BANGOR – Another lunch-pail effort by an offensive line which is far from unappreciated by Bangor’s backs and coaches, plus the third “doughnut” performance of the season by the defensive unit, added up to another victory for the unbeaten Rams.

Running behind a line which has had its share of injuries but still manages to plug in replacements without missing a beat, the Rams rolled up a whopping 329 rushing yards en route to a 21-0 win over Waterville on a cool, clear Friday night at Cameron Stadium.

“Our line is incredible. They come out and own the line of scrimmage every week,” said Rams quarterback Chris Bombardier, who passed for 96 yards and a touchdown and ran for 48 yards and another TD. “If they didn’t do that, then I wouldn’t have passing time or be able to rush as much as we do. I give all the credit to them.”

Tailback Buddy Nickerson again led the Rams’ terrestrial charge with 153 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries behind the solid line play of center Ben Guerette, guards J.J. Jackson and Danny Logan, tackles Conor Stephens and Corey Mayhew, plus guard-tackle Trevor LaGrange and guard Travis Barry, who subbed for Mayhew after he bruised his leg.

“We’ve had some guys in and out, but we’ve come along,” said Guerette. “Trevor started at guard and moved to tackle, Danny came in at guard, and Travis stepped in, too. It’s a great thing. We have so much depth, when someone goes down, we can put someone else in and not miss a beat.”

The 7-0 Rams scored on their opening drive as sophomore split end Mike Prentiss caught a pass in the right flat, faked the only defender near him with a quick feint left, and ran down the right sideline for a 20-yard touchdown reception. The third-and-three play capped a seven-play, 96-yard drive.

After forcing the 3-4 Panthers to punt after five plays, the Rams put together another drive, this one an 11-play, 68-yard effort ending with Nickerson’s 2-yard TD run with 2:08 left in the opening quarter.

Despite Bangor’s quick strikes and the absence of three starters suspended from the game by Waterville coach Frank Knight for disciplinary reasons, the Panthers proved resilient. Even when Knight had to yank senior captain and three-position player (quarterback-cornerback-punter) Ryan Lockard late in the second quarter after a minor dispute, the Panthers still stayed close.

If not for five dropped passes in crucial third- and fourth-down situations, the Panthers might have stayed one score behind or even tied the Rams heading into the final quarter.

“It sounds like a pretty good whipping, but we had a lot of green kids out there and they played hard,” Knight said. “We dropped a couple balls that were thrown well, but we’ll be a better team because of this game. We learned some lessons today and we’re better for it in terms of character.”

Senior tailback Cody DeGuzman led the Panthers with 137 yards on 14 carries and also distinguished himself on defense at strong safety.

Bangor’s final score came at the outset of the final quarter, when Bombardier capped a 12-play, 77-yard drive with a 1-yard QB sneak for a touchdown.

“I don’t think we’ve ever shut Waterville out since I’ve been at Bangor,” said Rams coach Mark Hackett. “I thought they’d score twice and we’d have to have three or more to win. The thing was we were able to keep them away from the really big plays.”

But he won’t be able to keep his players away from the doughnuts, a traditional treat served up by the coaches after any Rams shutout.

“We’ve really only had two now, but we counted last week since it was 0-0 in regulation,” said Hackett, referring to an overtime win.

Rams 21, Purple Panthers 0

Waterville (3-4) 0 0 0 0? 0

Bangor (7-0) 14 0 0 7?21

B ? Prentiss 20 pass from Bombardier (Achorn kick)

B ? Nickerson 2 run (Achorn kick)

B ? Bombardier 1 run (Achorn kick)

Waterville Bangor

First downs 13 19

Rushing att.-yards 37-198 46-329

Passing comp.-att. 4-19 5-12

Passing yards 36 96

Total yards 234 425

Punts-avg. 1-32.0 5-32.8

Fumbles-lost 3-1 7-4

Intercepted by 0 0

Penalties-yards 6-60 6-55

Rushing

Waterville: DeGuzman 14-137, Boutin 13-53, Hilton 4-8, Lockard 5-3, Duffy 1-(-3); Bangor: Nickerson 15-153, Largay 8-71, Bombardier 9-48, Flynn 9-43, Schmersal 1-15, Fergerson 2-2, Robertson 2-(-3)

Passing

Waterville: Lockard 3-17-0-18, Duffy 1-2-0-18; Bangor: Bombardier 5-11-0-96, Schmersal 0-1-0-0

Receiving

Waterville: Carey 2-19, Hilton 1-18, DeGuzman 1-(-1); Bangor: Prentiss 2-38, Shain 1-26, Schmersal 1-16, Flynn 1-16

A? 1,000 (est.)