Bullets Defeated After Tough Fight at Homecoming Weekend Football Game
(William Oehler/The Gettysburgian)
By Tyler Blanz, Contributing Writer
Photographed by William Oehler, Director of Photography
This past weekend, Gettysburg Football faced Christopher Newport, a top-50 Division III team, during homecoming weekend at Musselman Stadium. The Bullets were ultimately defeated with a score of 37-54.
Christopher Newport set the tone early, opening the game with a nine-play, 82-yard drive that resulted in the first score. After a missed extra point, Gettysburg found themselves down 6-0. Things quickly worsened when Gettysburg turned the ball over, and Christopher Newport responded immediately with a one-play, 78-yard touchdown bomb, putting the Bullets in an early 12-0 hole.
Gettysburg answered quickly, though. Rocco Abdinoor ’26 led a six-play drive capped off by a 54-yard deep pass to Walle Harwigsson ’26, putting Gettysburg on the board and closing the gap to 7-12 by the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Christopher Newport regained control. They extended their lead with a 10-play drive that ended in a two-yard touchdown run, making it 19-7. After a defensive stop, CNU quickly capitalized again, needing just three plays to score another touchdown, this time on a 13-yard run.
CNU’s offense continued to roll, adding a 45-yard passing touchdown and a 33-yard rushing score on their next two drives, pushing the lead to 40-7 at halftime. The Captains scored on each of their first six possessions.
Despite the tough first half, Gettysburg came out firing after the break. On just the second play of the third quarter, Abdinoor broke free for an 83-yard rushing touchdown, the longest for Gettysburg since 2011.
Christopher Newport added another touchdown after starting a drive from Gettysburg’s 17-yard line, then tacked on another score with a 12-play, 83-yard drive to increase their lead.
In the final quarter, Gettysburg found its rhythm. Abdinoor again sparked the offense with his second rushing touchdown, followed by two passing touchdowns — one to Danny Bonato ’28 and another to Harwigsson for his second touchdown of the day. Despite Gettysburg’s late surge, they couldn’t complete the comeback, narrowing the deficit to 17 by the end of regulation. The game ended with Gettysburg’s score at 37 and CNU’s at 54
Key players for Gettysburg included Abdinoor, who had five total touchdowns (two rushing, three passing), throwing for 217 yards and rushing for 104, with a completion rate of 53.6% (15-for-28) and a quarterback rating of 99.85. Harwigsson also had a standout performance with six receptions for 123 yards and two touchdowns. On defense, Brian Smith ’27 led the team with seven tackles and Bonato scored his first collegiate touchdown.
The Bullets will look to bounce back under the lights at Musselman Stadium for the first time ever, as they take on conference rival McDaniel on October 4 at 7 p.m.
See more photos from the game below:
(William Oehler/The Gettysburgian)
(William Oehler/The Gettysburgian)
The Bullets Marching Band. (William Oehler/The Gettysburgian)
Fans sit in the stands at the football game. (William Oehler/The Gettysburgian)
(William Oehler/The Gettysburgian)
