#6 Wofford 28, #3 Appalachian State 14

SPARTANBURG, S.C. - No. 3 Appalachian State University squandered a pair of red-zone opportunities and allowed Wofford to convert 11-of-18 third downs and 4-of-4 fourth downs in a 28-14 loss to the eighth-ranked Terriers on Saturday afternoon at Gibbs Stadium.

Appalachian's second loss in its last 30 Southern Conference games snapped a three-game winning streak and dropped the Mountaineers to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in SoCon play.

With Wofford (3-1, 2-0 SoCon) controlling the ball for 38:30, ASU had only eight offensive possessions and was in position to score on five of them. However, the Mountaineers, who came into the game tied for fourth nationally with an 85.7-percent red-zone touchdown rate, came away empty-handed twice after driving the ball inside Wofford's 20 yard line. ASU left at least nine points on the field by missing all three of its field-goal attempts from 33, 52 and 33 yards.

Despite the ineffectiveness in the red zone, Appalachian, which trailed 14-0 in the first quarter and 21-7 after three periods, pulled within a touchdown at 21-14 on Andrew Peacock's nine-yard touchdown catch less than a minute into the fourth quarter. Momentum appeared to be shifting to the Mountaineers when on the ensuing kickoff, Wofford's Stephon Shelton picked up an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for firing the ball at an ASU tackler after the play, leaving the Terriers backed up to their own 17 yard line.

However, Wofford put the game away by driving 83 yards on 12 plays, capped by a 19-yard touchdown run that gave the Terriers a 28-14 lead with under eight minutes to play. Like they did throughout the ballgame, the Terriers did their biggest damage on third and fourth downs during the game-clinching series, converting a third down and a fourth down during the 12-play drive. 

In all, 157 of Wofford's 407 total yards came on 22 third and fourth down plays. The proficiency allowed the Terriers to punt only once in the entire ballgame and run 17 more plays than the Mountaineers, which led to a 407-247 advantage in total yardage.

Boone native Eric Breitenstein led all rushers with 173 yards on 33 carries but it was Donovan Johnson, who carried 10 times for 75 yards (7.5 avg.) and two touchdowns, and Derek Boyce, who amassed 49 yards on just four rushes (12.2 avg.) that were the Mountaineers' biggest nemeses throughout the afternoon.

The Mountaineers were led offensively by DeAndre Presley, who completed 19-of-32 passes without an interception for 146 yards. Five of those passes were hauled in by tight end Ben Jorden, who had a season-high five receptions for 55 yards. Peacock chipped in with four catches for 37 yards. Senior Brian Quick, who had 17 catches for 426 yards and seven touchdowns in three previous meetings with Wofford, was limited to just 15 yards on two receptions.

Defensively, linebacker John Rizor and Demery Brewer led all players with 10 tackles apiece. Brandon Grier and Lanston Tanyi added seven tackles each and Demetrius McCray intercepted one of Wofford's four pass attempts.

#1 Georgia Southern 41, Elon 14

ELON, N.C. - Top-ranked Georgia Southern proved too much for the host Elon Phoenix as the Eagles remained unbeaten with a 41-14 victory over Elon in Southern Conference football action at Rhodes Stadium on a beautiful fall Saturday afternoon.

Georgia Southern (4-0, 3-0) capitalized on three Phoenix interceptions, scoring 17 points off the miscues en route to 410 yards of total offense. The Eagles' triple-option offense gained 300 yards on the ground behind 116 yards on 11 carries from Robert Brown.

Despite taking an early 7-0 advantage, and putting the Eagles behind on the scoreboard for the first time in 2011, Elon (3-2, 1-1) dropped its first league game of the season. Phoenix quarterback Thomas Wilson threw for 202 yards including touchdown passes to Taylor Berry and Aaron Mellette. Mellette has caught a TD pass in six consecutive games.

Taking the opening kick, Wilson took the Phoenix 66 yards on seven plays, culminating the drive by hitting Berry for a 10-yard touchdown pass. After moving down the field with several completions to Mellette, Elon faced a third-and-two before Jamal Shuman took a swing pass for a 24-yard gain that set up a first-and-goal at the 10. On the next play Wilson found Berry who bowled through a tackler for the score.

The Elon defense forced a punt, but on the Phoenix's next possession, Georgia Southern's John Douglas tipped up a Wilson pass and picked it off, returning it to the five-yard line before Wilson forced him out. On the next play, Dominique Swope took the handoff up the middle for the score and the PAT tied the game at seven with 4:10 left in the first quarter.

Turnover troubles continued as Josh Rowe made a diving grab off a ball that bounced off a Phoenix receiver for the second straight GSU interception and the Eagles took over at the Elon 21. The Phoenix defense held and forced a 37-yard field goal from Adrian Mora as Georgia Southern took a 10-7 lead with 2:07 to play in the first period.

Georgia Southern started its next drive with a big run that gained 64 yards. On third-and-nine at the Elon 12, Jaybo Shaw dropped back to pass and found Swope who eluded two Phoenix defenders for the touchdown.  The play capped a six-play, 90-yard drive that took 2:57 off the clock and gave the Eagles a 17-7 lead with 11:09 on the clock in the first half.

The Elon offense was unable to produce and the Eagles found the end zone once again before halftime. The Eagles marched to the Elon 28 where it faced a fourth-and-two before Shaw ran around the left end for a gain of five to the Elon 23. Joshua Jones came up with a big six-yard sack for Elon on the next snap, but, on second down, Shaw took off for an 18-yard run to set up first-and-10 at the Elon 11.  With time running out in the half, Shaw completed a six-yard pass to Johnathan Bryant as the Eagles built a 24-7 lead with less than 10 seconds remaining in the half.

After forcing Georgia Southern to punt on the opening drive of the second half, Elon began its first possession at its own 33.  Wilson completed four passes for 50 yards to Mellette on a drive that resulted in a 20-yard TD pass to the junior wide receiver and pulled the Phoenix within 10, 24-14.

A 43-yard kickoff return by Laron Scott gave Georgia Southern good field position on the ensuing drive as the Eagles started at their own 45. The Eagles used five consecutive runs to move to the Elon 28.  On third-and-seven from the 25, Shaw threw short to Nico Hickey who raced in for the score and a 31-14 Georgia Southern lead with 3:55 to play in the third quarter.

The Eagles tacked on two final scores in the fourth quarter, the first on a Robert Brown 23-yard run and the second on a 27-yard field goal by Mora that provided the final margin.

Jones led all players with a 13-tackle performance.  His day included six solo tackles and two sacks as the Phoenix upped its season sack total to 11.  Chandler Wrightenberry forced two fumbles and had nine total tackles (seven of the solo variety) for the Phoenix.

Georgia Southern's Scott posted a team-high 10 tackles and broke up two passes.

Samford 41, Gardner-Webb 14

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford football team tallied 464 yards of total offense on its way to a 41-14 non-conference win over the Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs Saturday afternoon at Seibert Stadium.

With the win, Samford improves to 2-2. Gardner-Webb drops to 1-3 with the loss.

Individually for Samford, quarterback Dustin Taliaferro completed 16-of-29 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns. Kelsey Pope caught six passes for 125 yards and a touchdown. Fabian Truss rushed 13 times for 86 yards and a touchdown. Chris Cephus had two catches for 40 yards and a score.

Samford's Phillip Ketcham blocked a punt and Stanley Robinson returned it for a touchdown in the first quarter. Aaron Bethune, starting in place of injured Alex Davis, led the defense with seven tackles and a fumble recovery. Alvin Hines II and Keith Shoulders also had seven tackles each. Truss also returned two kicks for a total of 83 yards.

For Gardner-Webb, Kenny Little rushed 27 times for 162 yards and a touchdown. Exavier Johnson completed 7-of-20 passes for 77 yards and a touchdown.

After the Samford defense forced a three-and-out on Gardner-Webb's first possession, Ketcham blocked the ensuing punt and Robinson returned it 13 yards for a touchdown. Cameron Yaw kicked the extra point for a 7-0 Samford lead with 12:49 to go in the first quarter. The play marked the first time a Samford player returned a blocked punt for a touchdown since Darion Sutton returned a blocked punt 24 yards for a score against Newberry College on Sept. 16, 2010.

On Samford's first offensive possession of the game, the Bulldogs struck for another score. Taliaferro hit Pope for a 60-yard touchdown pass with 8:57 to go in the first quarter. Yaw's extra point gave Samford a 14-0 lead.

Gardner-Webb got on the scoreboard when Johnson hit Jordan Paul for a 24-yard score. Trever Austin added the extra point to cut the Samford lead to 14-7 with 4:53 left in the first quarter.

Samford added to its lead again when Yaw kicked a 27-yard field goal. Yaw's kick gave Samford a 17-7 lead with 2:07 remaining in the first quarter. Yaw added another field goal, this one from 20-yards out, with 8:13 left in the second quarter to push Samford's lead to 20-7.

Samford struck again when Taliaferro hit Cephus on a 25-yard touchdown on a 4th-and-11 play with 7:05 to go in the second quarter. Yaw's PAT gave Samford a 27-7 lead.

Samford got the second-half scoring started when Truss scored on a 17-yard run with 10:00 to go in the third quarter. Yaw's PAT pushed Samford's lead to 34-7.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, Taliaferro hit Kelvin Clay for a seven-yard touchdown. Yaw kicked the extra point to make the score 41-7.

Gardner-Webb put the final points on the scoreboard when Little scored on a 42-yard run. Austin added the extra point to make the final score 41-14. 
 

The Citadel 28, #17 Chattanooga 27

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. --- The 15th-ranked Chattanooga Mocs (2-3/0-2) were upset 28-27 by The Citadel (2-2/1-2) at Finley Stadium Saturday evening. It was a tale of two halves as UTC led by 24 at intermission only to see the Bulldogs reel off 28 unanswered points in the final 21 minutes.

B.J. Coleman led the UTC offense,  completing 17 of 27 passes for 253 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. True freshman Ron Moore, Jr. saw his first game action of the season, catching two passes for 112 yards and a touchdown.

Bulldogs quarterback Ben Dupree led The Citadel with 83 yards rushing on 22 carries with two touchdowns. Darien Robinson added 79 yards on 11 rushes and a score.

The Mocs dominated play in the opening half on both sides of the ball. The offense posted 252 yards, averaging seven yards per play. Coleman was 13 of 18 for 207 yards and his touchdown to Moore.

Defensively, UTC was even more dominant. It held the Bulldogs to a mere 62 yards of offense, all on the ground. Its first of two turnovers forced set up a two-yard Coleman scamper for a score to make it 7-0 Mocs.

On the next Chattanooga possession, Coleman found Moore streaking down the left sideline for a 60-yard scoring strike. It was Moore's first collegiate catch and the Mocs were rolling at 14-0. UTC tacked on a Chris Awuah one-yard touchdown run and a Nick Pollard 29-yard field goal for a healthy 24-0 cushion going into halftime.

Another Bulldogs turnover gave UTC the ball on five-yard line, but the Mocs settled for a Pollard 21 yarder for the 27-0 advantage. It was the last trip into the red zone for Chattanooga on the evening.

The Citadel got on the board with a Dupree sneak with 5:21 left in the third to make it 27-7. It took advantage of a short field after an interception was returned to the UTC 20. He scored again on a 42-yard breakaway with seven seconds to go in the quarter to get within 27-14.

Special teams bit the Mocs midway through the fourth as Mike Hammons had a kick blocked by Chris Billingslea that Rod Harland picked up on the 40 and returned for a score to make it 27-21.

Robinson made the comeback complete with a three-yard dash at 2:24 of the fourth, driving 71 yards in eight plays. That capped the comeback as an interception on the next Chattanooga possession and the offense getting a first down to run out the clock.

The Bulldogs amassed 206 yards in the second half, 203 on the ground. Their defense also stepped up allowing the Mocs just 57 yards, 11 on the ground and 46 in the air, and just four first downs.

Ryan Consiglio and Wes Dothard continue to pace the UTC defense. Dothard had a game-high and career-high 12 stops with two-and-a-half for loss, a sack and a forced fumble. Consiglio added 10 tackles, two for loss.

Harland led the Bulldogs with seven tackles with a sack to go with his touchdown. Brandon McCaddie added six tackles, two pass breakups and had 30 return yards on his interception that set up The Citadel's first score.

 
Furman 47, Western Carolina 21

CULLOWHEE, N.C. -- Chris Forcier passed for 237 yards and four touchdowns to power Furman past Western Carolina, 47-21, in Southern Conference football action Saturday evening at E.J. Whitmire Stadium.

Forcier completed 14 of 17 passes, including touchdown strikes covering 29, 42, 1, and 34 yards in keying Furman (3-1, 2-0 SoCon) to its sixth consecutive victory over Western Carolina (1-3, 0-2 SoCon). In his last two games, Forcier, a senior from San Diego, Calif., has completed 26 of 33 attempts for 495 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Jerodis Williams, the SoCon's leading rusher, ran 28 times for 175 yards and a touchdown to key a ground attack that racked up 268 yards. Tight end Colin Anderson caught five passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns. Furman posted a 537-341 advantage in total offense.

All-SoCon defensive end Josh Lynn keyed Furman defensively with five tackles and two sacks, part of a four-sack effort by the Paladins, who upped their season tally to nine, thereby tying last year's 11-game sacks total.

Junior bandit Mitch McGrath's interception and 7-yard return to the Western Carolina 29 set up the Paladins' first score, which came on the next play when Forcier connected with tight end Colin Anderson on a 29-yard scoring toss with 6:52 to go in the first quarter.

Forcier gave the Paladins a 13-0 lead five minutes into the second quarter by converting a 3rd-and-11 play with a 42-yard scoring hook-up with Tyler Maples.

Furman turned aside Western Carolina's best scoring chance of the first half when cornerback Derek Murray gathered in a batted pass at the Furman 10 and returned it to the 17. On the next play Williams ripped off an 43-yard run to the Catamount 40. An 18-yard Forcier completion to Daniel McFadden gave the Paladins a first down at the Western Carolina 22, and four plays later Williams bolted into the end zone from nine yards out to make it 20-0 with 1:40 to go in the first half.

Western Carolina opened the second half with a George Richardson 99-yard kickoff return, but Furman answered with an 11-play, 67-yard scoring drive. Rolling to his right Forcier found Tony Caldwell open in the back of the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown toss for a 27-7 advantage.

The Paladins tacked on a Tersoo Uhaa 4-yard scoring run, Forcier's fourth touchdown pass of the game, a 34-yard connnection with Colin Anderson, and a 1-yard scoring plunge by backup quarterback Dakota Derrick.