Laube's Punt Return TD Ignites UNH Past Towson, 37-14

Saturday, September 24

Towson, Md.

4 PM

University of New Hampshire

3-1 , 3-0

Towson

2-2 , 0-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

New Hampshire

Towson

9/24/2022 8:35:00 PM | Football

Box Score

Dylan Laube Ties School Record with 92-Yard Punt Return Touchdown

TOWSON, Md. – The UNH football team improved to 3-0 in the CAA and 3-1 overall by virtue of Saturday's 37-14 victory against Towson University at Johnny Unitas Stadium. Junior Dylan Laube (Westhampton, N.Y.) equaled a school record with a 92-yard punt return for a touchdown, sophomore defensive end Dylan Ruiz (Kissimmee, Fla.) racked up three of the Wildcats' five first-half sacks and sophomore quarterback Max Brosmer (Roswell, Ga.) threw three touchdown passes to three different receivers.

The Tigers, who fell behind 17-0 at halftime, dropped to 2-2, 0-1 in the CAA.

Laube added 23 rushes for a game-high 114 yards and finished with 250 all-purpose yards.

The Wildcat defense sacked Tiger quarterback Tyrell Pigrome six times as part of a toal of seven tackles for loss. Junior Randall Harris (Walled Lake, Mich.) recorded a team-high six tackles. Ruiz finished with four tackles.

FB stats_09-24-22

On the game's opening kickoff, graduate student Adam Deese (Belmont, Mass.) recovered an onside kick off the foot of redshirt freshman kicker Nick Mazzie (Boxford, Mass.) on Towson's 47-yard line. Mazzie capped the ensuing nine-play, 38-yard drive with a 25-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead with 10:34 left in the quarter. Redshirt freshman wide receiver Joey Corcoran (Montreal, Quebec) accounted for 24 of the 38 yards on the drive, including a 21-yard catch from Brosmer on a 3^rd-and-7 from the 25.

With 35 seconds remaining in the first, Laube tied a 41-year school record by returning a punt 92 yards for a touchdown and a 10-0 lead. The original record was set by Dave Wissman against UMass on Nov. 14, 1981.

The offense scored its first TD of the game with 2:44 left in the half courtesy of a 14-play, 77-yard drive that chewed 8:27 off the clock. On 3^rd and 6 from the Tiger 20, Brosmer found Corcoran on the left sideline. The receiver spun away from a tackle and raced to the end zone, diving across the goal line for his second TD reception of the season.

The 'Cats upped the lead to 24-0 with 13:27 to go in the third when Brosmer completed his longest pass of the season, a 51-yard post pattern that hit graduate student Heron Maurisseau (Bellport, N.Y.) in stride for his second TD catch of the season. That duo connected for a 49-yard scoring pass last Saturday against North Carolina Central for the previous season long.

The Wildcats went ahead 31-7 with 3:10 left in the third on Brosmer's third TD pass, this one a 10-yard slant to senior Brian Espanet (Hopedale, Mass.). It was Espanet's first scoring reception of the season and the 13^th of his career, most among active Wildcats. The touchdown put a bow on a 7-play, 52-yard drive. The first six plays of the drive were carries by Laube totaling 42 yards.

Mazzie hit a 25-yard field goal to boost the lead to 34-14 with 8:58 left in the contest. That closed a 13-play, 54-yard drive that lasted 7:01. He then split the uprights for a career-long 42-yarder with 3:25 left that staked the 'Cats to a 37-14 advantage.

Towson closed within 24-7 at 11:04 of the third quarter on a 17-yard pass from Pigrome to Robert Schwob. The Tigers scored again with 1:07 remaining in the third on Devin Matthews' two-yard run to trim the deficit to 31-14.

NEXT UP
UNH visits Western Michigan of the FBS on Saturday, Oct. 1, at 6 p.m. It will be the first-ever meeting between the Wildcats and the Broncos.

NEXT HOME GAME
The Wildcats play host to Stony Brook for Homecoming, presented by Service Credit Union, on Saturday, Oct. 8 (3:30 p.m.) at Wildcat Stadium. For tickets, visit UNHWildcats.com or call 603-862-4000.

NOTEBOOK
• Laube's punt-return TD was the first for the Wildcats since Casey DeAndrade scored on a 90-yarder at William & Mary on Oct. 17, 2015. DeAndrade is now UNH's defensive backs coach/defensive pass game coordinator.
• Laube eclipsed 100 rushing yards for the second time this season and fourth time in his career.
• The Wildcats' 24-0 and 31-7 leads in the third quarter marked their largest since holding a 28-3 advantage over James Madison at Wildcat Stadium on Nov. 3, 2018.
• UNH's 17-0 halftime lead was its first first-half shutout since Sept. 2, 2021 (20-0 at Stony Brook).
• The 37-14 final was UNH's largest margin of victory since it blanked Villanova 34-0 on Oct. 27, 2018, at Villanova Stadium.
• The Wildcats defeated the Tigers for the fourth straight time since 2012 and improved to 11-3 all-time in a series that dates back to Oct. 18, 1980.