HAMPDEN-SYDNEY, Va. — The 131st playing of the “The Game” lived up to the hype and then some as Hampden-Sydney College came away with that trophy as well as the ODAC championship hardware following the Tigers’ 36-27 victory over Randolph-Macon College on Saturday afternoon at Lewis C. Everett Stadium in Hampden-Sydney.

Hampden-Sydney (9-1 overall, 7-0) has now won 10 conference football championships, joining Randolph-Macon (16) and Emory & Henry University (11) in double figures. The win also awards the Tigers’ with the ODAC’s automatic entry into the NCAA Division III Football Championship field. The full 40-team bracket is slated to be released on Sunday at 5:00 p.m. ET via selection show on NCAA.com. ODAC country is the home of the final game of the year as well with Stagg Bowl slated to return to Salem on Sunday, January 3 for an 8:00 p.m. ET kickoff in Salem Stadium.

Statistically, H-SC flipped the script on Randolph-Macon (7-3, 5-2), controlling time of possession at a 34:25 to 25:35 clip. Division III leading rusher Terry Hicks had a lot to say about that as the Tigers’ ball-carrier rushed 36 times for 127 yards and three touchdowns. It marked his fifth game with more than 30 carries this season. He has now run for 1,523 yards and 14 touchdowns on 256 carries. Hicks also caught two passes for 13 yards and a fourth touchdown.

The Tigers ran for 191 yards overall with Will Foley adding 46 yards on nine rushes and quarterback Connor Creech chipping in 27 on four carries. He went 18-of-23 passing for 197 yards and a pair of scores against one interception. He and Manning Lasso connected seven times for 96 yards and score, while Max Nitti also caught seven balls for 69 yards.

Randolph-Macon also produced on the ground with Mitchell Johnson continuing his strong campaign. He ran for 76 yards and a pair of scores on 16 carries. Jaedyn McAdoo added 18 yards and a touchdown on two carries to help RMC on its way to 140 yards on the ground.

Quarterback Jake Mulhern threw for 173 on 12-of-20 through the air with one interception. Tristan Overbay led the Yellow Jackets with six catches for 80 yards.

Defensively, Randolph-Macon defensive back Christian Daniel made the first big play of the game as he took an interception back 40 yards for a touchdown on just the fourth play from scrimmage. Daniel posted 11 tackles, one of four Yellow Jackets in double figures including Khamari Veney (15, 7 solo), Quentin Mankin (14, 8 solo), and Matthew MacNichol (10, 3 solo). Veney and Ericson Kudee had the only two TFLs for RMC’s defense.

For Hampden-Sydney, edge Jordan Pence intercepted a pass and returned it 63 yards to the RMC 5-yard line to set up a Tigers’ touchdown that extended their lead to 22-13 with 0:15 to play in the first half. Pence finished with three tackles including two for a loss highlighted by a sack. Cam Jackson had the Tigers’ other sack that cost RMC 10 yards of offense. Will Bostwick led H-SC with 10 tackles (3 solo).