MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – After falling behind 3-0 early, the Wesleyan football team put up 24 unanswered points between the second and third quarters before closing the door late in a 31-17 season-opening win over Middlebury on Saturday afternoon from Corwin Stadium. Wesleyan earns their third straight win over the Panthers and are 1-0 for the seventh straight season.
 
Facing a perennial league power in Middlebury returning their senior starting quarterback from last season, it was the Wesleyan defense that shined throughout the contest. Despite graduating seven starters from last year's league-leading defense, Wesleyan's new-look unit held Middlebury to a field goal despite the Panthers driving down all the way to the Cardinals' 1-yard line.
 
After two straight three-and-out possessions to start the game, Wesleyan turned to Matt Fitzsimons '27 at quarterback to start their third possession and the Cardinal offense suddenly came to life. Fitzsimons picked up 12 yards on a designed run play to enter Middlebury territory and RB Matt Diaz '28 picked up 12 yards himself to set up a Fitzsimons to Donte Kelly '29 shovel pass as the freshman wideout turned on the afterburners and ran in for the touchdown.
 
Both sides couldn't get much going offensively until the Cardinals got a big play from Kelly with under two minutes left in the half. Kelly caught a ball over the middle and ultimately came to a stop 51 yards downfield, setting up a 20-yard Gage Hammond '27 field goal to end the half with Wesleyan leading 10-3.
 
The Cardinal defense, which had held Middlebury's offense scoreless since the Panthers' opening drive, forced their first turnover as Tony Contaldi intercepted Brian Moran in the Panthers' side of the field. Another big play to Kelly followed as Fitzsimons picked him out and Kelly's dynamic speed was on full display as he ran all the way down to the 1-yard line before being tackled. On the next play, Diaz dove in to make it 17-3 Cardinals.
 
After three straight run plays, Middlebury went to the air on a 3^rd-and-2 from the Wesleyan 41-yard line and paid the price as AJ Morris '26 cut in front of the intended target and snagged the interception with plenty of open grass ahead. Morris had one man to beat and the senior linebacker did just that, returning the interception 60 yards for a touchdown.
 
Now down three scores, Middlebury needed an answer, and they found one in an 8-play, 75-yard scoring drive capped by a 1-yard touchdown run from Connor McClellan to make it 24-10 Wesleyan with 4:20 left in the third quarter.
 
The game was then put to bed on the ensuing Cardinal possession as Fitzsimons and Wesleyan's offense marched 65 yards down the field on 11 plays, taking up over seven minutes of time off the clock, in a drive that ended on a Fitzsimons fade pass to Keith Capuano '28 in the corner of the end zone.
 
Trailing by 21 points, Middlebury went almost strictly through the air on every play and managed a touchdown-scoring drive with 2:15 left to make it 31-17. The onside kick attempt then failed as Blake Newcomb '27 stepped in to snag the loose ball. Then on a 3^rd-and-8 play with just over two minutes left, Fitzsimons officially put the game to rest with a 17-yard pass to Justin Meyreles '27 that sealed the win.
 
In his first extended run as the Cardinals' quarterback, Fitzsimons showed well as the junior finished 15-for-22 for 204 yards and 2 TD with no interceptions. He also rushed for 28 yards on six carries, averaging 4.7 yards per carry.
 
His main target all afternoon was Kelly who shined in his collegiate debut, finishing with seven catches for 118 yards and 1 TD. He also returned a kickoff for 34 yards in the second half as Kelly's speed was a major weapon that the Middlebury defense had no answer for.
 
Wesleyan's defense held an experienced group of Middlebury playmakers to under 300 yards of total offense including just 28 rushing yards on 24 carries in the contest. Both Morris and Contaldi snagged their first career interceptions while Austin Baker '27 recorded his first career double-digit tackle game, finishing with 10 including one tackle for loss. Corin Canada-Hunt '26 had one sack and two QB hurries.
 
The Cardinals are back in action next Saturday with a big showdown in Medford under the lights against Tufts at 7 PM.