The Indians are tied with Colerain atop the GMC.
“For us, ‘new season’ has been our motto since GMC play started,” Fairfield coach Jason Krause said . “Now we’re 3-0, which is where we needed and wanted to be. It was a really good team win tonight.”
The Indians evenly spread four touchdowns across the four quarters of play, opening the scoring late in the first quarter when Vann scored on a 2-yard run. Sophomore Jutahn McClain sparked the scoring drive with a 20-yard carry to put Fairfield in the red zone for the first time. He led all rushers with 16 carries and 76 yards.
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“We like our jet game, even though we haven’t been able to establish it much this year,” Krause said. “It was definitely a part of our game plan tonight to run to the outside.”
As it turned out, the 7-0 lead was sufficient for the Indians as the defense allowed next to nothing from a Princeton offense that was just a week removed from putting up 63 points at Middletown.
Fairfield held the Vikings (1-4, 1-2) to 144 total yards and six first downs.
“Our defense has heart. That’s the biggest thing about that group,” said Robinson, a senior wide receiver “They know coming into every game who the top guys are, and they do a great job of eliminating those guys as threats.”
The Fairfield defense has allowed just 17 points through three conference games.
Robinson extended the Fairfield lead to 13 midway through the second quarter when he reeled in a perfectly placed Jeff Tyus pass for a 10-yard touchdown. The PAT was blocked to make it 13-0.
Robinson finished the game with three catches for 22 yards and the aforementioned touchdown. He was also involved in the jet rushing attack, carrying five times for 15 yards. Tyus completed 9 of 17 passes for 80 yards.
“Week by week, everyone knows who their blocking assignments are,” Robinson said. “We blocked it well tonight.”
Fairfield used a pair of Boykin touchdowns — 11 and 6 yards respectively — in the second half to spoil the homecoming for both Princeton and first-year head coach Mike Daniels.
“Our defense played their butts off tonight,” Daniels said. “When you turn the ball over four times, you put your defense in a really tough spot. And I hated that for them because, again, they played well enough to keep this game competitive.”
The Vikings offense struggled throughout, but matters were made worse when standout quarterback Hosea Hairston left the game in the first half with an undisclosed injury. Hairston, just a week removed from a four-touchdown performance, was limited to just one pass attempt and two carries before exiting the game.
Daniels took his team’s loss in stride. The Sharonville native and former University of Cincinnati standout viewed the night — and seemingly the entire season — as just the beginning of his long-term vision for Princeton football.
“I hate to use the word patience because of how many seniors we have on this roster,” Daniels said. “But right now, we are trying to focus on the process. I tell my kids all the time that if we keep enjoying the process and focus in on that, the scoreboard will take care of itself. That process is what (the University of) Alabama has over everybody else. That’s what St. X has over everyone else. That’s what we’re trying to build here.”
The Vikings will have their fifth road game of the season next Friday against Oak Hills. Fairfield faces an important trip to Sycamore on Thursday night.
“Obviously, next week’s game is a big one for us,” Krause said. “Sycamore has had a great start to the year, and it’s a short week for us with the game on Thursday. We have a good plan for this game, which has a lot of implications for the GMC standings as well as Region 4. It’s a big deal, and we’ve got to be ready to go.”
Fairfield 7-6-7-7—27
Princeton 0-0-0-0—0
F: Malik Vann 2 run (Nick Maddy kick)
F: Chico Robinson 10 pass from Jeff Tyus (Kick blocked)
F: Taimar Boykin 11 run (Elgin Phillips kick)
F: Boykin 6 run (Phillips kick)
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