RICHMOND, VA. (September 30, 2023) … Hampton (3-1, 1-0) amassed 497 yards offense and the opportunistic defense limited Richmond (2-3, 0-1) to 260 yards --- including just 30 yards on the ground --- and intercepted two passes as the Pirates defeated the Spiders, 31-14, before 7,203 fans at E. Claiborne Robins Stadium in Richmond.

"Richmond is a tough game for us," Hampton coach Robert Prunty said. "They disguise their defense really well. We were able to make some plays today. This was a good win for us"

Hampton dominated the first quarter limiting Richmond to just 18 yards on 14 plays. Pirate quarterback Chris Zellous put Hampton on the scoreboard first on a seven-yard scoring run with 2:24 left in the opening quarter to give Hampton a 7-0 lead after Brian Csehoski's PAT.

Tymere Robinson rushed for a two-yard score and Csehoski added the extra point to pad Hampton's lead to 14-0 midway through the second quarter. Csehocki added a 24-yard field goal with one-second left in the opening half to make the score 17-0.

The Spiders managed just three first downs and 53 yards offense in the first half as they shuffled quarterbacks in an attempt to generate offense. Zellous completed 16 of 23 passes in the first half for 185 yards and he rushed for another 41 yards and a score.

Richmond got on the scoreboard with 5:31 to go in the third quarter when quarterback Camden Coleman hit Brooks Heagerty with a seven-yard scoring pass. Andrew Lopez added the extra point to close the gap to 17-7. But Hampton stormed back and drove to the 15-yard line but back-to-back-to-back penalties and a sack moved the Pirates out of field goal range.

Later, Hampton drove 67 yards in 11 plays culminating in a score when Dorrian Moultrie hauled in a five-yard pass from Zellous to up the lead to 24-7 with 9:47 left in the contest. It took Richmond just 1:37 to respond when Nick DeGennaro hauled in a 25-yard pass from Coleman making the score 24-14 with 8:10 left. But Zellous engineered another drive, moving the Pirates 44 yards in five plays after a failed Richmond onside kick. Zellous rambled in from eight yards to make the score 31-14 with 5:00 to go.

Zellous finished with a career-best 256 passing yards with a touchdown and rushed for 60 yards and two TDs while Elijah Burris rambled for 115 yards on the ground.

"I thought Chris (Zellous) played with a lot of poise today," Prunty said. "It's only his fourth start and he played like a veteran. I like the way he mixed the run and pass and read the defense well."

The win was the first for Hampton over the Spiders after four straight losses. Last season, Richmond dominated Hampton, 41-10.

The Pirates return home to take on new conference foe Campbell on Oct. 7 at Armstrong Stadium.