WALTHAM, Mass. – Reigning Northeast-10 Conference MVP Bryant Johnson (Hopedale/Milford HS) threw three touchdown passes and his teammates scored 19 points in the second quarter without an offensive TD as Bentley University opened the 2011 football season with a 50-3 win over SUNY Maritime in non-conference action Friday night on the Bentley Field.  It was the fifth straight win for coach Thom Boerman's team, dating back to last year.

The wild and decisive second period saw Bentley score on a safety, an 85-yard kickoff return by junior Jack Pizzotti (Melrose/Melrose HS), a 32-yard field goal by senior Will Lockwood (Menlo Park, Calif./Sacred Heart Prep) and a 34-yard fumble return for a touchdown by senior defensive end Matt Welch (Woburn/Woburn HS).

Bentley, on top 7-3 with six minutes left in the first half, broke it open with 19 points in a span of 4:24.  That barrage sent the Falcons to the locker room up 26-3 and two Johnson scoring strikes in the third quarter broke the contest wide open. The 47-point differential was Bentley's highest since October 2004.

Johnson, a graduate student, engineered a game-opening eight-play, 63-yard drive to give his team a lead it would never relinquish. He connected with his new favorite target, junior Bill Kiley (Quincy/Boston College HS), on a 14-yard pass for the Falcons' first score of the new season.

Maritime, which enjoyed a 10-0 regular season in 2010, scored its only points of the night 2:22 into the second on a 25-yard field goal by senior Madison Leary (Tavares, Fla.).  The Division III Privateers were able to stay close to the Division II Falcons for much of the opening half due to a pair of Bentley turnovers.

After a bad snap on an attempted punt resulted in a safety, Bentley made it 16-3 when Pizzotti took the ensuing kickoff back all the way. Another errant snap on a punt on Maritime's next possession gave the Falcons the ball back on the 22, and Lockwood made it hurt by splitting the uprights for his first career field goal. He finished the night with 12 points on six-of-six point afters and two field goals.

Three plays later, Welch scooped up a loose ball and took it in from the 34, capping a wild final six minutes of the opening half.

Johnson, before sitting down for the night at the end of the third quarter, threw two more scoring strikes. He teamed up with freshman wide-out Jeff Hill (Mansfield/Mansfield HS) on a 47-yard TD pass with 8:24 left in the third and hit Kiley for a 10-yarder eight minutes later.

Bentley capped the scoring with ten more points in the fourth, a four-yard run by sophomore Lorenzo Warren (Boston/Catholic Memorial HS) and a 28-yard field goal from Lockwood.

Johnson finished the night 15 of 24 for exactly 200 yards, and also ran for 38 yards on four carries. Warren led the Falcon ground attack with 77 yards on nine carries (and also averaged 11 yards on three punt returns), senior Bobby Tarr (Byfield/ Bishop Fenwick HS) ran 12 times for 59 yards, and Kiley caught eight balls for 63 yards. Pizzotti had 163 all-purpose running yards, including 141 on three kickoff returns.

In addition to the score, Bentley dominated in terms of total offense, outgaining the visiting Privateers 436-69. The Falcons also had a 22-8 edge in first downs and allowed only one first down on 14 third-down conversion attempts.

Sophomore linebacker Blaine Hopwood (New Bedford/New Bedford HS) led Bentley in tackles with nine, two more than both R.J. Barden (Quincy/North Quincy HS) and John Aminti (Sandy Hook, Conn./Newtown HS). Both are junior defensive tackles.

Junior linebacker Keith Barnes (Westbury, N.Y.) was all over the field for Maritime, finishing with 15 tackles, including eight solo stops.

Bentley is back at home next Saturday, for a 12 noon encounter with West Virginia Wesleyan.

at Waltham

BENTLEY 50, SUNY MARITIME 3

SUNY Maritime                 0    3    0    0    -    3

Bentley                               7  19  14  10   -  50

B - Bill Kiley 14 yd pass from Bryant Johnson (Will Lockwood kick)

M - Madison Leary 25 yd field goal

B - TEAM safety

B - Jack Pizzotti 85 yd kickoff return (Lockwood kick)

B - Lockwood 32 yd field goal

B - Matt Welch 34 yd fumble recovery (Lockwood kick)

B - Jeff Hill 47 yd pass from Johnson (Lockwood kick)

B - Bill Kiley 10 yd pass from Johnson (Lockwood kick)

B - Lorenzo Warren 4 yd run (Lockwood kick)

B - Lockwood 28 yd field goal