DUDLEY, Mass. (November 14, 2026) – The Western New England football team rushed for nearly 400 yards and totaled 575 yards of offense in Saturday's Conference of New England victory over the Bison of Nichols College, coming away with a 56-28 victory in the regular-season finale. 

Records:

• Western New England: 6-4, 5-2 CNE
• Nichols College: 2-8, 2-5 CNE

How it Happened:

First Quarter:

• RaShawn Shelton opened the game with an interception for the WNE defense after the Bison moved down the field on its opening offensive drive. The ensuing offensive drive lasted just four plays and went 70 yards down the field, as Cody Jackson capped off the drive with a 13-yard rushing touchdown, giving the Golden Bears the opening 7-0 lead following a good extra point attempt from Max LoGrasso. 
• Nichols was forced to punt on its next offensive drive of the game as Shelton continued to make plays on the defensive side of the ball for the Golden Bears. The quarter would end with the Golden Bears nearing their next score of the game. 
• WNE picked up 154 yards of offense in the first quarter, while holding the Bison to just 62 of their own. 

Second Quarter:

• Marcus Crawford took a handoff and rushed seven yards for WNE's second touchdown of the game at the 13:50 mark of the second quarter, giving the Golden Bears a 14-0 lead. Nichols converted on its next drive, finishing an eight-play, 75-yard touchdown drive when Ethan LaGuardia caught a 35-yard pass for a score, cutting the WNE lead in half with 9:40 to play in the frame. 
• Cody Jackson exploded for a 62-yard run on the next WNE offensive possession, while Alex Silva capped off the drive with a nine-yard touchdown, putting WNE back on the scoreboard, leading 21-7 with 8:32 to play in the half. 
• WNE's final score of the half game from Crawford again, who scored his second touchdown of the quarter, capping off a seven-play, 59-yard drive, scoring from nine yards out, giving the Golden Bears a 28-7 halftime lead. 
• Western New England had 180 yards of offense in the second quarter, 130 rush yards. 

Third Quarter:

• The Golden Bears received the opening kickoff in the third quarter and used a six-play, 68-yard drive to score once more, seeing Cody Jackson complete a 17-yard pass to Christian Delgado, who scored in back-to-back weeks for the Blue and Gold, giving Western New England a 35-7 lead. 
• The WNE defense swarmed Nichols on its next drive of the game and forced another punt, putting the ball back into Western New England's hands. Once more, the Golden Bears scored, as Jackson rushed from 13 yards out to give the Golden Bears a commanding 42-7 lead. 
• Western New England scored one more time in the third quarter, picking up a three-play, 45-yard drive that ended with a 20-yard pass from Drew Caouette to David Nelson for a 49-7 WNE lead. Nichols produced a late touchdown in the quarter, as the Golden Bears took a 49-14 lead out of the third quarter. 
• The Blue and Gold produced 178 more yards of offense in the quarter, 136 on the ground.

Fourth Quarter:

• The Nichols offense began to generate scores in the game, though not before Devin Rowden scored from seven yards out that gave the Golden Bears a 56-14 lead, the final touchdown of the game for Western New England with ten minutes remaining in the game. 
• Nichols added passing and rushing touchdowns late in the game, but with the game well in hand, Western New England was able to coast to a 56-28 victory to down the Bison for the 19^th straight time in program history. 
• Western New England finished the fourth quarter with 63 yards, 43 on the ground. 

Inside the Lines:

• Marcus Crawford led the WNE offense with 13 rushes for 144 yards, picking up a pair of second-quarter touchdowns. 
• Cody Jackson rushed nine times for 120 yards, also scoring a pair of touchdowns. Jackson tossed nine completions on 14 attempts for 135 yards, throwing one touchdown. 
• Devin Rowden carried the ball six times for 54 yards, scoring a touchdown.
• Kevin Acosta led WNE with four catches for 63 yards. Christian Delgado and David Nelson both had receiving touchdowns for the Golden Bears.  
• Michael Canavatchel led the WNE defense with six tackles, including a half-sack. Austin Pszczolkowski also combined for the half sack, picking up three total tackles. Nick Kolifrath picked up 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack in the win. 
• Max LoGrasso was a perfect 8/8 on extra-point attempts. 

Up Next on the Schedule:

• The Golden Bears wait to see if they will take part in a postseason bowl game, which will be announced in the coming days. 

Note:

• A full box score will be available on wnegoldenbears.com after a full review of today's game is complete.