Blue Hens Roll Past Saint Francis 56-17 in First Round of FCS Playoffs

Saturday, November 26

Newark, Del.

2 p.m.

University of Delaware

8-4 , 4-4

Saint Francis (Pa.)

9-3 , 7-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Saint Francis (PA)

Delaware

Marcus Yarns, Chandler Harvin vs. Saint Francis_2022 Playoffs

Photo by: Mark Campbell

Blue Hens Roll Past Saint Francis 56-17 in First Round of FCS Playoffs

11/26/2022 7:47:00 PM | Football

Box Score Postgame Press Conference Photo Gallery

NEWARK, Del. – The No. 23 University of Delaware football team scored the most points in an FCS Playoff game in program history as it rolled to a 56-17 victory over Saint Francis (Pa.) on Saturday afternoon in the first round of the 2022 FCS Playoffs at Delaware Stadium. With the win, the Blue Hens improve to 8-4 overall and advance to the second round.

Nolan Henderson accounted for five total touchdowns as he finished 16-of-23 passing for 266 yards and four touchdowns while also rushing for another score. Kyron Cumby rushed 10 times for 111 yards while Marcus Yards also finished with 85 yards on the ground. Chandler Harvin caught four passes for 128 yards and three touchdowns. The Delaware offense finished with 586 total yards of offense with 283 rushing yards and 303 passing yards.

Johnny Buchanan led all players with 15 tackles and combined with Drew Nickles on a sack. Amonte' Strothers and Artis Hemmingway each also added a sack. The defense held Saint Francis to just 258 yards of total offense.

The Blue Hens wasted no time as they won the coin toss and received the opening kickoff before marching 75 yards in just six plays. Henderson capped the drive with a 13-yard run inside the pylon to give UD a 6-0 lead.

On the next possession, Henderson found a wide-open Harvin for a 30-yard touchdown to complete an eight-play, 84-yard drive. A pass to Bryce De Maille for the 2-point conversion made it a 14-0 game midway through the opening quarter.

Yarns started a second-drive quarter with a 51-yard run that drove the Blue Hens into the red zone before Henderson eventually hit Thyrick Pitts in the back corner of the end zone for a 10-yard touchdown. A seven-yard touchdown pass to Harvin late in the quarter made it a 28-3 game at the half.

The Delaware defense forced a quick three-and-out to start the third quarter, before Henderson found Harvin for a third time, this time going deep for a 58-yard score to extend the lead to 35-3 lead just two minutes into the second half.

After a Saint Francis touchdown, the Blue Hens used a 10-play drive to take five minutes off the clock. On the second play of the fourth quarter. Quincy Watson punched it in from the 1-yard line to make it a 42-10 game.

Khory Spruill added a 10-yard touchdown run and, on the ensuing kickoff, Josh Moran forced a fumble that Brandon Dennis recovered in the end zone. An SFU touchdown with just three minutes left provided the final 56-17 score.

Notes
Henderson's second-quarter touchdown pass to Pitts was his 30th touchdown pass of the season, surpassing Matt Nagy for UD's single-season record … The 39-point margin of victory was the second-most by a UD team in the FCS Playoffs behind Delaware's 40-0 victory in the 2003 national championship.

Up Next
The Blue Hens advance to the second round of the 2022 FCS Playoffs and will travel to No. 1 South Dakota State. Kickoff on Saturday, December 3 is set for 3 p.m. ET.

For the latest on the Delaware football program, follow the Blue Hens on Twitter @Delaware_FB and Instagram @delaware_fb, and like "Delaware Football" on Facebook. Follow Ryan Carty on Twitter @RyanCarty10.