Football heads to Richmond for pivotal A-10 conference game

After pulling out a last-minute win against the then-No. 12-ranked University of Maine, the Dukes look to continue their three-game winning streak Saturday at Atlantic 10 conference foe the University of Richmond.

Trailing at Maine 20-17 with 48 seconds remaining last Saturday, sophomore quarterback Justin Rascati found sophomore wide receiver D.D. Boxley in the end zone.

Richmond (2-4) is not ranked nationally like Maine and is found in the middle of most A-10 statistical categories. Still, the Dukes expect a battle on the road.

"We’ve played poorly at Richmond in recent years," coach Mickey Matthews said. "It won’t be hard to get motivated for this game because a lot of guys have never won at Richmond."

A positive for the Dukes this season has been their ability to take care of the ball. The No. 14 Dukes rank second in the A-10 in turnovers, with a plus 1.25 ratio. Richmond, on the other hand, is last in the conference, giving up a negative 1.33 turnover ratio.

While the Spiders have been more susceptible to turnovers this season, the Dukes cannot view that as an advantage.

"We have to prepare like they won’t turn the ball over," Matthews said. "Richmond is a very capable team, but they’ve shot themselves in the foot with turnovers."

Even if turnover margins are not an advantage, performances by some key players may be.

Redshirt freshman free safety Tony LeZotte earned the honor of A-10 Rookie of the Week for his nine tackles and one interception against the Black Bears. His tackles matched the nine he earned the previous game against the University of Massachusetts.

"He still makes a few freshman mistakes," Matthews said. "But he doesn’t make the same mistake twice."

He added, "Tony has the potential to make 10 tackles every game."

The combination of Rascati to Boxley also was a boost. Boxley’s 11 catches for 108 yards and Rascati’s 197-yard performance were respective career highs for both players.

"Our games were under bad weather for the most part this year, so our throwing game had suffered until Saturday," Matthews said.

The defensive line, which has been dependable for most of the season, also struggled against the Black Bears.

"Our defensive front played poorly at Maine," Matthews said.

That four-man front will be needed to manage mercurial Richmond quarterback Stacey Tutt, who ranks fifth in the A-10 in rushing and eighth in passing.

"He’s one of their major strengths because he can both run and throw," Matthews said. "We’re relying on our defensive front to contain their quarterback draws."

A win at Richmond will run the Dukes’ winning streak to five games, and they will enter Homecoming weekend 6-1 against The Virginia Military Institute (0-7).

.