Bates improves to 1-6 overall and will play host to Bowdoin College next Saturday at 12:30 p.m. The Mules (0-7) entertain Tufts University in the final home game of the season at 1 p.m.
Game highlights
* The Bobcats never trailed in the game and took a 7-0 lead on a 30-yard scoring run by quarterback Brendan Costa with 6:15 left in the opening quarter. Costa finished the day with 26 rushes for 155 yards (6.0 per carry).
* The Mules bounced right back thanks to some Bates penalties. The Bobcats were called for a roughing the kicker penalty on Colby punter John Baron to keep the drive alive. Bates also had a personal foul on the drive to tack on 15 more yards. Mule quarterback Jack O'Brien hit Mark Snyder on a 5-yard scoring pass to the left side of the end zone to tie the game at 7-7.
* After a Bates interception with just 1:16 left to halftime, the Bobcats drove 31 yards on seven plays to get a 29-yard field goal from Grant DeWald at the horn for a 10-7 lead.
* The Mules tied the game at 10-10 on Baron's 31-yard field goal with 9:32 left in the third quarter. Colby running back Jake Schwern caught a 45-yard pass from O'Brien on the drive.
* The Bobcats went 81 yards to go up 17-10 with just 20 seconds left in the third quarter. Mickoy Nichol's 4-yard scoring run to the left side was the points, but Costa had the big plays on the drive with runs of 35 and 22 yards.
* Colby refused to give up and tied the game for the third time at 17-17 on O'Brien's spectacular 30-yard run with 11:18 to play. The Mules were in a 4th-and-1 situation at the Bobcat 30 when O'Brien ran left and made a nice cutback to find open room and then hurdled a Bates tackler on the way to the end zone.
* Bates went ahead for good and quieted Colby's Family Homecoming Weekend crowd with a touchdown just 39 seconds after the Mules' touchdown. The Bobcats got a 16-yard run from Frank Williams on the first play. Costa then found a wide open Brian Daly for a 52-yard scoring pass up the middle for a 24-17 margin.
* The Bobcats took a 27-17 lead after an 18-yard field goal by DeWald with 5:31 to play. The Bobcats drove 30 yards after Conner Suraci forced a fumble and Chase Fulton recovered for Bates at the Colby 31-yard line.
* Schwern made a huge special teams play and then scored a rushing touchdown for the final points of the game with 2:31 to play. He blocked a punt and raced 28 yards to the Bobcat 3-yard line with the return. Schwern then scored from 2 yards out.
* The Mules forced a punt and took over at their own 35-yard line with 1:21 remaining. After a 14-yard rush by O'Brien to the Colby 49-yard line, the Mules had three straight incomplete passes to set up a fourth down play. Colby completed a pass, but was short of the first down.
By the numbers
* The Bobcats had a 444-279 advantage in total yards. Costa threw for 136 yards to go with his big rushing game.
* O'Brien had 182 yards passing and 83 yards rushing (5.9 per carry).
* Nichol had five catches for 62 yards and ran for 19 yards.
* Snyder had six catches for 35 yards and the touchdown. Jibri Woods added five grabs for 34 yards.
* Joe Frake, Max Breschi, and Jon Lindgren all had seven tackles for the Bobcats. Frake and Breschi also had interceptions.
* Nick Strand also had a collegiate-high 15 stops. Hans Gabriel added 12 tackles and had his top tackle total for the Mules.
Boxscore
