Dickinson's game-opening kickoff return in Saturday afternoon's 26-13 loss to Muhlenberg at Biddle Field was not a particularly pleasant omen for the Red Devils. Michael Katz's kick bounced off Luc Vernerey's hands, the freshman scrambled after it on the 3, and the Dickinson offense started its day on its own 11.

For a while, the Devils (2-6, 2-5 Centennial Conference) recovered admirably. Jordan Kaufman threw a 10-yard strike to Craig Helfer for a first down, and two plays later he hit Nick Baller for 14 yards and another first.

Three plays after that, Tim Smith took a handoff and sprinted downfield for 42 yards to the Muhlenherg 13. The Devils looked ready for a good beginning until, as they prepared to go for a first down on fourth-and-2 on the Mules' 5-yard line, Dickinson was called for delay of game.

The 5-yard penalty changed the team's plans, and the field-goal unit came onto the field.

The Red Devils were ready to settle for three points, but they came away with nothing. Gordon Craig's 27-yard attempt was wide right to end the 5-minute drive.

The ghosts and goblins of Halloween apparently had arrived a day too soon.

The Mules' initial drive was a little spooky too. Standout running back Terrence Dandridge gained 9 yards, and a substitution infraction brought it back. Dan Deighan threw a pass to Isaiah Vaughn for no gain, but a holding penalty cost the Mules 10 more yards. On play No. 3, Dandridge rushed for 12, but that was wiped out by another holding call.

Not surprisingly, the drive went nowhere, and a poor punt gave the Red Devils the ball on the Mules' 38. Unfortunately, after getting a first down on the Muhlenberg 17, Kaufman saw his pass interecepted on the 3.

Muhlenberg managed to get a first down on the ensuing drive but soon had to punt away. Mike Shimkin grabbed the ball on his 45 and bulled his way to the Mules' 43 with 3:08 left in the first quarter.

Ten plays later, with Kaufman and Smith making small but steady contributions on the ground, the Red Devils posted a "6" on the scoreboard on a quarterback plunge.

"We had opportunities in the first half and didn't come away with points," head coach Darwin Breaux said. "It easily could have been 21-0 in the first quarter, and we didn't convert. Against good football teams, you can't waste away those opportunities."

Muhlenberg (6-2, 6-1 Centennial) quickly proved those words to be true. With just over eight minutes left in the half, a John Muha punt return gave the Mules the ball on their own 45. After getting one first down, they appeared to be stopped on the Devils' 41. But a penalty after quarterback Dan Deighan was knocked out of bounds kept the drive alive on the Devils' 26. Two plays later, a 20-yard Dandridge dash and a Katz point-after gave the visitors the lead.

The Mules' daring onside kick on the next play gave them the ball again on their 41. They scored 13 plays later on a Katz field goal, but again, the Devils helped, A third-and-7 pass to Bobby Bushong only netted 4 yards to the Devils' 41, but a pass interference call gave the Mules a first down and kept the drive going.

Still, despite all the Devils' tribulations, Dickinson was down only 10-7 at the half. Yet, there were danger signs: After Dickinson's statistical domination in the opening quarter, Muhlenberg kept the ball for all but four-plus minutes in the second. The Devils gained 4 total yards and gave up an important 22 in penalties.

Muhlenberg's first series of the second half was three-and-out, and Dickinson said ditto. A David London punt gave the Mules the ball on their own 48. Basically, Dandridge took over, with a little help from Deighan. Nine plays and a PAT later, the Mules were up by 10.

With Kaufman suffering from banged-up ribs, Dickinson put freshman Todd Smolinksy behind center. The Devils moved from their 24 to the Muhlenberg 45, but on fourth-and-one, the officials said Tim Smith was stopped for no gain, and the Devils turned the ball over on downs. The crowd murmured over what appeared to be a questionable spotting of the ball by the men in striped shirts.

With 3:20 left in the third, Dandridge and Deighan went to work again, and Katz nailed a 32-yard field goal just after the fourth quarter began.

Scott Sullivan gave the Red Devils some hope around the 12-minute mark when he picked off a Deighan pass and returned it to the Mules' 32. Smolinsky threw a key pass to Cam Di Fede for a first down, and he finished the drive with a 9-yard TD run. Craig's blocked-kick attempt left the score at 20-13.

With four minutes left and their lead in danger, the Mules said, "Let's give it to Dandridge," and the 167-pound sophomore did the job, rushing five times for the entire 65 yards of the drive, including his 48-yard TD burst on a pitch-out around right end.

Dandridge finished with 191 yards and three TDs on 32 carries. Deighan completed 11 of 20 passes for 114 yards and rushed for 42 more yards on nine carries.

"We'll continue to work..." Breaux said he told his players on the field after the game, "and we'll find out which guys step up and which guys make plays."

"That's the only approach we can take.

"It's a different point in the season than we've traditionally been, but we'll find out who those guys are, and we'll be ready to play next week."