DAYTON -- The University of Dayton football team defeated Robert Morris 49-28 on Saturday at Welcome Stadium. Redshirt freshman Richie Warfield led the scoring with three touchdowns on the day.

After starting quarterback Alex Jeske left the game with an injury, rushing became the story for the Flyers. Dayton amassed 273 rushing yards, with 139 of them coming from redshirt senior Tucker Yinger. Yinger, Warfield, and quarterback Jack Cook all contributed at least one rushing score on the day, with Warfield contributing two.

SCORING BREAKDOWN

• Tucker Yinger opened the scoring with a 44-yard touchdown run on Dayton's first possession.
• Robert Morris responded with a 72-yard touchdown drive on their first possession to tie the game at 7-7.
• Adam Trautman's 31-yard reception and Richie Warfield's 5-yard rush gave the Flyers touchdowns on their first three possessions and at 21-7 lead before the end of the 1st.
• After a missed Robert Morris field goal, quarterback Jack Cook found Robert Skibinski for a 64-yard catch-and-run touchdown, giving the Flyers a 28-7 lead midway through the second quarter. David Leisring then intercepted Robert Morris quarterback Jimmy Walker on the first play of the ensuing possession.
• Robert Morris cut the lead to 28-14 just before the half with a 3-yard touchdown pass.
• The two sides traded touchdown drives, making the score 35-21 at the 8:46 mark of the third quarter.
• Richie Warfield scored his second rushing and third overall touchdown of the day with a 3-yard rush, padding Dayton's lead to 42-21.
• After initially fumbling the snap, Cook rushed into the end zone from two yards out for the Flyers' seventh touchdown of the game. Robert Morris scored in the final minute to finish the scoring.

STATS

• The Flyers had 182 total yards in the first quarter with 100 via the rush.
• Alex Jeske completed 6 of 7 passes including a touchdown in the first quarter.
• David Leisring recorded the first interception of the year in the second quarter.  It is his 11th career interception.
• Robert Morris enjoyed the majority of the possession in the first half, with 16:32 time of possession compared to Dayton's 13:28.
• Richie Warfield recorded two touchdown runs and a touchdown catch on the day.
• Each of Dayton's first four touchdown drives were under three minutes long.
• The Flyers averaged 8.2 yards per play compared to 5.5 for Robert Morris.

NOTES

• Dayton extended its NCAA all-division record by scoring in its 466th consecutive game
• Tucker Yinger rushed for over 100 yards for the first time this season and his 12th time as a Flyer.
• Dayton's 49 points is the most scored in a season opener since 2003, when they scored 76 against St. Joseph's.

UP NEXT

The Flyers travel to Southeast Missouri for a 2:00 ET game on September 8th. Dayton defeated SEMO 25-23 last season at Welcome Stadium.