APPALACHIAN STATE 34, MICHIGAN 32
Ann Arbor, Mich. - Julian Rauch's 24-yard field goal with 26 seconds left Saturday put Appalachian State University football ahead of the University of Michigan and Corey Lynch blocked a field goal in the final seconds to seal one of college football's biggest upsets as the Mountaineers prevailed, 34-32.
"We're still sort of shocked," coach Jerry Moore said after being carried off the field by his players.
The two-time defending champions from former Division I-AA were ahead of the nation's winningest program 28-14 late in the second quarter, then their storybook afternoon seemed to unravel late in the fourth quarter.
Mike Hart's 54-yard run put the Wolverines ahead -- for the first time since early in the second quarter -- with 4:36 left.
One snap after the go-ahead touchdown, Brandent Englemon intercepted an errant pass, but the Wolverines couldn't capitalize and had their first of two field goals blocked.
Appalachian State drove 69 yards without a timeout in 1:11 to set up the go-ahead field goal.
"I've been dreaming about that kick every day," Rauch said.
But it still wasn't over.
Chad Henne threw a 46-yard pass to Mario Manningham, giving Michigan the ball at Appalachian State's 20 with 6 seconds left.
Lynch blocked the kick and returned it to the other end of the field as the final seconds ticked off, and his teammates rushed across the field to pile on as the coaching staff and cheerleaders jumped with joy.
Appalachian State has won 15 straight games, the longest streak in the nation.
The Mountaineers are favored to win the Football Championship Subdivision -- formerly known as Division I-AA -- but they weren't expected to put up much of a fight against a team picked to win the Big Ten and contend for the national title.
That's the beauty of college football.
No Division I-AA team had beaten a team ranked in The Associated Press poll from 1989-2006, and it's unlikely that it happened after Division-I subdivisions were created in 1978.
Appalachian State is not eligible to receive votes in the AP Top 25 poll because the school is not in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
"I wouldn't call it embarrassing because that takes away from them," Hart said. "We're disappointed. I can tell you that.
"It is one of the biggest losses ever, but give all the credit to Appalachian State."
Appalachian State's win does seem to pass the one second-tier programs used to regard as their crowning achievement -- The Citadel's season-opening win in 1992 over Arkansas that led to the firing of Razorbacks coach Jack Crowe following the game.
Michigan coach Lloyd Carr will not get fired after this upset, but he might've wished he retired after last season when the Wolverines won 11 games and played in the Rose Bowl. Michigan has now lost three in a row over two seasons.
Carr will likely second-guess a lot from the game, and the practices that led to it, and might regret going for 2-point conversions twice in the final 15-plus minutes.
After Appalachian State went ahead 31-20, Hart scored with 24 seconds left in the third quarter and the 2-point conversion failed as Carr tried to pull within a field goal. Following Hart's late TD that put Michigan ahead by one, Carr couldn't justify kicking the extra point and backup running back Brandon Minor stumbled to the turf.
Carr didn't regret going for it both times, but did lament the many mistakes, penalties and missed opportunities after opening his news conference by giving Appalachian State credit.
"We were not a well-prepared football team," Carr said. "That is my job, and I take full responsibility."
The Mountaineers improved to 7-36-1 against top-tier teams since 1978, beating a team other than Wake Forest in such matchups for the first time.
Since beating Wake Forest in 2000, they had been respectable against strong programs, trailing LSU and JaMarcus Russell by two touchdowns entering the fourth quarter before losing 24-0 in 2005 and leading Auburn late in the third before losing by a TD in 1999.
But Appalachian State proved it belonged from start to finish, making up for a slight size disadvantage with more speed.
Quarterback Armanti Edwards threw for 227 yards, three scores and two interceptions while he kept Michigan guessing with enough skills running to have 62 yards rushing. Dexter Jackson caught three passes for 92 yards, and scored twice, including a 68-yard reception that tied the game early and provided a glimpse of what was coming over the next three hours.
Hart, who went almost two quarters without a carry because of an injury, ran for 188 yards and three touchdowns. Henne was 19-of-37 for 233 yards in a lackluster game that included a TD and an interception in Mountaineer territory.
THE CITADEL 35, CHALRESTON SOUTHERN 14
Charleston, S.C. ? Senior running back Tory Cooper had 122 yards rushing on 27 carries and two touchdowns as The Citadel defeated Charleston Southern 35-14 in the opening game of the Bulldogs’ 100th year of football at Johnson Hagood Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Playing through wet and rainy conditions, the Bulldogs exacted revenge on their crosstown rivals after a 38-35 overtime loss last season. Senior quarterback Duran Lawson finished with 333 total yards of offense as he went 21-32 for 246 yards passing and two touchdowns. Lawson also added 87 yards rushing on 15 carries. Sophomore receiver Andre Roberts had nine catches for 108 yards and a score. The Citadel rolled up 419 total yards of offense compared to 161 yards for Charleston Southern. The Buccaneers mustered only 24 yards on the ground. It was the fewest yards rushing the Bulldog defense has given up since they held Western Carolina to 14 yards on the ground in 2005.
The Bulldogs got on the board first after receiving the opening kickoff and driving it down the field 69 yards in eight plays. Senior running back Montrell Lee found paydirt from six yards out and senior Mike Adams added the extra point to give The Citadel an early 7-0 advantage.
The first of four turnovers in the contest went to the Buccaneers as Roberts caught a pass from Lawson and was stripped after a 10-yard gain by defensive back Josh Warrior. Defensive lineman Dennis Justiniani recovered for Charleston Southern at their own 41-yard line. The Buccaneers quickly took advantage of the turnover on the next play as quarterback Eli Byrd found wide receiver Tim Jones down the sideline for a 59-yard touchdown. Nick Ellis knocked the extra point through to tie the game at 7 with 9:15 left in the opening quarter.
The score stayed tied until 10:43 left in the second quarter as the Bulldog defense created good field position for the offense. After a punt by Ellis from his own 11-yard line to the 49, The Citadel drove those 49 yards in four plays to break the tie. A 26-yard pass from Lawson to Roberts gave the Cadets a six-point advantage. Adams added the extra-point for a 14-7 lead.
Late in the first half, it was the Bulldogs who took advantage of a turnover. An interception by senior linebacker Andrew Rowell set up The Citadel at their own 48-yard line. Lawson hit senior wide receiver Ta'Mar Jernigan on the first play of the drive for a 19-yard gain to the Buccaneers 33-yard line. Three plays later, Cooper found the end zone from four yards out to extend the Bulldog lead. The point after by Adams gave The Citadel a 21-7 lead which they took into the locker room.
Lawson ended the first half 14-23 for 148 yards and a touchdown, with Roberts being his favorite target with eight catches for 103 yards and a score. The Bulldog defense held Charleston Southern to 71 total yards of offense in the first half, including only two yards on the ground.
Charleston Southern quickly cut the lead in half as they took the opening drive of the second half and drove 65 yards in seven plays, capped off by a Byrd 17-yard touchdown run. The extra-point by Ellis made it a 21-14 Bulldog lead.
After Adams missed a field goal from 41 yards out on The Citadel’s first drive of the half, the Bulldog defense stopped the Buccaneers three-and-out. The Cadets then drove 56 yards in seven plays to take a commanding two-score lead. After Lawson completed a 20-yard pass to freshman Alex Carr to set up the Bulldogs at the Buccaneer 20-yard line, Lawson hit senior transfer Tim Higgins from 15 yards out for The Citadel’s fourth touchdown of the day and Higgins’ first as a Bulldog. Adams made his fourth extra-point to make it 28-14 with 1:19 left in the third quarter.
Cooper and the Bulldogs chewed up a good portion of the clock as they started their third drive of the fourth quarter with 7:02 left in the game and drove it 51 yards in 12 plays to put the finishing touches on the victory. Cooper had one reception for 10 yards and seven carries for 24 yards on the drive, and scored from one yard out with 28 seconds left in the contest. Adams nailed the extra-point to give The Citadel their final margin of victory at 35-14.
WOFFORD 38, GEORGETOWN (KY.) 21
Spartanburg, S.C. ? Wofford scored twice in the fourth quarter to open the season with a 38-21 victory over Georgetown (Ky.) on Saturday evening at Gibbs Stadium. Senior quarterback Josh Collier led the Terriers with two rushing touchdowns as Wofford rushed for 401 total yards on the night.
The Tigers had the ball first and picked up two first downs. The Terriers’ Brian Kemp intercepted Any Aherns at the Wofford 41 yard line and returned it 23 yards. Wofford was unable to advance the ball and quarterback Josh Collier punted into the endzone.
Following a Tigers’ punt, the Terriers got on a roll with 12-yard runs by Michael Hobbs and Kevious Johnson. Josh Collier added a 23-yard run before taking it in to the endzone on a nine-yard run. The drive was six plays for 68 yards for a 7-0 lead.
Georgetown punted for the second time of the evening and the Terriers took over at their own one-yard line. Josh Collier completed a pass for a twelve yard gain to Jeremy Marshall. Adrian Young then added a 28-yard run to advance into Tigers’ territory at the end of the first quarter. Josh Collier capped the eleven play, 99-yard drive with a twelve yard touchdown run to take a 14-0 lead.
On the Tigers next drive, they were able to drive to the Terriers’ 24-yard line before turning the ball over on downs. Wofford only gained one first down on their next possession and were forced to punt. Georgetown began the drive on their own 45-yard line and an Andy Aherns pass to Brian Piper gained 29 yards. Aherns then found Piper again for a 23-yard gain and a touchdown with 2:42 remaining in the half.
In the third quarter, Wofford drove 57 yards in 14 plays and added to the lead with a 28-yard field goal by Patrick Mugan. Following a Tiger punt, the Terriers drove 76 yards in twelve plays, capped by a 18-yard touchdown run by Kevious Johnson for a 24-7 lead.
At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Andy Aherns kept the ball and went in for a four-yard touchdown run to cut the Terriers’ lead to 24-14. With 6:05 remaining in the game, Brian Piper caught his second touchdown pass of the game from Aherns for 29-yard to make it a 24-21 game.
On the ensuing Wofford drive, Jeremy Marshall broke free and went 60-yards for a touchdown at 5:03. The Terrier defense came up with a big three-and-out series which forced a punt. Wofford’s offense then capped the day with a 37-yard touchdown pass from Ben Widmyer to Justice Joslin for a 38-21 lead. Brian Ford sealed the victory with an interception of Andy Aherns along with a 28-yard return.
“We had a lot of penalties tonight and we have to make sure we correct those,” said Wofford head coach Mike Ayers. “The holding calls were the ones that hurt us and normally we don’t do that. We will look at the film and make a judgement on those. Georgetown is a good football team that is used to winning and competing at their level. They did a lot of good things tonight, including keeping our defense on the field in the second quarter.”
FURMAN 40, PRESBYTERIAN 16
Greenville, S.C. -- Renaldo Gray passed for 261 yards and four touchdowns to propel FCS 11th-ranked Furman to a 40-16 season opening win over Presbyterian Saturday evening at Paladin Stadium.
Gray, a senior from Greenwood, S.C., and first cousin of Appalachian State starting quarterback Armanti Edwards, completed 19-of-22 passes for 261 yards and threw touchdown strikes covering 3, 15, 39, and 5 yards in helping Furman (1-0) notch its 14-straight win in Paladin Stadium and 11th consecutive triumph over Presbyterian (0-1).
"We were happy to win the game even though we didn't perform very well in the red zone with turnovers and poor execution," said Furman head coach Bobby Lamb, whose squad fumbled twice inside PC's 20-yard line and saw another possession end on downs at the Blue Hose 2.
"I think our guys played real hard," said Presbyterian's Bobby Bentley, the former Byrnes High School head coach after making his collegiate head coaching debut. "We need to get better with our execution, but I have to be happy, though, of the PC spirit. My hat's off to Furman, but I'm proud of my young men and look forward to a great future with PC."
Furman compiled a 535-336 advantage in total offense, including 344 yards passing -- the fifth highest total in school history.
PC was paced by quarterback Grayson Mullins, who completed 16-of-26 passes for 283 yards. The Blue Hose, however, managed only 28 yards rushing on 31 attempts.
Gray gave Furman an early lead by connecting with fullback Jerome Felton on a 3-yard touchdown strike midway through the first period for a 7-0 lead.
Presbyterian knotted the game on the ensuing possession by covering 60 yards in nine plays for Mullins' 10-yard touchdown run at the 4:47 mark.
Furman's special teams set up the Paladins' next score. Mike Brown's blocked of a PC punt was recovered by Dustin Gourdin at the Blue Hose 13, and three plays later backup quarterback Jordan Sorrells connected with Patrick Sprague on a 14-yard touchdown strike to make it 14-7.
The Paladins closed out the half with a pair of Scott Beckler field goals, including a school record 54-yard effort on the final play of the half to stretch the advantage to 20-7. Beckler's record setter clipped the previous mark of 52 yards by Jim Richter set by Jim Richter versus Western Carolina in 1993.
A pair of Gray third quarter touchdown passes, including a 15-yard hookup to tight end Chris Truss and 39-yard strike to wide receiver R.J. Webb, stretched Furman's advantage to 34-7.
PC's Bret Ditullio's third quarter 43-yard field goal made it 34-10, and the Blue Hose cut it to 34-16 on a Mullins 1-yard sneak that was set up by an 84-yard completion and run by Chetyuane Reeder to the Furman 4.
Gray's final touchdown pass of the game, a 5-yard connection to backup fullback Brantley Kendall with 18 seconds left, capped a 15-play, 66-yard drive.
Furman's defense tallied four sacks and 10 tackles for losses of 72 yards. The Paladins claimed four turnovers, including two fumble and pair of interceptions.
SOUTH FLORIDA 28, ELON 13
Tampa, Fla. ? Matt Grothe passed for 238 yards and two touchdowns and Mike Ford scored three times as South Florida defeated Elon 28-13 in the football season opener for both teams Saturday night at Raymond James Stadium.
The Phoenix’s first-ever NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision opponent, the Bulls (1-0) forced a pair of Elon turnovers inside the red zone during the first half. The Phoenix (0-1) still had a chance to claim an early 3-0 edge, but Andrew Wilcox’s 45-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right with 3:23 left to play in the first quarter.
“We had opportunities in the red zone that we didn’t convert,” Phoenix coach Pete Lembo said. “Going into the game, we knew we needed to execute at midseason form because of whom we were playing. Had we done that, we might have been a lot happier with the end result.”
Ford hauled in a one-yard touchdown pass from Grothe to give the Bulls a 7-0 edge with 12:40 to play in the second quarter, capping a 10-play, 73-yard drive that consumed 3:43.
Wilcox put the Phoenix on the board with 10:21 left in the second stanza, booting a 37-yard field goal to pull Elon within 7-3 for the eventual halftime difference. South Florida stretched its lead to 14-3 when Ford scored on a 21-yard run with 10:35 to go in the third period.
Wilcox converted a second 37-yard field goal with 4:37 remaining in the third quarter to pull the Phoenix within 14-6. The field goal concluded a 16-play, 60-yard drive that took 5:58 off the clock.
The Bulls extended their edge to 21-6 when Amari Jackson reeled in a 24-yard touchdown toss from Grothe with 3:04 left to play in the third stanza. USF then fattened its lead to 28-6 on Ford’s one-yard TD run with 7:22 to go in the contest.
In his first collegiate start, Scott Riddle then orchestrated a 10-play, 72-yard, four-minute drive that resulted in his 26-yard touchdown pass to All-American Terrell Hudgins with 3:22 remaining.
Riddle connected on 33 of his 54 passing attempts for 210 yards with one touchdown and one interception. His 33 completions set a new Elon record, eclipsing Wes Pope’s 30 completions against Wofford last season.
Riddle’s 54 pass attempts fall one short of the program-record 55 by Heath Hewett against Catawba in 1990 while Hudgins’ career-high 14 receptions fell one shy of Richard McGeorge’s Elon-best 15 against Western Carolina in 1968.
Hudgins accumulated 92 receiving yards while Michael Mayers caught eight passes for 82 yards. Meanwhile, Grothe completed 23 of his 39 passes and Ford rushed for 83 yards on six carries.
ALABAMA 52, WESTERN CAROLINA 6
Tuscaloosa, Ala. - Crimson Tide running back Terry Grant rushed 18 times for 134 yards and three touchdowns as Alabama downed Western Carolina, 52-6, in front of a sell-out crowd of 92,138 at Bryant-Denny Stadium Saturday night in the 2007 season opener for both teams.
Alabama (1-0) scored on its first play from scrimmage - a weaving, 47-yard scamper by Grant - en route to tallying double-digit points in each quarter, relegating Western (0-1) to its 10th-straight defeat dating back to last season. The Catamounts did manage to score against the Nick Saban-led Tide squad, notching a pair of Jonathan Parsons' field goals to snap a five-quarter, 76-minute scoring drought.
"First of all, I was real pleased with the effort. We played hard from start to finish, came out with a purpose and we finished with pride," said WCU head coach Kent Briggs, who suffered just his second defeat as a head coach in a season-opener. "We did not tackle very well tonight. Our defense was not used to the speed of the game. (Terry) Grant was phenomenal. We need to tackle better and limit the number of penalties which hurt us tonight."
Senior running back Mike Malone accounted for 134 all-purpose yards, including 38 on 11 carries on the ground, two catches for 14 yards and five kickoff returns for 82 yards. Seeing his first career action, sophomore quarterback Adam Hearns rushed four times for 24 yards while also completing 5-of-7 passes for 81 yards.
Starting signal caller, senior Todd Spitzer, finished 9-for-20 for 90 yards with his classmate, receiver Eddie Cohen, hauling in four passes for 84 yards.
"It is a great atmosphere to play in," said Spitzer on facing the Crimson Tide in front of over 92,000 fans. "They have loyal fans that care about their program. It's definitely a wonderful experience and I will hold it with me for the rest of my career."
Trailing 7-0 after the opening flurry from Alabama, Cohen nearly knotted the game on WCU's second possession. Spitzer found Cohen across the middle on third and long on a pass play that went for 67 yards and a score - however, a holding penalty negated the score, but did give WCU a first down in Tide territory, the first time they'd crossed midfield in the game. Yet, three-consecutive losses including a two-yard loss on a run, a six-yard sack and a one-yard tackle behind the line of scrimmage backed the Catamounts into their own territory and ended the drive.
On the ensuing possession, the Crimson Tide mimicked WCU and went to a no-huddle offense itself, driving 94 yards in 10 plays, including several for double-digit yardage, in 3:51 to push ahead by two scores, 14-0, just before the end of the first quarter.
The Catamounts opened the second quarter with a fourth-down conversion on a three-yard run by L.J. Davis, and kept the drive alive with a third-down strike from Spitzer to senior Michael Hines. Malone slipped through the Tide defense on a draw play, rumbling 18 yards to get the Catamounts into the red zone. Yet, three-straight incomplete passes stalled the drive and Parsons put WCU on the board with his successful 34-yard attempt, cutting the lead to 14-3.
Alabama responded with a quick score on the legs of Grant to go up 21-3, driving 36 yards in three plays capped off by 21-yard TD run, which gave him three for the day and over 100-yards on the ground. And then, just before the half, Alabama drove 69 yards in 17 plays, eating up 5:09 of second quarter clock, but were stymied by the WCU defense at the four-yard line, and were limited to a 22-yard field goal to push their halftime advantage to 21 points, 24-to-3.
At the outset of the second half, Alabama lengthened, again using a methodical drive to march down the field before a 1-yard TD dive by sophomore Glen Coffee to pull ahead, 31-3. The Tide rolled 73 yards in 10 plays in extending its advantage.
Western, which had been shutout in each of its last two previous meetings with SEC schools, added a second Parsons' field goal in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter. On third and five from its own 21 yard line, Hearns found freshman tight end Travis Osborne for a 28-yard strike, followed by a 35 yard completion to Cohen to move inside the red zone at the Alabama 16 yard line. Yet, Western stalled and Parsons' was called on to cap the eight play, 72-yard drive with a 29-yard field goal.
Two late fumbles by Western aided the Tide's scoring efforts as Alabama pushed across two fourth quarter scores to provide the final margin, 52-6.
Junior Drew Walker - who had seven career tackles entering the night - led the Catamount defense with 11 tackles, including six solo stops, with sophomore Antoine George and senior Carlton Bailey each adding nine. Senior Darren Curtis tallied WCU's lone sack of the game with a two-yard loss.
Senior punter Stephen Brown averaged nearly 40 yards per punt on the night, including booting a career-long 47-yarder late in the first quarter.