Appalachian State 58, North Carolina A&T 6

BOONE, N.C. - Senior quarterback DeAndre Presley completed 19-of-23 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns, and ran for two more as Appalachian State University football downed North Carolina A&T, 58-6, in the home opener on Saturday. The victory was head coach Jerry Moore's 200th at Appalachian.

Brian Quick found himself on the receiving end of 11 passes for 113 yards and a pair of touchdowns, including the first score of the game.

The Apps (1-1) jumped out to a 14-0 lead after scoring on their first two possessions.

In the second quarter, Cedric Baker Boney added seven points on a three-yard touchdown run to boost the advantage to 21-0 heading into the intermission. Baker Boney carried the ball 12 times for 111 yards, including a 48-yarder.

The Aggies (0-1) cut into the lead with a touchdown early in the third quarter on a 40-yard pass from Lewis Kindle to Wallace Miles. Appalachian then responded with three more touchdowns in the quarter, including a second TD reception by Quick, a three-yard Presley scamper and a one-yard run by backup quarterback Jamal Jackson.

Sam Martin tacked on a 51-yard field goal to open the fourth quarter, and ASU added two more scores to finish off the game. Doug Middleton ran back a 97-yard interception for a score and Jackson rushed in a second time, from three yards out.

 

Clemson 35, Wofford 27

CLEMSON, S.C. – The Wofford football team was down by one point at the start of the fourth quarter at Clemson on Saturday, however the Tigers pulled away for a 35-27 final score at Memorial Stadium. The Terriers were up 21-13 in the second quarter and were tied at 21 at the half.

The Terriers are 1-1 and Clemson is 2-0 on the season. Wofford was led by Mitch Allen with 89 rushing yards and 127 passing yards and was responsible for two touchdowns. Brenton Bersin had two catches for 127 yards, while Eric Breitenstein had 62 yards and a touchdown. Alvin Scioneaux added two sacks and Mike Niam led the team with 12 tackles. Clemson was led by Andre Ellington with 165 rushing yards and a touchdown.

The Terriers won the toss and deferred to the second half. On the opening drive for the Tigers, after picking up a first down a fourth-and-one attempt was stopped by Phillip LeGrande and Clemson turned it over on downs. Wofford got on the scoreboard first with a 27-yard run by Mitch Allen with 10:12 in the first quarter for the 7-0 lead.

Clemson gained one first down on their next drive before punting. Wofford then was forced three-and-out and punted and the Tigers got the ball back at the Terrier 45-yard line with 6:07 on the clock. Clemson wasted little time in scoring with a 42-yard touchdown pass from Tajh Boyd to Martavis Bryant with 5:32 left in the first quarter. The point after failed, making it a 7-6 game.

After picking up a first down rushing by Donovan Johnson, Mitch Allen found a wide open Brenton Bersin for a 66-yard touchdown catch. The Terriers had a 14-6 lead with 4:52 on the clock in the first quarter. The Tigers answered the score with a big play of their own, a 74-yard touchdown run by Andre Ellington and the score was 14-13 with 4:36 on the clock in the first.

Wofford then went three-and-out on the ensuing possession. The Terrier defense then responded by forcing a three-and-out and punt by the Tigers offense. Eric Breitenstein picked up a first down to end the first quarter, but the drive ended with a punt. Clemson gained two first downs before attempting a 43-yard field goal that was wide right. Wofford gained a first down and the on fourth down, the Terriers lined up to punt. Kasey Redfern ran the ball for 28-yards and a first down, plus a personal foul moved the ball to the 13-yard line. Allen added a first down and Eric Breitenstein scored on a two-yard run for a 21-13 lead at 4:01 in the second quarter.

Clemson was able to tie the game at 21 with 2:03 left in the half after a 38-yard touchdown to Sammy Watkins and a two-point conversion. Wofford then went three-and-out and punted with Brian Kass at quarterback. Back-to-back sacks by Alvin Scioneaux and Mike Niam forced the Tigers to punt and the half ended with the game tied.

To open the second half, Wofford had a 61-yard completion from Mitch Allen to Brenton Bersin for a first down. Christian Reed hit a 24-yard field goal to take a 24-21 lead with 11:46 in the third quarter.

Clemson then moved the ball with three first downs and converted a fourth-and-one. Tajh Boyd ran the ball in from five yards out and the Tigers took their first lead of the day at 28-24 with 7:54 on the clock in the third. Wofford picked up three rushing first downs and then moved 15 yards on a facemask call. After another first down, Christian Reed hit a 38-yard field goal to make the score 28-27 with 2:04 in the third quarter.

The Tigers were able to drive 58 yard in eight plays and scored on a 17-yard touchdown to DeAndre Hopkins at 14:35 in the fourth quarter for a 35-27 advantage. On the next drive by Wofford, Mitch Allen was intercepted by Kantrell Brown and returned 43 yards to the 17-yard line. The Tigers tried a fake field goal, but Alvin Scioneaux came up with a fumbled pitch.

Wofford had a fourth-and-two that was converted by Mitch Allen with a 31-yard run. However the Terriers had to punt with 8:35 left in the game. Clemson picked up one first down before having to punt back to the Terriers. On fourth-and-one, Wofford failed to convert and the ball went back to Clemson with 3:30 remaining. The Tigers gained one first down before running out the clock on the 35-27 contest.

Wofford had 399 total yards, with 272 on the ground. Clemson had 476 total yards, 261 of which were passing. Wofford had the time of possession advantage by a 33:27 to 26:33 margin. Wofford was 6-of-16 on third downs and 2-of-3 on fourth down. Clemson was 7-of-15 on third down and converted 1-of-3 fourth downs.

The Terriers will take next weekend off before hosting Samford in the first SoCon contest of the season on September 24 at Gibbs Stadium.

 

Furman 16, The Citadel 6

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Chas Short kicked three field goals, including a career long 46-yarder with just under three minutes remaining, to lift Furman (1-1, 1-0 SoCon) to a 16-6 victory over The Citadel (1-1, 0-1 SoCon) in the Southern Conference season opener for both schools Saturday evening at Johnson Hagood Stadium.

The win marked the first career triumph for Furman head coach Bruce Fowler, who assumed the reigns of the program last December after serving nine seasons as defensive coordinator at Vanderbilt.  He spent 18 years as an assistant coach at Furman, his alma mater, from 1984-2001.

Short's accurate foot proved to the difference in the contest, accounting for 10 of the Paladins' 16 points.   In only his second contest since taking over the team's placekicking duties, the senior from Thomaston, Ga., who has also handled Furman's punting chores the last two seasons, converted all three field goal chances, making good from 20, 27, and 46 yards.  His lone punt in the contest covered 48 yards.

Furman's winning effort also featured a strong rushing performance by junior Jerodis Williams, who followed up a season opening 142-yard, 3-touchdown outing versus Coastal Carolina with a 28-carry, 122-yard display against The Citadel.

Paladin quarterback Chris Forcier completed all nine of his pass attempts for 56 yards and a touchdown, which came on a 4-yard strike to Sederrik Cunningham to give Furman a 13-6 halftime lead

Mitch McGrath led the Paladin defense with 10 tackles, including two for-loss, and Greg Worthy also racked up 10 stops.

Furman used a pair Short field goals to grab an early 6-0 lead.  His 20-yard field goal capped the Paladins' initial drive of the contest, which covered 51 yards in 10 plays.  He later added a 27-yard effort with a 1:17 to go in the first quarter for a 6-0 advantage after a short 19-yard Bulldog punt gave Furman the ball at its own 45.

The Citadel used solid ball control in the second quarter to tie the game with two Ryan Sellers' field goals.  Sellers got the Bulldogs on the board with a 20-yard boot, which culminated an 18-play, 74-yard drive that consumed 9:04 of clock.

Two plays later the Bulldogs found themselves back in business when Forcier's option pitch went to the turf and was recovered by Davis Boyle at the Paladin 35.  From there Citadel moved to the Furman 17, where Sellers connected again from 35 yards out to tied the game at 6-6 with 3:13 to go in the half.

At that point the Paladins engineered their most effective drive of the contest, with Forcier and Williams, combining to account for 71 yards in 10 plays.  A Forcier 4-yard strike to Cunningham in the back of the end zone with 25 seconds showing on the clock gave the Paladins a 13-6 lead.

Furman's defense forced a Citadel punt in the third quarter on the Bulldogs lone possession of the period, after which Furman responded with a 16-play, 78-yard drive.  The possession failed to net points, however, after Forcier's 17-yard ramble ended with a fumble, which was recovered by Davis Boyle and the Bulldog 2.

The Citadel pushed the ball out to the Furman 49, but the Bulldogs failed to convert a fourth-and-five play with 6:23 remaining.

From there the Paladins drove to the Bulldog 29, where Short split found the mark with a 46-yard field goal with 2:58 to go, giving Furman a 16-6 advantage.

The Citadel forged a 301-271 advantage in total offense on the strength of 64-yard drive on its final possession that ended with an interception and 20-yard return by Paladin redshirt freshman strong safety Marcus McMorris.

Furman, which is off next Saturday, plays its home season opener on Sept. 24 versus Presbyterian.

Chattanooga 38, Jacksonville State 17

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. --- The Chattanooga Mocs (1-1) scored 21 unanswered in running past Jacksonville State 38-17 on a perfect night at Finley Stadium.  The 23rd-ranked Mocs defense limited the Gamecocks (1-1), ranked No. 10 in the country, to just 17 second-half yards to lead the romp.

Chattanooga's offense was more than up to the task of matching its defense.  It accumulated 508 total yards with a very balanced attack.  The running game churned out 212 yards on 44 carries, while the Mocs gained 296 yards in the air.

Senior wide receiver Joel Bradford tied his career high with 15 catches for 162 yards and one touchdown.  He helped fuel a strong night from B.J. Coleman who had 336 yards of total offense.

Coleman completed 23 of 33 passes for 296 yards and two scores.  He also picked up a career-high 40 yards on the ground on seven carries, two of which were sacks for six yards lost.

Chris Awuah was a catalyst as well.  He had 77 yards on 17 carries and two scores, while adding 57 yards on three catches.

The Mocs struck first taking advantage of good field position after a 30-yard punt by Coty Blanchard gave them the ball on the JSU 43.  Coleman ran for 19 yards to the 23-yard line and Awuah took over from there.  Following an eight-yard run over left tackle, he went around the right end beating the Gamecocks defense to the pylon for a 15-yard score.

Jacksonville State answered right away.  Taking over on its own 30, the Gamecocks marched 70 yards in eight plays capped by a Washaun Ealey four-yard run.  The big strike came on second-and-13 from the UTC 46 when Blanchard hit Alan Bonner for 39 yards to the Mocs seven.  Ealey scored two plays later.

The Gamecocks continued their hot first quarter on their next possession.  JSU looked stymied choosing to go for it on fourth-and-four on its own 48.  But Blanchard forced an offsides and on the free play, pass interference on the Mocs moved the Gamecocks 15 yards to the 37. Three plays later, Calvin Middleton dashed in from eight yards to make it 14-7 JSU.

It was Chattanooga's turn to score on back-to-back drives with 10 straight points.  The first came on a laser strike from Coleman to Marlon Anthony for 24 yards.  Nick Pollard regained the lead 17-14 with a 25-yard chip shot.

The Gamecocks scored for the final time answering the Mocs drive with a 28-yard James Esco effort.  But that's when the Mocs defense took over.  To that point, JSU had 190 yards on 26 plays.  From then on, UTC slammed the door allowing 37 yards on 23 plays including just 17 in the second half.

Coleman and Bradford put the Mocs up for good on a 47-yard hook up on a deflection.  Awuah's one-yard third quarter plunge opened the second half, while Wes Dothard returned an interception 30 yards for a score to cement the final score at 38-17.

D.J. Key led the defense with nine tackles with two for loss (13 yards) including a fourth quarter sack.  He forced a fumble and broke up one pass.  Ryan Consiglio added seven stops, while Joshua Williams had six tackles with one-and-a-half sacks.

Blanchard completed 13 of 23 passes for 164 yards with an interception.  Ealey gained 43 on 11 carries with the one score.  Alan Bonner had 61 yards receiving on four catches.

Rashard Smith led the Gamecocks defense with eight tackles.  Rodney Garrott had four tackles, two for loss, with one sack and three quarterback hurries.

The Mocs hit the road next Saturday, traveling to Richmond, Ky., to face another Ohio Valley Conference opponent, Eastern Kentucky. Kickoff is slated for 6:00 p.m. Fans can follow all the action on the Mocs Sports Network (ESPN 105.1 FM).

 

Georgia Southern 62, Tusculum 21

STATESBORO, Ga. - The Georgia Southern Football team pulled away from Tusculum (1-1) in the second half, outscoring the Pioneers 38-7 to improve to 2-0 in front of a crowd of 21,812 at Paulson Stadium. Powered by four backs that tallied more than 50 yards each, the Eagles' offense rushed for 351 yards, while Jaybo Shaw completed six passes for 181 yards in the air. J.J Wilcox led the ground game with 97 yards and the air attack with 63 yards on two catches.

GSU separated themselves from Tusculum in the second half after leading 24-14 at half. The Eagle defense shut out the Pioneers' offense, but a failed onside kick resulted in a 38-yard kickoff return touchdown for Matt Levine in the third quarter. Empowered by the second largest home-opening crowd in Paulson Stadium history, Georgia Southern jumped out to a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter.

Despite the crowd and the early deficit, Tusculum scored twice in the second quarter to pull within seven at 21-14, with just 26 seconds left in the half. GSU capitalized on a 55-yard kickoff return by Laron Scott, and Adrian Mora drained a last second field goal to put the Eagles up by 10. Scott also broke the GSU career kick return mark on the return, passing Karl Miller whose 1,386 yards were the previous best.

The Eagles reeled off three-straight touchdowns out of the halftime gate. In all the team scored on all but two drives in the second half. One ended in a fumble, the other ended when the clock ran out to end the game. The second half allowed GSU to play some news guys, including Dominique Swope, who rushed for 59 yards on five carries and a touchdown.

Bo Cordell put on a passing display, tallying 321 yards and two touchdowns on 35 completions. He was sacked six times but attempted 52 passes on the day. Cordell provided nearly all of Tusculum's 339 total yards of offense. The Eagles' defense forced four punts and two turnovers on downs to hold the Pioneer offense in check.

Saturday Georgia Southern honored Gene Bishop, the longtime benefactor who passed away in March. At halftime, Bishop's family was presented with a framed jersey as thanks for many years of giving to Georgia Southern. This season the Eagles are wearing special helmet stickers with the letters "GB" in memory of Gene.

Georgia Southern has the week off and will return to action on September 24th against Western Carolina at Paulson Stadium beginning at 6 p.m.


Western Carolina 52, Mars Hill 31

CULLOWHEE, N.C. (AP) - Brandon Pechloff threw two touchdown passes in the second quarter as Western Carolina broke open a close game and went on to beat Mars Hill 52-31 on Saturday night.

Pechloff connected with Jacoby Mitchell for a 75-yard score that put the Catamounts (1-1) ahead 31-17. After a three-and-out by the Lions (1-1), a Division II team, Pechloff struck again on Western Carolina's next play, finding Deja Alexander for a 46-yard score to make it 38-17.

Western Carolina's Shaun Warren and Mars Hill's Jonas Randolph put on a ground-game duel in the first quarter, which ended with the Catamounts ahead 21-14. Warren scored on runs of 11, 30 and 10 yards, and Randolph scored from 56 and 20 yards.

Warren finished with 203 yards on 21 carries, and Randolph had 174 yards on 25 carries.

Mars Hill's Jon Richt, the son of Georgia coach Mark Richt, was 11-for-33 for 105 yards.

 

Samford 48, Stillman 6

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford football team rolled up 473 yards of total offense on its way to a 48-6 win over the Stillman Tigers Saturday evening at Seibert Stadium.

With the win, Samford improves to 1-1 on the season. Stillman drops to 1-1 with the loss. The game was played in front of a crowd of 5,942.

 

Samford sophomore wide receiver Kelsey Pope caught six passes for 52 yards and two touchdowns, and he rushed five times for 74 yards and two scores. The four touchdowns tie a Samford single-game record. The record is shared with five other players, most recently Steve Hayden against Morgan State in 1995.

Sophomore running back Fabian Truss rushed nine times for 76 yards and a touchdown. Truss also returned three kickoffs for an average of 37 yards per return. Senior quarterback Dustin Taliaferro completed 14-of-19 passes for 126 yards and two touchdowns. Backup quarterback Ben Neill completed 6-of-9 passes for 43 yards in his first action at quarterback for the Bulldogs.

Defensively for Samford, Corey White had an interception, which he returned for a 22-yard touchdown. Ben Carpenter led the Bulldogs in tackles with seven. Calvin Ruff had two sacks for the Bulldogs. The Samford defense held Stillman to just 45 rushing yards in the contest.

For Stillman, Dondre Purnell completed 4-of-8 passes for 129 yards and one interception. Damian Ford caught two passes for 106 yards for the Tigers.

Samford put the first points on the scoreboard on the opening drive of the game. Truss scored on a one-yard run to cap a seven-play 43-yard drive that took 2:45 off the clock. Cameron Yaw added the extra point to give Samford a 7-0 lead. In the scoring drive, Truss accounted for 33 of the 43 yards.

On Stillman's first drive, the Tigers' Alejandro Perez-Huerta kicked a 22-yard field goal to cut the Samford lead to 7-3 with 9:38 to go in the first quarter. The score was set up by a 78-yard pass from Purnell to Ford on the first play of the drive, giving Stillman the ball at the Samford five-yard line.

Stillman added another field goal late in the first quarter to cut the Samford lead to 7-6. Huerta kicked his second field goal of the game, this one from 33-yards out with 2:27 to go in the first quarter.

Samford's Pope scored his first touchdown of the day on a 29-yard reverse with 1:14 to go in the first quarter. Yaw added the extra point to extend the Bulldogs' lead to 14-6.

The Bulldogs added another touchdown when Taliaferro hit Pope on an eight-yard touchdown with 9:47 to go in the second quarter. Yaw added the extra point to make the score 21-6.

On Stillman's next possession, Samford's White intercepted a Purnell pass and returned it 22 yards for a touchdown. Yaw added the extra point to push Samford's lead to 28-6 with 8:59 left in the second quarter.

Samford tacked on one more first-half score when Pope ran for a 24-yard touchdown with 2:09 left before halftime. Yaw's PAT gave Samford a 35-6 lead heading into halftime.

Pope scored his fourth touchdown of the game on a 10-yard reception from Taliaferro with 9:49 to go in the third quarter. Yaw's PAT made the score 42-6. Yaw added a 27-yard field goal in the third quarter and a 23-yard kick in the fourth quarter to make the final score 48-6.

Highlights from the game will be available on www.samfordsports.com within 48 hours of the game

Samford will take next week off from competition. The Bulldogs will return to action on Saturday, Sept. 24, when they travel to Spartanburg, S.C., to take on the Wofford Terriers. The game is scheduled for a 6 p.m. (CT) kickoff from Wofford's Gibbs Stadium.

 

Elon 42, Concord 10

ELON, N.C. – Elon head coach Jason Swepson got his first career victory on a beautiful night at Rhodes Stadium as the Phoenix posted a dominating 42-10 victory over the visiting Concord Mountain Lions on Saturday night. The Phoenix gained 400 yards of total offense and second-half scores included a blocked punt returned for a touchdown and a 99-yard interception return for another score.
 
Elon moves to 1-1 on the young season while Concord dropped to 0-2 overall.
 
The night featured many highlights including the retiring of former Phoenix quarterback Scott Riddle’s number 16 jersey prior to kickoff. Elon also welcomed the 2011 Elon Sports Hall of Fame Class featuring Elliott Armstrong, Priscilla Awkard, Amy Williamson Harris and Mitch Rippy at halftime.
 
Elon received great field position when it received the opening kickoff as Andre Davis brought the kick back 26 yards to the Elon 38.  The drive began with back-to-back eight-yard runs by Thomas Wilson and A.J. Harris to move into Concord territory.  Elon picked up seven yards on its next three plays to face a fourth-and-three from the Concord 39 before Wilson dropped back and found Aaron Mellette for an eight-yard completion to keep the drive alive.  Wilson quickly found Mellette again, this time for a 29-yard strike to set up a first-and-goal at the two.  Two plays later, Wilson connected with Matt Eastman in the front left portion of the end zone as the Phoenix took a 7-0 lead less than four minutes into the contest.
 
On the first play of the second quarter, Wilson fired a pass to Davis who grabbed it for the first touchdown of his career.  It was a six-yard strike as the Phoenix built a 14-0 advantage just four seconds into the second period.  The Elon drive started at its own 43 after a Mountain Lion punt.  After a nine-yard run by Harris, Wilson found Christian Dennis over the middle for another 16 yards to the Concord 32.  The Phoenix moved the ball to the eight a few plays later when Wilson ran for seven yards on second-and-six.  Two plays later Wilson found Davis for the score.  The drive went 57 yards on eight plays and took 2:47 off the clock.
 
The next Phoenix possession started at its own 48-yard line.  On the first play, Wilson went back to Davis who grabbed the pass for a 25-yard gain to the Concord 27.  Mellette took a handoff on a reverse and raced for another Elon first down as he gained 12 yards.  On third-and-five from the Mountain Lion 10, Wilson connected with Darrius McQueen for a first down at the five.  On third-and-goal Wilson lobbed a pass into the back left corner of the end zone where Mellette leaped and came down with his second touchdown reception of the year as Elon’s lead stretched to 21-0 with 9:35 left in the first half.
 
Andrew Gondor returned the ensuing kickoff 67 yards before Chandler Wrightenberry shoved him out at the Elon 22-yard line.  The Mountain Lions got on the board with an 11-yard run by Kennedy with just under 9:00 to play in the half.  The PAT made it a 21-7 game.
 
Dontay Taylor barreled through multiple Mountain Lion tacklers for Elon’s fourth touchdown of the first half, this one a 21-yard run that capped a seven-play, 59-yard drive gave the Phoenix a 28-7 lead.
 
Concord was forced to punt on the opening drive of the second half after being pinned back at its own 17-yard line.  Elon’s Quinton Lightfoot knifed in through the protection to block the punt.  Harris then snared the punt out of midair at the 11-yard line and brought it back for a touchdown to increase the Phoenix edge to 35-7.
 
A promising late third quarter drive for Concord began at its own 43.  The Mountain Lions drove to the Elon nine before Olufemi Lamikanra’s fourth-down sack stopped the drive.
 
After forcing the Phoenix to punt, Concord took possession at its own 10 yard line with 12:52 remaining in the game.  On first-and-five after an Elon offside penalty, Kennedy ran for 17 yards out to the Mountain Lions’ 32.  Grossi connected with Randall Hawkins for a 37-yard strike on the next play to move all the way to the Elon 31.  On third-and-three from the Elon 24, Grossi hit Hawkins for four yards to sustain the drive.  On second-and-11, Jonathan Conner stepped in front of a Grossi pass and brought it back 99 yards for the touchdown.  The return was the second-longest interception return in school history, falling one yard shy of the 100-yard return by Roosevelt Brooks against Mars Hill in 1991.
 
Concord tacked on its final three points with just 1:34 left in the game on John Scritchfield’s 36-yard field goal.
 
Wilson finished the game with 22 completions on 27 pass attempts for 201 yards and three touchdowns.  For the second consecutive game Taylor led the Phoenix in rushing.  He rumbled for 75 yards and one score on 12 carries.  All told, Elon rushed 39 times for 199 yards.
 
Grossi passed for 99 yards while completing 11 of his 25 passes.  Kennedy toted the ball 22 times for 129 yards and a touchdown.
 
On defense, Elon’s Gary Coates amassed eight total tackles, including six solo stops.  He also had 1.5 tackles for a loss, forced a fumble and tallied one quarterback hurry.  Lamikanra had two of the three Phoenix sacks with Tony Thompson claiming the other.
 
Elon will make the short trek down Interstate 40 next weekend to take on North Carolina Central in Durham, N.C. on Saturday night.  Kick is set for 6 p.m.