on the board on the first drive of the game. The Raiders marched down the field in just over four minutes with Eachus plunging into the end zone on a four-yard run. The drive was highlighted by Daniel Cason's (East Stroudsburg, Pa.) first collegiate reception. The freshman pulled down a 36-yard pass from Sullivan in the middle of the field to the Monmouth 15-yard line. The drive was eight plays for 72 yards.

The Raiders increased their lead to 14-0 with 37 seconds left in the opening quarter. This time Colgate ate some time off the clock with a drive of 7:10. The march was 13 plays and 77 yards.

With a big third down play, Sullivan connected with Rosnick for a 17-yard gain, down to the Monmouth 27. Later on in the drive, Eachus was stuffed on a 3rd-and-2, which set up a fourth down play. This time Eachus wasn't denied as he picked up the first down with a two-yard charge. Sullivan then took it into the end zone himself with a 16-yard run down the left side, just breaking the plain to make it 14-0.

Monmouth (0-1) answered back with a six-play, 60-yard drive with Frazier hooking up with Chris Hogan in the end zone on a 17-yard post pattern to slice the lead in half at 14-7. The drive consisted of three passes of 10 or more yards.

On their first possession of the second quarter, the Raiders added to their lead on a career-best 31-yard field goal from sophomore Evan Colborne (Tampa, Fla.) to increase the advantage to 17-7. Eachus once again was the focal point of the offense and rushed for a 35-yard gain on a 3rd-and-inches play to get the ball to the three-yard line. Monmouth held its ground and thanks to a holding penalty on Colgate, the Raiders were forced into the field goal.

Colgate opened the second half with the ball and went 76 yards in nine plays to increase the lead to 23-7. After four straight rushes and a 4th-and-1 conversion from Eachus, Sullivan dropped back and hit a wide-open Rosnick for a 50-yard strike.

The celebration didn't last long as Bobby Giles returned the kickoff 90 yards to make it 23-13 Raiders. It was the first time since October 2007 that Colgate had surrendered a kickoff return. The Hawks went for the two-point conversion, but failed.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Raiders almost gave Monmouth a dose of its own medicine as junior Noah Jackson (Vista, Calif.) had a nice return of 51 yards. The drive got interesting on a 3rd-and-1 when Eachus broke up the middle for a 20-yard gain, but the ball came loose. Luckily for the Raiders Rosnick was there and the ball popped directly into his hands. On the next play, Sullivan finished the drive with his second touchdown of the night, to put the Raiders up 30-13.


GAME NOTES: Eachus is now just four yards away from becoming the 15th Colgate running back to accrue 2,000 rushing yards in his Colgate career. The Raiders were 8-for-14 on third down conversions, while holding Monmouth to 1-for-8. Colgate is now 2-1 historically against Monmouth, and has won its last two season openers.