MILLERSVILLE, Pa. - It appeared as if Millersville's offense had come to life in the final minute of the first half when Rob Footman Jr. connected with Isaac Sines for a touchdown capping an 80-yard drive in just 47 seconds. But the momentum did not carry into the second half as Clarion scored 29 unanswered points, turning a 7-7 halftime tie into a 36-7 season-opening romp. 

Millersville struggled to find its rhythm offensively, totaling just 62 yards of offense before the game-tying drive in the second quarter, and the Marauders were out-gained 409 to 262. Footman Jr. completed 16 of 38 passes and two interceptions while his counterpart, Clarion's Anthony Guercio did most of his damage on the ground, rushing for 106 yards and two back-breaking TD runs in the second half. Guercio wasn't efficient, connecting on just 9 of 23 passes, but his strike of 48 yards with 10:03 remaining in the third quarter broke the tie, and he later found Trevon Tate for a 43-yard TD connection that put the Marauders down by three scores with 6:47 to play. 

"It's experience for a lot of guys," said Millersville head coach J.C. Morgan. "We have some guys that we know are talented but have to get that experience. They need to get those plays under their belt. There were a lot of things they can learn from and grow from. Sometimes you have to see stuff like this and then the lights will come on."

The third quarter was the difference. The Marauders totaled 32 yards on five third-quarter drives while Clarion scored on back-to-back possessions, covering 125 yards in seven plays. 

Millersville was often its own worst enemy, committing 10 penalties worth 100 yards of real estate, and several ended promising drives. On the opening drive, Millersville faced a third-and-one, but a false start set them back and led to a punt. After Clarion took a 22-7 lead in the third quarter, the Marauders committed offensive penalties on three consecutive snaps, one of which negated a 10-yard run. Down 22-7 early in the fourth quarter, Millersville had a first-and-goal from the Clarion 7, but a holding call knocked the Marauders back to the 17, and the drive stalled. Footman nearly made a brilliant play on third down from the 21-yard line, scrambling to his left and lofting a pass to the back line of the end zone, hitting Steven Graves III in stride. Graves, however, stepped out of bounds and he made the catch. 

"There were some opportunities to make plays in the second half, and we did, but we killed ourselves with the penalties," said Morgan. "We have to clean some things up there."

Jaheim Morris led Millersville with 53 yards rushing on 11 carries, but more than half of the yards came on one 28-yard run, and it resulted in Millersville's only first down of the third quarter. The Marauders struggled to get the ground game going, resulting in regular third-and-long situations. Millersville averaged 3.4 yards per carry while Clarion averaged 4.9. Sines made his first career touchdown catch and led the team with five catches for 47 yards. On the defensive side, Bryce Beutler and Max Hostetter both recorded six tackles and a half-tackle for loss in their Millersville debuts. Nick Romano recorded his first career interception. 

UP NEXT 
Millersville travels to Frostburg State on Thursday, Sept. 5 for the Bobcats' season opener.