The Quincy University sprint football team hosted their first home game in program history Saturday, Oct. 1 at QU tadium. The Hawks hosted fellow Midwest Sprint Football League opponent Bellarmine University on a bright and sunny 1 p.m. kickoff.

 The fans of Quincy made their presence known, from a full morning of tailgating with friends and family, to spectators packing the stands over an hour before kickoff. 

There were also many traveling fans at the game for Bellarmine. Most of the opponents the Hawks will play this year only have sprint football at their respective university, which will generate larger crowds for the games during the season. 

Quincy Athletic Director Josh Rabe, was also out in the crowd excited to see his newest sports team.

“This is an important day because not only is it a great day out here but it’s also a culmination of a lot of people’s hard work and dedication to launching this new sport and obviously this is our first home game. I think we’re gonna have a well attended game, it’s very important for the university,” Rabe said.

The fans were pleased to see a very tight contest in the first half, with both teams making great defensive stands and very little between the two. Bellarmine ended the second quarter with a touchdown run to take a 6-0 lead heading into halftime.

 While the Hawks were down, the fans wouldn’t tell a difference as their chants were constant from the first whistle to the last.

“I think it’s cool that we get to say we have two football teams at our school now. While they bring in different caliber players, it gives more kids around Quincy a chance to play collegiate sports which only gives us an excuse to have more athletes at this school,” Kayle Beaton, freshman, said.

After the halftime show from the cheer team and marching band, the Hawks looked to mount a comeback in the second half, but fell short, falling to Bellarmine with a final score of 12-0. While it wasn’t the result they hoped for, many players like Ray Lingard were happy to have a lively crowd cheering them on like their days in high school and excited to have a fan base one again.

“It was a tough loss today, but today’s crowd made it so much fun,” Lingard said. “Our pregame routine and warm ups had an added sense of urgency, and hearing the crowd while playing reminded- me of my days back at CBC (high school) when I was younger. I just hope they’ll be there for the rest of our home games.”

While many fans were happy for the inaugural opener, there were many bright spots in a monumental occasion for the school. The Hawks look to come back sharp after a bye week, and will face Calumet College of St. Joseph on Oct. 15.