In the first flag-football game of the year, Slater’s Sloppy Seconds was able to overcome an early deficit and defeat an experienced team of sophomores and juniors in the Brown Bombers, 19-12.

Slater’s Sloppy Seconds, an all-freshman team named for its players’ residence hall and floor, relied on the late emergence of Jordan Rock at quarterback to pull it out of a 12-6 halftime hole.

“They had a lot of speed we didn’t have,” said Brown Bombers captain Bob Mitchell, and he noted that his team’s defense was subpar in the second half.

It was a different story early on; Slater’s Sloppy Seconds lived up to the name with poor defensive play — especially when the squad was down a player for the first minutes.

Mitchell, a junior, took advantage early on with a touchdown run on a broken pass play. A missed extra point made the score at 6-0 in favor of the Bombers.

With the arrival of a seventh player, Rock, Slater’s quickly fought back with a 30-yard touchdown catch by freshman Kevin Huber. After another missed extra point, the Brown Bombers scored on the following drive with a 60-yard touchdown pass from Mitchell, making the score 12-6.

Heavy pressure from the blitz gave Slater’s trouble, but the tide was ready to turn with a major coaching decision.

“We needed to rush more off the QB,” said quarterback Jon Prihodka, who moved positions at halftime to let Rock play under center.

Rock, who played on his high-school football team, showed phenomenal field presence and recognized when to run and pass. Sporting brand new cleats for the game — the reason for his tardiness — the freshman made cuts and sped down the sidelines numerous times in the first drive after half to get his team close to the end zone.

A touchdown throw to Connor Peters tied the game at 12. The extra-point conversion made the score 13-12.

The Bombers’ second half began with a new option-like formation, which involved a quarterback and a stationary player behind him in the backfield, ready for a pitch in case of pressure.

Unfortunately for the Bombers, the Slater’s defense also improved, switching from man to zone defense to hold the Brown Bombers scoreless after the half.

Another touchdown at the end of the third quarter came from the revamped Slater’s offense with a throw by original quarterback Prihodka, which effectively won the game, 19-12.

A close-encroachment call clinched the game for the squad in the fourth quarter, and the stagnant Bombers could not get anything going.

Although satisfied with the win, members of Slater’s said they are definitely coming more prepared to their game next week.