Trailing by three going into the fourth quarter of a back-and-forth contest, Hampden-Sydney College’s (H-SC) football team came back to win its season opener 20-17 against visiting Averett University on Saturday.

“I think the thing that jumped out at me was just I think defensively, we battled,” Tigers Head Coach Marty Favret said. “I think we really (were) tenacious on that side of the ball against a really good running back. We just had some spirit there that I didn’t see a year ago… I really tip my cap to the guys on the defensive side of the ball.”

H-SC held the Cougars to only 53 passing yards and 175 rushing yards, while the Tigers generated 339 yards of total offense, including 288 through the air.

The deciding touchdown came on an eight-yard pass from junior quarterback Alec Cobb to sophomore wide receiver Major Morgan with 13 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

On the day, Cobb went 32-for-42 passing for 288 yards and two touchdowns.

Other standouts that Favret highlighted included wide receiver Dillon Costello.

“He’s a freshman, and he had three plays, and he scored a touchdown, had a 12-yard catch and then got a pass interference in the end zone,” the coach said. “He showed up and was terrific.”

Senior running back Mike DeMasi, who finished with 18 carries for 88 yards and a touchdown, drew praise for allowing H-SC to run the ball out in the fourth quarter.

Senior wide receiver Cam Johnson, a former Buckingham County High School standout, led the Tigers with 12 catches for 130 yards.

“And on the defensive side, Ryan Mallory made the play of the game, I thought,” Favret said. “He made a big interception and had a bunch of great tackles.”

Averett freshman running back Delquan Bigelow, a former Prince Edward County High School star, had 12 carries for 59 yards and a touchdown in a key supporting role.

H-SC (1-0) visits Christopher Newport University on Saturday at 6 p.m.