LANCASTER, Pa. – The Franklin & Marshall football team reclaimed "The Wagon" on Saturday as it defeated Dickinson by a 23-14 score in front of strong True Blue Weekend crowd. The Diplomats scored the only points of the second half with a touchdown during both the third and fourth quarters to defeat the rival Red Devils.

Since 1963, the Diplomats and Red Devils have battled each other for a model of the wagon that transported the two teams to play each other in both meetings back in 1889. The trophy is a gift from former athletic directors Dave Eavenson (DC) and J. Shober Barr (F&M) and is meant to symbolize the gridiron rivalry between the two programs. The teams first played in 1889 and F&M now leads the all-time series by a 68-44-3 advantage. Since the inception of The Wagon Trophy, the Diplomats are holding a 34-27 edge over the Red Devils.

First Quarter (F&M 0, Dickinson 0)

Franklin & Marshall's defense was up to the task early as it stalled a pair of Dickinson drives that crossed midfield. The first drive in F&M territory was halted when Quincy Long was able to get pressure on Dickinson quarterback Presley Egbers to force a fourth down incompletion. The second stop on the home side of the 50 came with a big tackle from Matt Scully which forced a punt and ultimately set up F&M's first scoring drive of the game.

Second Quarter (Dickinson 14, F&M 10)

Taking over at their own 10, F&M got across midfield on a 48-yard reception from Jack O'Hearen that he was able to haul in despite the defender being called for pass interference on the play. Ty Tremba found Michael Poruban for another 15 yards just two plays later before Brady Aselton capped the drive with the eighth receiving touchdown of his career.

After no points were scored in the first quarter, both teams scored on their first two possessions of the second. Dickinson tied the game by going 75 yards over 12 plays. That drive included a fake punt completion to keep the drive alive. Laurence Miller gave the Diplomats the lead again when he converted a 34 yard field goal, but the Red Devils used a 68-yard touchdown reception with just 40 seconds remaining in the first half to take a 14-10 lead into the halftime break.

Third Quarter (F&M 16, Dickinson 14)

Taking the ball to the start the third quarter, the Diplomats reclaimed the lead on their initial drive of the second half. A 28-yard reception from Aselton and defensive pass interference call on Dickinson against Gary Lewis were the big played on the drive. The Diplomats had originally kicked a 28-yard field goal on a fourth-and-seven, but the Red Devils were called offside on the play. Franklin & Marshall elected to take points off the board and continue the drive. That decision took just one play to pay off as Tremba took the fourth-and-two play for six yards to the end zone and the 16-14 lead. Dickinson's ensuing drive went down to the F&M seven, but the Diplomats got a huge field goal block from Scully to deny the Red Devils reclaiming the lead.

Fourth Quarter (F&M 23, Dickinson 14)

Huge defensive plays continued to fuel F&M during the fourth quarter as Dickinson had the ball around midfield before Kyle Evancho picked off a pass to prevent that drive from going any further. Franklin & Marshall went up by two scores after embarking on an 87-yard drive that took just eight plays. O'Hearen (20 yards) and Lewis (32 yards) had big receptions to get the ball across midfield. Just three plays later, Tremba found O'Hearen again for a 14-yard touchdown reception to put his team ahead 23-14 after Miller's PAT. A pair of fourth down stops by the F&M defense was more than enough to put the Diplomats in the victory formation. The Red Devils had just crossed midfield before Daniel Shakal forced a sack for a 32 yard loss on fourth-and-seven. After F&M had its own field goal blocked, the Diplomats defense stood tall one last time and forced a turnover on drowns that allowed F&M to run off the final 2:59 of the regulation time.

Key Stats

Franklin & Marshall out-gained Dickingon by a 320-308 edge. Tremba threw for 249 of those yards as he completed 15 of his 21 passes. His favorite target on Saturday was O'Hearen who caught five passes for 103 yards. Poruban (54 yards), Aselton (44 yards), and Lewis (40 yards) also had strong days in the receiving game. The Diplomats rushed the ball for 71 yards as a team, with Aaron Rascoe and Tremba the majority of the damage on the ground.

The Diplomats' defense limited Dickinson's running game to just 1.9 yards per carry while also coming up with three sacks. Scully, Long, and Medlar all tied for the team lead with seven tackles. Long made two stops behind the line of scrimmage, while Scully had one tackle for loss in addition to a blocked kick and pass break up. 

Up Next

Now a perfect 3-0 at home following Saturday's rivalry win, the Diplomats will look to continue that success on the road during the next two weeks as they travel to Ursinus and Johns Hopkins. The first of those Centennial Conference contests will be this coming Saturday, October 12 at 1 p.m. against an Ursinus team that is currently undefeated and receiving votes in the national top 25 poll.