Furman 45, Presbyterian 21
Final Stats
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Jordan Sorrells passed for 285 yards and three touchdowns and ran for a fourth score to propel Furman to a 45-21 win over Presbyterian Saturday at Paladin Stadium.
Sorrells, senior from Greenville, completed 24-of-30 passes, including touchdown strikes of 15, 12, and 5 yards, and also scored on a 9-yard run in helping Furman (1-0) record its 12th consecutive victory over Presbyterian (0-1).
The two teams combined for 927 yards in total offense, with Furman totaling 495 and Presbyterian rolling up 432 total yards. Sorrells’ 336 yards in total offense marked a career high.
PC quarterback Brandon Miley passed for 237 yards and two touchdowns.
“There were a lot of positives out there tonight on both sides of the football,” said Furman head coach Bobby Lamb. “I thought our passing game was pretty solid, and we ran the ball pretty well in the second half. Defensively, we played pretty well in stretches, but it was tough coming into this game not having any idea what to expect from PC. They gave us a real test.”
“I’m proud of the effort tonight. The team hung in together and did not quit, and I’m proud of our coaching staff,” said Presbyterian head coach Harold Nichols. “This was the first college game for a lot of our team. It means good things for us in the future. I told our team not to be dejected. We will learn from our mistakes and move on.”
Furman led 10-0 after the first quarter and stretched it to 17-0 after Sorrells connected on a 15-yard fade route to R.J. Webb two minutes into the second quarter.
PC got on the board with a 10-play, 74-yard drive highlighted with a 22-yard touchdown pass from Miley to Patrick McKoy with 9:49 remaining in the half.
The Blue Hose threatened again on their next possession, moving from their own 23 to the Furman 1, but Miley’s sneak attempt on fourth down failed to break the plane of the end zone. After taking over on downs, Furman covered 99 yards in 13 plays to go up 24-7 on a 12-yard scoring toss from Sorrells to Adam Mims with 28 seconds left in the half.
Presbyterian opened the second half with a 50-yard touchdown pass from Miley to Matt Quinn to cut the lead to 24-14 before Furman responded with three consecutive scores to put the game away.
Tersoo Uhaa’s second touchdown of the game, a 2-yard run, a 5-yard Sorrells scoring toss to Tyler Maples, and Sorrells 9-yard burst up the middle stretched the lead to 45-14.
Uhaa led all rushers with 95 yards on 20 carries. Trandon Dendy paced PC’s rushing attack with 85 yards, also on 20 rushes.
Making his first start of his collegiate career, Furman linebacker Chris Wiley racked up a game high 12 tackles, including two for-loss, a sack, two pass deflections, and a forced fumble.
Furman opens Southern Conference play next Saturday at Chattanooga in a 6:00 p.m. game.
Georgia Southern 29, Albany 26
Final Stats
STATESBORO, Ga. - Sophomore Adrian Mora kicked a career-long 44-yard field goal to cap Georgia Southern's 29-26 season-opening win over Albany (N.Y.) Saturday night at Paulson Stadium. The Eagles, celebrating the 25th anniversary of Paulson Stadium, started the year off by recording the program's 150th win at the stadium.
Early in the fourth quarter, Lee Chapple connected again with true-freshman Jamere Valentine on a 26-yard touchdown in the left corner of the endzone for a 26-23 lead. Albany tied the score with 6:24 remaining on Herb Glass' 33-yard field goal. From there Chapple and the Eagles got into a rhythm.
Sophomore Adam Urbano started the drive with a six yard run. On 3rd-and-5, Chapple found true-freshman Mitchell Williford for 13 yards. Chapple hit Urbano for 10 yards and another first down to the GS 47. Two more completions set up 3rd-and-7 as Chapple and Urbano connected for 12 yards and another first down.
After rushing for two yards, the sophomore quarterback found Williford for 11 yards to the Albany 25. Chapple found Urbano twice more but the team was facing 4th-and-11 from the 23 with 40 seconds left.
Mora, who earlier missed from 51 yards, sailed the kick through the uprights which proved to be the game-winner. His previous long was 42 yards last year in the season-finale at Furman. The drive took 14 plays and trimmed 5:44 off the clock.
The defense held Albany to just one completion in the final drive, the last attempt an incomplete pass by Vinny Esposito on 4th-and-8.
Not only did head coach Chris Hatcher start off the 2009 season with a win, the Eagles in the process ended a four-game home losing streak dating back to last year.
"It was a great win for us, there is never a bad win. Defensively I thought we played pretty good especially considering the type of offense we were seeing. We gave up a big play there on the fourth down, other than that I thought we played outstanding on our defensive side and then they got in to act early and they scored nine points. Finally there in the second half we got in a little bit of offensive rhythm and were able to move the ball the field, and what a great drive converting on third down. Adam Urbano had two big third down conversions and then Adrian Mora comes in and knocks the field goal down for a big win," said head coach Chris Hatcher.
After both teams could not capitalize on their first drive, the Eagles were held to a 3-and-out on their second. Charlie Edwards launched a 49-yard punt, and Justin Gannon could not hold onto the ball after Ronnie Wiggins' hit. Darrell Pasco picked up the loose ball setting up GS on the Albany 35.
The Eagles drove down to inside the 10 but settled for a Mora 24-yard field goal and 3-0 lead.
Albany capped a 16-play drive, including four conversions on third down, when David McCarty scored from a yard out. Later in the quarter Glass kicked a career-long 48-yard field goal extending the Great Danes' lead to 10-3. Albany looked to gain momentum again holding the Eagles to a 3-and-out, but Edwards' career-long 64-yard punt pinned the Great Danes on their own one.
Two plays later, Laron Scott stepped in front of Esposito's pass at the 15 and raced into the endzone for his first collegiate score. Mora tied the game at 10-all.
Albany staged another 10-play drive, highlighted by a fake punt attempt by Andrew Smith who rushed for 30 yards on 4th-and-4. The drive was capped by McCarty's 2-yard run. However on the extra point attempt, Brent Russell broke through the line and blocked Glass' attempt. Pasco scooped up the loose ball and raced in for a defensive PAT, making it a 16-12 game at the half.
In the first half, Albany rolled up 187 yards of total offense compared to the Eagles' 88 - 79 by Chapple (11-of-21) through the air.
Dion DuBose recorded 11 tackles in the first half alone, one better than his career-high of 10 during the 2008 season-finale at Furman.
Harland Bower sacked Esposito midway through the third quarter and forced him out of the game. That keyed the Eagles on their next drive. Chapple capped a five play drive in which the Eagles drove 75 yards. The sophomore QB found Valentine on a screen pass. He broke a couple of tackles and scored from 36 yards out. Mora's extra point made it 19-16.
The Great Danes used their third quarterback of the quarter, bringing in Smith. Relying on the run, Smith capped the drive when on 4th-and-1 he hit the pile, looked to be stopped but broke right and raced 39 yards for a score. Glass' extra point gave Albany a 23-19 lead with 3:36 left in the third quarter.
"Any time you have a lot of young players on your team a game like that does nothing but enhance our confidence, and then after the game in the locker room you would have though we won the championship. It's fun to coach those guys and like I've been saying all year we need some good things to happen to us. This year we were able to pull it out to go 1-0 and that's the best we can be right now," stated Hatcher.
Chapple finished 12-of-12 in the fourth quarter - actually hit his last 15 in a row - and went 30-of-43 in the game for 259 yards and matched a career-high of two touchdown passes.
Valentine caught six passes for 79 yards. Urbano not only rushed for 53 yards, but caught a career-high eight passes for 48 yards after totaling five catches in all of 2008.
DuBose finished with a career-high 15 tackles. Fellow sophomore K.R. Snipes recorded a career-high nine tackles. Bower finished with 2.5 tackles for a loss and seven stops in all. True-freshman Darius Eubanks along with Wiggins recorded seven tackles each.
Mora matched a career-high of two field goals and converted on all three extra points. Edwards averaged 47 yards on five punts.
Esposito went 14-of-28 for 110 yards and the interception. Smith led all rushers with 99 yards while McCarty - a member of the Walter Payton Award watch list - was limited to 63 yards on 24 carries.
Justin Brancaccio led the Albany defense with nine tackles, including two for a loss.
The Eagles travel to South Dakota State next Saturday (Sept. 12), kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m. Eastern.
GAME NOTES: Mora has kicked a field goal in nine straight games, every game of his collegiate career... Scott's interception return for a touchdown was the first by an Eagle in six games. Former Eagle Damon Suggs caught a tipped Chattanooga pass in the endzone last year for a touchdown. The last time GS returned an interception for a TD at Paulson Stadium was November 12, 2005 (vs. Morehead State) when A.J. Bryant returned a pick 74 yards for a score... Chapple's 30 completions were the second-highest single-game total in program history. He owns the record with 39 completions at Furman last year... The Eagles have blocked eight kicks since the start of the 2008 season. It was the first career block by Russell... When Bower sacked Esposito in the third quarter that was the first collegiate sack for the senior defensive end... The announced crowd was 18,118.
No. 11 Elon 56, Davidson 0
Final Stats
ELON, N.C. ? Quarterback Scott Riddle threw for 326 yards and four touchdowns and the Elon defense was relentless as the 11th-ranked Phoenix shut out the visiting Davidson Wildcats, 56-0, in the season-opener at Rhodes Stadium on Saturday night in the first meeting between the two schools since 1954. The shutout was only the third-ever of an opponent at Rhodes Stadium and Elon’s first since Nov. 11, 2006, a 45-0 victory over North Carolina A&T.
Elon (1-0) racked up 575 yards of total offense and held Davidson (0-1) to only 104 yards and seven first downs. The Phoenix defense was anchored by Andre Campbell’s 1.5 sacks and Brandon Ward’s three tackles-for-loss.
“The good news is that we got the win we wanted,” said Elon head coach Pete Lembo. “There were a lot of positives, but enough to walk away with to keep us humble and correct going into next week.”
The Phoenix defense was punishing from the opening snap, racking up six sacks in the first 30 minutes of play. The ?Cats managed only two first downs and 27 yards of total offense in the first half and Davidson’s opening drive lasted for just three plays before the Wildcats were forced into their first of eight punts in the half.
It took Elon just over a minute and four plays to move the ball 81 yards and take an early 7-0 advantage on its opening possession. Terrell Hudgins caught passes of 20 and 55 yards to help move the Phoenix down the field. Jamal Shuman, who rushed for 115 yards on the night, carried the ball in for the 1-yard score after Hudgins was tackled just short of the goal line on the long pass.
After forcing a second Wildcat three-and-out, Elon marched the ball down the field again. Riddle completed passes of 13 and 18 yards to Hudgins and found Shuman for a 15-yard strike. Shuman also rushed for a total of 26 yards on the 10-play drive, which spanned for 5:33, setting up a three-yard rushing touchdown by Riddle.
Davidson managed only one first down in the opening quarter as Elon led 171-17 in the total offense column heading into the second 15 minutes of play.
Elon continued to air it out, moving the ball up and down the field seemingly at will. The Phoenix scored to take a three-touchdown lead on a 10-play, 56-yard drive covering 3:43. After several Shuman rushes and a 15-yard completion to Sean Jeffcoat, Riddle avoided a sack and completed an 18-yard pass to Lance Camp that set up a Riddle-to-Hudgins touchdown. With the strike, Riddle went over 200 yards passing for the 21st time in his career.
The Elon defense continued to swarm the Wildcats, as Jordan Daniel and Olufemi Lamikanra sacked Michael Blanchard for a seven-yard loss to force another Davidson punt. Camp made the ?Cats pay, returning the punt 54 yards for a fourth Phoenix score and a 28-0 Elon advantage with just under four minutes to go until the half.
“That’s one of the better teams I’ve faced in 20 years of coaching,” Davidson head coach Tripp Merritt commented. “We were overmatched, at times, against a really good football team. We didn’t have a lot of time to throw the football. It gave us fits.”
The Phoenix picked up where it left off in the second half, taking the opening kickoff and covering 65 yards in seven plays. Shuman rushed for 32 yards on three attempts and the scoring drive was capped by a second Hudgins touchdown catch, this one for 29 yards. For the game, Hudgins caught seven passes for 156 yards, eclipsing the 100-yard receiving mark for the 19th time in his career.
Elon struck once more before Davidson got a chance on offense. After a short Elon kickoff, the ball bounced between two Wildcats and was recovered by the Phoenix’s Jonathan Conner on the Davidson 22-yard line. Riddle found true-freshman Jeremy Peterson for a 21-yard TD to give the Phoenix a 42-0 lead on a three-play, 22-yard drive.
Elon tacked on 14 more points on Riddle touchdown passes of 19 yards to A.J. Harris and 36 yards to red-shirt freshman Aaron Mellette for his first career TD. Harris accounted for 121 yards of total offense on the evening.
In his debut for the Phoenix, red-shirt freshman Adam Shreiner went knocked home all eight of his PATs.
It looked as though the Wildcats might get on the board after Davidson’s Brad Johnson recovered a Camp muffed punt at the Elon 18-yard line. Davidson advanced the ball only a yard before Cameron McGlenn picked off Matt Heavner in the end zone to secure the Elon shutout.
At halftime, Elon honored the inductees of the 39th class of the Elon Sports Hall of Fame. The four members inducted were baseball player Scott Brendle ?99, basketball player Issac “Ike” Fesmire ?39, basketball player Chris Kiger ?98 and basketball and track standout Roland Miller ?64.
Elon takes to the road to challenge Presbyterian (0-1) who fell to Furman in the opening weekend. Game time is set for 1:30 on Saturday, Sept. 12.
East Carolina 29, No. 1 Appalachian State 24
Final Stats
GREENVILLE, N.C. ? Behind sophomore quarterback Travaris Cadet (Miami, Fla./Central), Appalachian State University football rallied from a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit with 17 points in the final period, but the comeback came up just short in a 29-24 season-opening loss to East Carolina on Saturday afternoon at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
Appalachian fell into a 24-0 hole less than 17 minutes into the contest and trailed 29-7 going into the fourth quarter. Three plays into the final period, ASU running back Devon Moore (Mebane, N.C./Cedar Ridge) trimmed the deficit to 29-14 when he capped a 12-play, 55-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown plunge.
On East Carolina's ensuing possession, the ASU defense posted an impressive three-and-out and Cadet gave the Apps their best field position of the day when he returned a punt by former Mountaineer Matt Dodge 19 yards to the ECU 38. Seven plays later, Cadet made it a one-possession ballgame when he scored from a yard out to cut ECU's advantage to 29-21.
The volume from the thousands of Black and Gold-clad faithful in attendance at sold-out Dowdy-Ficklen reached a fever pitch when Cortez Gilbert (Goldsboro, N.C./Charles B. Aycock) intercepted ECU's Patrick Pinkney at the ASU 33 yard line and returned it 16 yards to the 49.
Cadet marched the Mountaineers all the way to the 22 yard line but had to settle for a 43-yard field goal by Jason Vitaris (Seneca, S.C./Seneca) that made it 29-24 with 3:24 to go after a misplayed snap exchange on second-and-seven stalled the potential game-tying drive.
Once again, the Mountaineer defense came up with a huge three-and-out and ASU got the ball back on its own 24 yard line with 1:28 left to play. The Apps moved to midfield with three-straight completions but Cadet was sacked on first-and-10 from the ASU 48 with less than a minute remaining. After killing the clock with a spike, Cadet found Blake Elder (Duncan, S.C./Byrnes) for an eight-yard gain but a pass to CoCo Hillary (Edgefield, S.C./Strom Thurmond) on fourth-and-10 was just out of his reach and the Appalachian comeback and upset bid ended with 16 seconds to go.
Making the loss even more heartbreaking for the Mountaineers is the fact that two second-half miscues cost the Apps the decisive five points. Vitaris pulled a 37-yard field-goal attempt wide right on Appalachian's first possession of the second half and punter Sam Martin (Fayetteville, Ga./Starr's Mill) was forced to concede a safety when he couldn't corral a high snap on ASU's next series. Those would be the only five points the Pirates would manage against the Mountaineers' defense after halftime.
After a disastrous first half in which ECU rolled up 267 yards of offense and 14 first downs en route to a 27-7 halftime lead, Appalachian's defense put the clamps on Pinkney and Co., limiting the Pirates to only 53 yards and four first downs after the break.
It was story of two haves on both sides of the ball, as ASU racked up 183 yards and 14 first downs and held a 20:05-9:55 advantage in time of possession in the second half.
But ultimately, it was the slow start that thwarted the Mountaineers' chance at its eighth win over an NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision - formerly Division I-A) since 1982. East Carolina scored on four of its first five possessions to grab a 24-0 lead with 13:21 still left to play in the first half.
ASU finally stopped the bleeding with an 11-play, 71-yard drive on the first possession following the Pirates' third and final touchdown of the afternoon. Brian Quick (Columbia, S.C./Ridge View) highlighted the series with an acrobatic 31-yard reception and starting quarterback DeAndre Presley (Tampa, Fla./Middleton) capped the drive with a three-yard touchdown run that made it 24-7.
ECU's Ben Hartman kicked his second field goal of the game with 57 seconds to go in the second period to give the Pirates the 20-point halftime advantage and set up the wild second half.
Cadet, who replaced Presley at quarterback with 5:28 to go in the third quarter, finished with 35 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries, 55 yards on 7-of-9 passing and 43 yards on two punt returns. Making his second career start, Presley completed 7-of-15 passes for 89 yards and rushed 12 times for 12 yards. Moore led the Mountaineers with 37 rushing yards on 17 carries and Quick led all receivers with 47 yards on three catches.
ASU's defense limited Pinkney, a Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award candidate, to 131 yards on 12-of-27 passing, but ECU's Dominique Liindsay rushed for 105 yards on only 15 carries to pace the Pirates. Mountaineer linebackers D.J. Smith (Charlotte, N.C./Independence) and Jacque Roman (Kingsland, Ga./Camden County) led all tacklers with 13 and 11 stops, respectively.
Top-ranked Appalachian opens NCAA Division I FCS (Football Championship Subdivision - formerly Division I-AA) play next Saturday when it hosts No. 15 McNeese State at Kidd Brewer Stadium. The home opener kicks off at 3:30 p.m. and will be televised on WMYA Ch. 40 in Asheville.
NOTES: The sellout crowd of 43,279 was the ninth-largest in Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium history ... Jared Reine (Snellville, Ga./Brookwood) notched his first career interception when he picked off Pinkney in the second quarter ... left guard Pat Mills (Charlotte, N.C./Providence), right guard Matt Ruff (Charlotte, N.C./Providence), tight end Jordan Gary (Greenwood, S.C./Greenwood) and bandit linebacker Justin Lloyd (Charlotte, N.C./Victory Christian) all made their first career starts ... ASU fell to 7-37-1 all-time against FBS/I-A opponents ... ASU lost for the fifth-straight time to ECU but still leads the all-time series against its former conference rival, 20-10 ... the Mountaineers fell to 9-12 in season openers under head coach Jerry Moore, but 14 of his 21 openers have come against FBS competition (3-11).
UCF 28, Samford 24
Final Stats
ORLANDO, Fla.?The Samford football team held a three-point lead in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t hold on as the Bulldogs dropped a hard-fought, 28-24 decision at UCF Saturday evening at Bright House Networks Stadium.
“I don’t know when I’ve been around a group that laid more on the line,” Samford head coach Pat Sullivan said. “We’ve got a lot of full grown men, who laid their guts on the line against a good Central Florida team. Our guys did what we asked them to do and that was create turnovers and not turn the ball over.”
Samford’s Dustin Taliaferro completed 20-of-34 passes for 141 yards and a touchdown. Riley Hawkins caught three passes for 107 yards and two touchdowns. Chris Evans rushed 23 times for 76 yards.
Defensively, Bryce Smith had 13 tackles, including 10 solo stops. Ryan Anderson had an interception, which he returned 41 yards for a touchdown.
For UCF, Brynn Harvey rushed 31 times for 111 yards and two touchdowns. Brett Hodges completed 10-of-17 passes for 129 yards and a touchdown.
The two teams played to a scoreless tie in the first quarter. UCF had a chance to score late in the quarter, but Jamie Boyle missed a 36-yard field goal with 59 seconds to go in the opening quarter.
After Samford’s Ty Levie recovered a fumble in the end zone early in the second quarter, the Bulldogs went on an eight-play, 80-yard drive over the next 3:51. The drive was capped by a 29-yard touchdown pass from Taliaferro to Hawkins with 10:23 to go in the first quarter. Cameron Yaw added the extra point to give Samford a 7-0 lead.
UCF got on the scoreboard late in the second quarter when Harvey scored on a one-yard run with 57 seconds to go in the period. Boyle added the extra point to second the teams to halftime tied, 7-7.
UCF opened the second half with a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Quincy McDuffie. Boyle missed the PAT, and the Knights held a 13-7 lead with 14:48 to go in the third quarter.
Samford answered when Taliaferro handed the ball off to Richie Fordham, and Fordham hit Hawkins on a 67-yard touchdown. Yaw’s PAT gave Samford a 14-13 lead with 14:08 to go in the third quarter.
On the next possession, Anderson intercepted a pass by UCF’s Hodges and returned it 41 yards for a touchdown. Yaw added the PAT to give Samford a 21-13 lead with 13:12 left in the third quarter.
UCF answered when Harvey scored on a one-yard run with 7:40 to go in the third quarter. Hodges hit Harvey for the two-point conversion to tie the score at 21-21. Samford regained the lead when Yaw kicked a 41-yard field goal with 1:57 to go in the third quarter. The freshman’s first career field goal gave the Bulldogs a 24-21 lead.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, UCF’s Boyle attempted a 33-yard field goal to tie the game, but Samford’s John Michael Clay got a hand on the kick to preserve Samford’s three-point lead.
UCF’s Hodges hit Jamar Newsome for a nine-yard touchdown pass to give UCF the lead with 10:53 to go in the fourth quarter. Nick Cattoi added the extra point to give the Knights a 28-24 lead.
Samford will return to action on Saturday, Sept. 12, when the Bulldogs play host to the Jacksonville University Dolphins. The game is scheduled for a 6 p.m. CT kickoff from Seibert Stadium.
No. 21 North Carolina 40, The Citadel 6
Final Stats
Chapel Hill, N.C. - The Citadel Football opened the 2009 season with a 40-6 loss to the University of North Carolina before a crowd of 58,500 on Saturday at Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C. Redshirt freshman transfer Joseph Boateng led the Bulldog defensive effort with seven tackles and two interceptions.
The Citadel won the toss and received the ball first to open the 2009 season. With Blanchard starting at quarterback, the first play of the game was a pass to All-America wide receiver Andre Roberts for a gain of three yards for second-and-seven on the 34-yard line. However, a false start on the next play by offensive lineman Thomas Suggs pushed The Citadel back five yards for second-and-12. Redshirt freshman quarterback Miguel Starks entered the game for the first time of his collegiate career and rushed for a loss of one yard for third-and-13. A pass for a loss of one yard from Blanchard to freshman walkon running back Bucky Kennedy brought out Bulldog punter Cass Couey with 12:26 on the clock.
Couey kicked a career-long 55-yarder as North Carolina received a flag for an illegal block starting their first drive of the game on the 11-yard line. After five plays that ended with a sack by defensive lineman Dewitt Jones, the Bulldogs forced the Tar Heels to punt to end their first possession. The Citadel received the ball on their own 33-yard line after a fair catch by Roberts to start their second possession of the game. After gaining one yard on a quarterback keeper by Blanchard, he completed two consecutive passes to Roberts for six and five yards, respectively, to earn the first Bulldog first down of the game on their own 45-yard line. However, another flag, this time a holding by offensive lineman Dan DeHaven, pushed The Citadel back 10 yards for second-and-20. Unable to makeup the yards, the drive ended with a Blanchard interception by Deunta Williams at UNC's 45-yard line with 7:26 on the clock.
The Citadel kept the Tar Heels scoreless until early in the second quarter when UNC's Casey Barth connected on a 22-yard field goal to put North Carolina up, 3-0, with 14:15 on the clock. The Tar Heels scored on three more occasions in the second quarter as the Bulldog defense began to weaken. The second score was at 8:10 on an 18-yard pass from T.J. Yates to Johnny White, putting UNC up, 10-0, followed by a 5-yard touchdown run by Ryan Houston to increase the Tar Heel lead to 16-0. The extra point attempt on the second touchdown failed as the ball hit the right upright after a bad snap. North Carolina scored again after a challenged Blanchard sack and fumble turned the ball over to the Tar Heels on the Bulldog 26-yard line. North Carolina scored with 1:55 left in the first half when Yates connected with Greg Little for a 21-yard touchdown pass. The extra point was good and the Tar Heels went up, 23-0.
The Bulldog offense got another chance to score before the half, but a Blanchard pass was intercepted on the 2-yard line and the Tar Heels took over with 1:03 left on the clock. The Citadel defense, however, did not give up as Joseph Boateng, who came in for an injured Rod Harland, intercepted the ball on the North Carolina 21-yard line and returned it for 18 yards to the Tar Heel 3-yard line. A defensive pass interference call on a Blanchard pass to Roberts in the back of the end zone gave the Bulldogs a first down on the UNC 2-yard line. However another pass attempt on second-and-goal was intercepted in the end zone by Williams for a touchback with 26 seconds left on the clock. The Tar Heels went into the half with a 23-0 lead.
In the first half, Blanchard completed 10-of-16 attempts with three interceptions for 51 yards. Starks completed 1-of-2 for six yards and rushed three times for a net gain of 12 yards. Couey punted four times for 173 yards, one within the 20, and an average of 43.2 yards. On defense, Boateng totaled four solo and one assisted tackles and recorded one interception to lead the Bulldogs.
Opening the second half, the Tar Heels received the ball but was not able to convert the drive into a score, punting after four plays, 18 yards and taking 1:09 off the clock. The Bulldogs' first possession of the half started with a Blanchard pass to Kevin Hardy for 25 yards (the longest play of the game for the Bulldogs) to give them another first down on their own 45-yard line. The Citadel was not able to score on the drive and punted with 9:47 on the clock.
On the next possession, North Carolina scored again after driving the ball 88 yards in 13 plays and taking 6:34 off the clock with a Houston 3-yard touchdown run to put the Tar Heels up, 30-0, with 3:13 left in the third quarter. The Tar Heels scored again after a Couey punt on the next possession was returned 77 yards for a touchdown at 14:45 in the fourth quarter.
The Citadel's Tyler Starnes recovered a fumble on a Tar Heel punt return and took over on the UNC 25-yard line. Five plays later, Sam Keeler put the first Bulldog points on the board at 7:43 in the fourth quarter when he kicked a career-long 42-yard field goal.
North Carolina answered with a 40-yard field goal of their own to put them up, 40-3, with 4:31 left in the game. However, the Bulldogs did not give up as DeAndre Smith recovered another UNC punt return fumble and returned it to the North Carolina 29-yard line with 1:51 on the clock. The Citadel, unable to convert the drive into a touchdown, connected on a Keeler 28-yard field goal to make the final score 40-6 with 28 second left in the game.
The Citadel recorded eight first downs with 153 yards of total offense. Blanchard finished the game completing 21-of-37 passes for 117 yards. Freshman walkon running back Remi Biakabutuka led the Bulldog running game with seven carries for 30 yards. Boateng and Jeremy Buncum both finished with seven total tackles, while Boateng added two interceptions. Hardy recorded six kickoff returns for 146 yards.
The Bulldogs start off the season 0-1 overall and 0-0 in the Southern Conference. The Citadel will take off next week off before heading to Princeton, N.J. to take on the Princeton Tigers on Sept. 19. For more information on Bulldog Football, go to the official website of The Citadel Atheltics, www.CitadelSports.com.
South Florida 40, No. 10 Wofford 7
Final Stats
TAMPA, Fla. ? Wofford College was defeated 40-7 by the University of South Florida in the season opener at Raymond James Stadium. The game was tied at 7-7 late in the first half, but two bad snaps on punts, plus two fumbles in the third quarter, turned the tide in favor of the Bulls.
The Terriers open the season 0-1, while the Bulls are 1-0. Wofford was led by Eric Breitenstein with 121 yards on 13 carries. Mitch Allen added 54 yards and he was 3-of-9 passing for 27 yards. The Bulls were led by quarterback Matt Grothe with 19-of-23 passing for 155 yards and a touchdown. Mo Plancher had 78 yards with two touchdowns.
“If we had been sharp, it would have come right down to the wire,” said head coach Mike Ayers. “We had opportunities in the ball game. We might have been able to go up 14-7 at the half, but we have a penalty and next thing you know we have to kick the football. We execute the quick kick and get exactly what we want, but have a penalty and have to punt. The snap goes over the head, and the bad thing is I don’t think Chris (Cummings) has had a bad snap the whole time he has been here and he has two in one game. It is just one of those things. I don’t know why it happened the way that it did, but that being said, I think we still came back.
“Defensively we were very competitive against some tremendous athletes. We had our shots. We broke one with Eric (Breitenstein), but they kept chasing it and knocked the ball out. Instead of a touchdown, we have turned the ball over again. We had way too many turnovers and mistakes. You can’t play a team like South Florida and a team as good as they are in all phases. Defensively they did a nice job, but at the same time I think there were some things that we were able to execute against them. The big thing was we were not as consistent tonight. We just were not the football team that we needed to be tonight.”
The Bulls took the opening kickoff and put together a twelve-play drive that went 65 yards. Mo Plancher took the ball in from four-yards out for the touchdown at 9:46 and a 7-0 lead.
Wofford was able to respond with a 13-play drive that took 6:46 off the clock and went 69 yards. The Terriers picked up five first downs on the drive that ended with a two-yard touchdown run by Eric Breitenstein that tied the game at 7-7 at the 3:00 mark of the first half.
On the next series by USF, after two first downs the Terrier defense was able to force a punt at the end of the first quarter. Wofford took over and converted a 4th and one on a run by Mitch Allen, but the drive stalled and the Terriers punted.
USF turned the ball over on the first play from scrimmage as Mike Niam forced Aston Samuels to fumble and it was recovered by Tommy Irvin. Eric Breitenstein picked up a 16-yard first down. The Terriers attempted a 38-yard field goal at the 6:55 mark, but the kick was just wide left.
With the ball back, Bulls quarterback Matt Grothe ran for 39-yard to set up a first down at the ten-yard line. Ricco Braxton came up with a sack, but a personal foul penalty gave the Bulls a first down. After getting the ball to the two-yard line, Tommy Irvin intercepted Matt Grothe in the endzone to end the drive.
The Terriers went three-and-out on the drive. On the punt, the snap was high and Chris Tommie was taken down at the eight-yard line. Matt Grothe found Theo Wilson in the endzone for a six-yard touchdown reception and the Bulls took a 14-7 lead with 36 seconds left in the first half.
Wofford gained one first down on the final drive of the half before being forced to punt. The snap was high again and the ball was kicked out the back of the endzone for a safety with just one second left on the clock. After the free kick, the half was over with the Bulls having a 16-7 lead.
To open the second half, the Terriers were sacked, had a holding penalty and sack by All-American George Selvie to go three-and-out and punt. The Bulls took over on the 39-yard line and in just four plays Mo Plancher ended the drive with a nine-yard touchdown run to take a 23-7 lead at the 10:47 mark in the third quarter.
On the next possession for the Terriers, Stev Davitte was in at quarterback and fumbled the ball on the second play of the drive after a gain of 18 yards. The Bulls were able to convert the turnover into three points as Delbert Alvardo hit a 30-yard field goal with 5:57 on the clock in the third quarter for a 26-7 lead.
Wofford then had a 44-yard gain by Eric Breitenstein up the middle, but Jerome Murphy came from behind and forced a fumble that was recovered on the sideline by Tyson Butler. Coach Mike Ayers challenged the call on the field, but the call was upheld and the Bulls gained possession. The Bulls gained one first down before being forced to punt. Wofford then gained one first down, but the drive stalled at the 46-yard line and the Terriers turned the ball over on downs.
USF picked up a first down and then converted a fourth-and-three on the ensuing drive. Lindsey Lamer scored on a 13-yard run at the 8:18 mark of the fourth quarter to take a 33-7 lead. After Wofford went three-and-out, the Bulls answered with a 22-yard touchdown pass from B.J. Daniels to Jeffrey Wilson with 1:17 left in the game for the 40-7 final score.
Wofford had 211 total yards of offense, including 177 on the ground. USF had well balanced 359 total yards, with 174 rushing and 185 passing. The Bulls were 4-of-8 on third down and converted one fourth down. Wofford was 3-of-13 on third down and 3-of-6 on fourth downs.
The Terriers will return home on Saturday at 7:00 pm when Wofford hosts Charleston Southern.
Vanderbilt 45, Western Carolina 0
Final Stats
Nashville, Tenn. - Vanderbilt racked up 320 yards of total offense and a 21-0 score at the half en route to handing Western Carolina a 45-0, season-opening defeat in front of 36,350 fans at Vanderbilt Stadium on Saturday night. Freshmen Commodore running backs Zac Stacy and Warren Norman each surpassed the 100-yard rushing mark for Vanderbilt, finishing at 133 and 105 respectively and combined for three touchdowns.
Vanderbilt chewed up 433 yards on the ground for a total of 620 yards of total offense, consuming a commanding 34:44 of game clock on offense.
"On offense, I felt like it was three plays and out almost every series. The inability to move the football kept our defense on the field way too much," said WCU second-year head coach Dennis Wagner. "Defensively, we missed a lot of tackles. We had an opportunity to make some plays and we missed tackles. I told the team we have a lot of work to do before we play Gardner-Webb."
Taking Vanderbilt's no-huddle style of offense into account, Wagner added, "I don't think we spent enough time on the field offensively, and when you run the no-huddle offense and run a lot of plays, it wears your defense down. We really felt it should have been a 28-0 ball game. We gave them too many opportunities and a good football team will take advantage of them."
For Western Carolina, redshirt sophomore quarterback Zack Jaynes finished 13-of-25 for 74 yards but was sacked three times. Redshirt freshman Jonathan Efird made his collegiate debut in the next to last series of the game, but tossed an interception that ended his drive.
Rookie running back Mike Johnson, making his collegiate debut, rushed for 46 yards on 13 carries to lead the Catamounts, adding three catches for 15 yards. Redshirt junior Marquel Pittman caught two passes for 20 yards while freshman Jacoby Mitchell duplicated the two-catch performance for 11 yards.
All told, nine different Catamounts caught passes and five players recorded rushing attempts.
After the two teams traded fumbles, Vanderbilt capitalized on a second Catamount miscue, striking the scoreboard first midway through the first quarter as Larry Smith capped a short, three-play drive as the freshman found Justin Green over the middle for a 46-yard strike. Green initially bobbled the ball as the Catamount defensive secondary converged on the receiver, but was able to corral it just before he crossed the goal line for the early, 7-0, Commodore lead.
Smith atoned for his first turnover early in the first half as WCU's Chris Collins jarred the ball loose as the quarterback lunged for the end zone. It was his first forced fumble this season and eighth in his career. Junior lineman Charles Johnson pounced on the pigskin in the end zone for the touch back and WCU's first takeaway of the season.
Vanderbilt stretched its advantage late in the first quarter on the first of two Norman scores. Then, on the first play of the second quarter, Stacy took a direct snap in the "Wildcat" formation and darted in from nine yards out for the 21-0 lead just six seconds into the frame.
Western Carolina (0-1) had its best opportunity late in the first half after a Brett Upson rugby-style punt bounced off the back of one of his personal defenders resulting in a negative-24 yard boot, setting WCU up with the ball at the Vanderbilt 37-yard line. However, a sack on first down and short completed passes on second and third down led to a fourth-and-seven, but Jaynes' pass fell incomplete ending Western's threat.
In the second half, the Commodores scratched the scoreboard midway through the third quarter on a seven-yard run by Norman before putting 17 points up in the fourth to provide the final tally.
The WCU defensive secondary duo, Collins and junior Mitchell Bell, both recorded 11 total hits in the loss including seven solo stops and four assists apiece. For Bell, the 11 tackles were a career-high, while Collins missed his benchmark by one.
Sophomore Ricky Schwarz also posted a career-high with 10 tackles while senior Gene Singletary recorded two of WCU's six tackles for loss on the night.
Western Carolina returns home next Saturday, Sept. 12 for the home opener as the Catamounts entertain the Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs at E.J. Whitmire Stadium / Bob Waters Field. Kickoff is set for 6:00 pm.