CHICAGO – After setting six new modern-era offensive records last weekend, the University of Chicago football team picked up right where it left off on Saturday afternoon at Stagg Field. The Maroons dominated the trenches all day and received another superlative effort from Nicholas D'Ambrose in a 66-0 victory over Lawrence University.

The Maroons improved to 8-1 on the season and 7-1 in the Midwest Conference. The Vikings dropped to 2-7 (2-6 MWC).

It was Senior Day at UChicago, and the Maroons recognized their 24-member senior class on the field before the game. During their four years in the program, the squad owns a 21-7 overall record (.750 winning percentage).

In a stellar campaign filled with impressive performances, D'Ambrose achieved his biggest one yet against the Vikings. The senior running back set a new school record for rushing yards in a season with 1,636. He surpassed UChicago legend Frank Baker's previous total of 1,606 yards, which was set during the 1993 season.

Two more modern-era season records fell on Saturday afternoon as well:

• 20 total touchdowns by Nicholas D'Ambrose (previous record: 18 by Chandler Carroll in 2017)
• 4,916 yards of total offense (previous record: 4,856 yards in 2016)

D'Ambrose did all his damage in the first half of play. He carried the ball 30 times for 221 yards and three touchdowns. It marked the fourth time this season that he has reached the 200-yard threshold.

One of the reasons D'Ambrose got plenty of looks in the first half was due to the fact that the Maroons ran 55 offensive plays. The home side marched down the field and scored touchdowns on its first six possessions of the game, taking a 42-0 lead into the halftime locker room. UChicago's bulldozing offensive line was in fine form once again, as D'Ambrose darted through holes and kept the chains moving.

With so much attention devoted to the running game, UChicago's play-action passing was on point as well. Senior quarterback Philip Martini also only played one half of football, but he made it count by completing 12 of 17 passes for 141 yards and one touchdown. He also ran one in himself.

Time of possession was lopsided in UChicago's favor thanks in large part to a smothering defensive unit. Lawrence came into the game with the conference's top passing offense at 280 yards per game. However, the Vikings could get no traction whatsoever. Every time quarterback D'Andre Weaver dropped back to pass, the defensive line was breaking through almost immediately to harass him into incompletions. Lawrence only connected 6 of 21 passes (29 percent) for a paltry 43 yards.

The visiting ground game found no success either, rushing 17 times for 19 yards on the day. The Maroon front seven imposed its will to such a great degree, that the Vikings didn't pick up a first down until the third quarter on their ninth drive of the game.

All told, Lawrence only collected two first downs and 62 yards of total offense. It is the second time this season that the Maroon defense has shutout an opponent while limiting them to less than 70 total yards. Lawrence went 0-for-11 on third down and 0-for-2 on fourth down.

On the flip side, UChicago steamrolled its way to 620 yards of total offense. The Maroons only passed the ball once in the second half and utilized 12 different ball carriers who racked up 479 rushing yards. The home team was successful on 13 of 15 third-down conversions.

Rushing touchdowns were provided by D'Ambrose (three total), junior Greg Asare (55 total yards), sophomore Rhys Bommarito-Logan (37 yards), senior Matthew Nagler (32 yards) and junior Jake Low (14 yards). First-year Kyle James carried the ball three times for 70 yards as well.

In the receiving game, senior Elliott Grays snagged the long catch of the day at 38 yards. Senior Matt Quaglia hauled in three receptions for 35 yards and a touchdown.

Sophomore Chris Clarke provided the game's final points with an 18-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.

Defensively, UChicago totaled three tackles for loss and recovered two fumbles. Sophomore William Skowronski had five tackles and one tackle for loss. Senior Davis Govrik posted three tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss.

NEXT GAME:

• Saturday, Nov. 13 @ 12:00 PM – UChicago at Lake Forest College