Note: Furman, Samford and Chattanooga finished the year with identical 6-2 records in conference play and are all 2013 Southern Conference co-champions. Furman wins the league's automatic bid to the FCS playoffs by way of the league's tiebreaker procedures.
Furman 27, Wofford 14
GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Wofford football team was defeated 27-14 by Furman on Saturday afternoon at Paladin Stadium to end the 2013 season. The Terriers jumped out to a 14-0 lead, but Furman scored the next 27 points to earn the victory.
The Terriers finish the year at 5-6 and 4-4 in the Southern Conference. Furman is 7-5 overall and 6-2 in the SoCon, earning a share of the 2013 Southern Conference championship. Wofford was led by Caleb Lucas with 71 rushing yards and Will Gay with 69 yards on the ground. The Paladins were led by quarterback Reese Hannon with 326 yards passing and Hank McCloud with 78 rushing yards.
Both teams gained one first down and punted on their respective opening drives. The Paladins then picked up two first downs before punting. On the next drive for the Terriers, a 25-yard run by Caleb Lucas set up a five-yard touchdown run by Jonny Martin and a 7-0 lead at 4:17 in the first quarter.
Furman had one first down, but punted back to the Terriers with 38 seconds on the clock in the opening quarter. Wofford picked up one first down before punting, but the Paladins went three-and-out. The Terriers started at the 10-yard line and gained six first downs as they covered the 90-yards in 15 plays, the final one a 2-yard touchdown run by Evan Jacks for a 14-0 lead at 5:00 in the second quarter.
The Paladins were inside the 20-yard line when Chris Armfield intercepted Reese Hannon at the goal line and returned it to the 13-yard line with 3:40 left in the half. Wofford fumbled on the third play of the drive at the 21-yard line and Ira McCune recovered for the Paladins. On the next play, Furman scored on a touchdown pass to Andrej Suttles to make it a 14-7 score with 2:21 on the clock. Wofford gained one first down, but punted back to Furman with 1:18 remaining. The Paladins added a 31-yard field goal with six seconds left to make it a 14-10 contest. Wofford took a knee to end the half.
To open the second half, Wofford converted a fourth-and-one at the 40-yard line but then had to punt. Furman used a 24-yard pass and a 31-yard pass to set-up a 2-yard touchdown run by Hank McCloud. The Paladins had a 17-14 lead with 8:05 on the clock in the third quarter. Michael Weimer entered the game at quarterback for the next drive and after a first down the Terriers lined up to punt. The pass by Kasey Redfern on the fake punt was intercepted by Furman at the 35-yard line.
Furman was able to add to the lead on a 7-yard touchdown run by Tanner Skogen to take a 24-14 lead at the 14:55 mark of the fourth quarter. James Lawson took over at quarterback for the Terriers and the team moved inside the 20-yard line before Austin Williams picked off a pass in the endzone. The Paladins added to the lead with a 48-yard field goal by Ray Early for a 27-14 score with 6:41 left in the game. On the next drive for Wofford, the Terriers moved the ball to the seven-yard line. On fourth-and-two, the run was a yard short and Furman took over on downs with 2:55 left in the game. The Paladins gained one first down and ran out the clock for the win.
Wofford had 381 total yards, with 356 on the ground. Furman had 417 total yards, 326 of which were passing. Wofford had 26 first downs, while Furman had 21. Wofford was 7-of-14 on third downs and 1-of-3 on fourth downs. Furman was 7-of-14 on third down. Wofford had five penalties and Furman had six. Furman had a 31:41 to 28:19 time of possession advantage.
Samford 33, Elon 32
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Samford senior quarterback Andy Summerlin hit senior wide receiver Chris Cephus for a 12-yard touchdown in the corner of the end zone with seven seconds left to lift the 23rd-ranked Bulldog football team to a 33-32 win over Elon to clinch a share of the Southern Conference title Saturday afternoon at Seibert Stadium.
Samford finishes its regular season with a record of 8-4 overall and 6-2 in SoCon play.
The title is the first Division I conference championship in the history of the football program at Samford. Elon finishes its season with a record of 2-10 overall and 1-7 in league play.
Trailing, 32-27, Samford got the ball back with 2:31 to play. Summerlin led the Bulldogs on a 12-play, 75-yard drive that took 2:24 off the fourth-quarter clock. The game-winning touchdown pass came on a fourth-and-goal play from the Bulldogs’ 12-yard line.
In the game, Summerlin completed 36-of-55 passes for 415 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions. This marked the third 400-yard passing game of the season for Summerlin.
Cephus caught six passes for 90 yards and the one touchdown at the end of the game. Kelsey Pope had seven catches for 45 yards and a touchdown, while Jeremiaha Gates caught seven passes for 41 yards and a score.
The Bulldogs were playing without starting tailback Fabian Truss. Samford rushed for 27 yards as a team in the win.
Defensively for Samford, James Bradberry and Tae Lewis came up with an interception each. Justin Cooper led the team in tackles with nine, including seven solo stops.
For Elon, Mike Quinn completed 26-of-45 passes for 227 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Tracey Coppedge caught 11 passes for 54 yards. Rasaun Rorie had three catches for 50 yards and a score.
Elon put the first points on the scoreboard when Kierre Brown returned a punt 56 yards for a touchdown to give the Phoenix a 7-0 lead with 10:38 to go in the first quarter. Later in the first quarter, Adrian McClendon recovered a Summerlin fumble and returned it 51 yards to the Samford six-yard line. Three plays later, Coppedge scored on a two-yard run for a 14-0 Elon lead with 6:44 to go in the first quarter.
Samford’s Warren Handrahan kicked a 25-yard field goal with 14:48 to go in the second quarter to cut the Elon lead to 14-3. Elon’s John Gallagher kicked a 29-yard field goal with 8:54 left in the second quarter to make the score 17-3.
The Bulldogs scored their first touchdown of the game when Summerlin hit Gates for a 10-yard touchdown with 2:02 to play in the second quarter to cut the lead to 17-10. With just five seconds to go before halftime, Quinn hit Rorie for a 38-yard touchdown to send the Phoenix to halftime with a 24-10 advantage.
Samford struck first in the second half. Summerlin hit Pope for a nine-yard score with 8:00 to play in the third quarter to cut the lead to 24-17. The Bulldogs tied the score with 4:10 left in the third quarter when Summerlin connected with Emmanuel Obajimi for a 40-yard touchdown to bring the Bulldogs even at 24-24. Samford took its first lead of the game when Handrahan kicked a 23-yard field goal with 1:41 to go in the third quarter, making the score 27-24.
Early in the fourth quarter, Elon’s Jay Brown and Jordan Jones sacked Summerlin in the end zone for a safety to make the score 27-26 with 10:12 to go. Gallagher kicked a 39-yard field goal with 6:07 to go, and another one from 28-yards out with 2:31 left for a 32-37 Elon lead.
The win gives Samford eight wins for the first time since 1992. That 1992 season was also the last time Samford made the FCS Playoffs.
Appalachian State 48, Western Carolina 27
BOONE, N.C. – Appalachian State freshman Marcus Cox accounted for four touchdowns including three on the ground while amassing 215 yards rushing to lead the Mountaineers over Western Carolina, 48-27, on Saturday afternoon in the annual “Battle for the Old Mountain Jug” at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
Cox scored three times in the first half as the Mountaineers raced out to a 31-0 and the Catamounts were never able to recover, falling in the regular season finale.
Western Carolina (2-10, 1-7 SoCon) got two rushing touchdowns from Shaun Warren (three yards) and Eddie Sullivan (14 yards), with Sullivan tossing a pair of scoring passes to Darius Ramsey and Karnorris Benson in the losing effort. Ramsey’s 25-yard score on a second-quarter swing pass – his first career receiving TD – trimmed the Mountaineer lead to 31-7 late in the second quarter.
Benson’s TD catch was a historic one for the second-year wide out. The reception marked the fifth-straight game the Atlanta, Ga., product had reached the end zone on the receiving end of a scoring strike. It also tied him with Eric Rasheed for WCU’s single-season receiving touchdown record of 12 established during the magical 1983 season.
Benson concluded the season with 51 catches for 834 yards and the 12 scores.
Three Catamounts finished with five receptions each including Benson, freshman Terryon Robinson and redshirt freshman C.J. Goodman. True freshman tight end Tyler Sexton made a career-high four catches for 91 yards to lead WCU.
Sullivan finished Saturday’s game 22-of-41 for 206 yards and the two scores, adding a team-high 78 yards rushing. Warren rushed for 41 yards on nine carries, tallying 109 all-purpose yards. Sophomore quarterback Troy Mitchell rushed for 23 yards on seven carries and was limited to 2-of-5 passing, missing a large portion of the game with a hip pointer injury.
Appalachian State (4-8, 4-4 SoCon) carried a 31-7 lead into the halftime locker room and added to it on WCU’s first offensive drive of the second half. Sullivan was blitzed and hit as he released with the football helplessly floating over the middle where ASU’s Karl Anderson intercepted it and rumbled 37 yards for the touchdown.
Warren scored on a three-yard run to cap an eight-play, 75-yard drive midway through the third quarter. However, the Apps answered, taking advantage of a short field for a quick score on the third rushing TD by Cox to pull ahead, 45-14.
Western Carolina closed the game with back-to-back scores including the six-yard pass from Sullivan to Benson and Sullivan’s 14-yard scoring scamper.
In addition to the four scores by Cox, ASU’s Tony Washington hauled in a 50-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Kameron Bryant with Drew Stewart booting field goals of 38 and 48 yards.
Christon Gill led the Catamounts with nine tackles and nearly had an interception in the first half that would have swung momentum early. The Bridgeport, Conn., native jumped a third down route and had nothing but green turf in front of him, but he couldn’t hold onto the football on the bullet pass. ASU converted a field goal on the fourth down play.
Georgia Southern 26, Florida 20
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – If there were only going to be 11 games in the 2013 season, Georgia Southern was going to make the last one count. Senior Jerick McKinnon, who started at slotback, and moved to fourth on the Eagles’ all-time rushing list, scored the winning touchdown to give the Eagles a 26-20 with 2:57 left in the game. Georgia Southern’s defense stopped the Gators’ final drive at the Eagles’ 17-yard line as the clock expired.
“I am so proud of our football team,” said Georgia Southern Head Football Coach Jeff Monken. “ This senior class, they talked about what it means to them to win this football game, and that is what college football is all about, days like today. It is a great, great win. The kids were just thrilled. That’s a big win for us and for our kids. “
The Gators used their last possession to drive down the field with a first and 10 at the Georgia Southern 24. Florida took a timeout after linebacker Edwin Jackson factored into the incomplete pass on that first play and then the Gators picked up seven yards on Florida quarterback Skyler Mornhinweg ‘s complete pass and called another timeout. The final two passes fell incomplete with safeties Matt Dobson and Antonio Glover breaking up the plays.
Georgia Southern, now 10-0 in games when not completing a pass, ran for all 429 yards with a 7.9 per attempt average. The stout Eagle defense held Florida to only 279 yards of total offense, its lowest total since a 2002 game against LSU.
Mornhinweg connected with Solomon Patton on a 46-yard play to the end zone and the Gators added the point after to tie the game at 20 with 5:41 left to play in the game. The Gators used three plays to go 59 yards after a failed fourth-and-two by the Eagles gave them the ball at the Eagle 41.
McKinnon and Ellison both went over the 100-yard mark with McKinnon netting 125 and the final touchdown and Ellison totaling 118 with his two. William Banks, who played exclusively in the second half, totaled 94 yards, including a 53-yard rush that set up the final touchdown. Banks, who had been out with an injury the previous week, scored the Eagles third touchdown to put them up 20-10 at the end of the third quarter.
Kyle Oehlbeck, senior linebacker from Gainesville, had eight tackles, seven in the first half, playing with his usual intensity times 10. Junior linebacker Edwin Jackson played all over the field, making key tackles and leading the Eagles with 10 tackles.
McKinnon broke off for a 66-yard rush to bring the Eagles inside the Florida 10-yard line and Ellison reached over the goal line to give Georgia Southern a 14-10 lead, one it would not relinquish, on the first possession of the second half. Younghoe Koo added the PAT, but would miss the point after on the Eagles’ third touchdown.
Georgia Southern had 50 more yards of total offense in the first half that was dictated by defense and marred by turnovers. In the closing minutes of the first half, Ellison hit the endzone in full stride, splitting the defense with a 45-yard run for touchdown, needing only that one play and 10 seconds to get the Eagles within three points.
Florida’s Francisco Velez hit a 22-yard field goal with 12:02 left in the game to put the Gators within a touchdown at 20-13.
The Eagles could have had another score, but fumbled the ball at the Florida three-yard line with 4:17 left in the first quarter. The defense, though, didn’t allow the Gators to capitalize on the mistake, forcing them to a three-and out. Junior Valdon Cooper, who started in place of an injured Lavelle Westbrooks at cornerback, was in on special teams and blocked a field goal that would have given Florida a 6-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Georgia Southern finishes its season at 7-4 and with its first-ever win over a FBS or BCS team on its 21st try.
Clemson 52, The Citadel 6
CLEMSON, S.C. – The Citadel closed out its 2013 campaign with a 52-6 defeat at the hands of seventh-ranked Clemson on Saturday at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. Sixteen seniors closed out their Bulldog careers in front of a sold-out crowd of 81,554.
The crowd was the fourth largest that the Bulldogs have faced in team history and only the fifth time that The Citadel has played in front of over 80,000 fans. Florida in 1998 and 2008, along with LSU in 2002, were the only larger-attended contests.
The Citadel finished with a 5-7 record while Clemson improves to 10-1 overall and is slated to conclude its regular season next Saturday in its annual finale against South Carolina.
Senior Ben Dupree eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his career late in the fourth quarter and moved into sixth place on The Citadel's all-time rushing list with 2,679 yards in his four seasons. Dupree rushed for 69 yards on 23 carries against the Tigers to become just the 14th Bulldog in school history to surpass the 1,000 plateau in a season.
Dupree also jumped two spots on the school's rushing attempts list, passing Nehemiah Broughton and Andrew Johnson for fifth place with 598. Darien Robinson moved into eighth in the same category with 488.
Robinson rushed for 45 yards on 17 carries to close out his career in fourth place in career rushing with 2,935. The senior B-back fell just 34 yards shy of 1,000 on the season.
Thomas Warren accounted for The Citadel's six points on second half field goals of 42 and 29 yards, giving the senior kicker 137 points in his career, which is good for fifth place in school history in career points by kicking. The 42-yarder is a season high for the Mt. Pleasant, S.C., native.
Warren, who took over the kicking duties in 2011, finished out his career a perfect 83-of-83 on extra point attempts and 18-of-28 on field goal attempts.
The Citadel defense stopped the prolific Clemson offense on the game's opening drive, but the Tigers scored on their next five offensive series and added a defensive touchdown on a Dupree fumble which linebacker Quandon Christian returned 22 yards for the score to give Clemson a 42-0 lead at the half.
Clemson scored all five first half offensive touchdowns through the air as Tajh Boyd went 21-for-28 with 288 yards before exiting the game late in the third quarter for backup quarterback Cole Stoudt.
After an Eric Goins punt gave the ball back to the Tigers at the start of the second half, senior defensive back Brandon McCladdie forced a fumble on Clemson running back Zac Brooks. McCladdie was able to fall on the fumble and give the ball back to the Bulldogs at the Clemson 34.
A 15-yard facemask call against the Tigers, followed by a game-high 22-yard run by Jake Stenson, gave the Bulldogs a 1st-and 10 at the Clemson 29. Three Tiger stops shy of the first down marker forced The Citadel field goal unit on the field, and the Bulldogs were on the board with three points off the leg of Warren.
A 32-yard field goal by Clemson kicker Chandler Catanzaro, followed by a Citadel three-and-out, put the ball back in Clemson's hands heading into the fourth quarter.
The Tigers drove nine plays and 75 yards in 2:29 and notched their final touchdown of the game on a two-yard shovel pass from Stoudt to Daniel Rodriguez. Rodriguez, a Purple Heart recipient, scored his first career touchdown on the play.
The Citadel followed up the Tiger touchdown with a season-high 21-play and 12:10 drive, which included Dupree's seven-yard run on third down to move the chains. Three defensive stops in the red zone by Clemson brought Warren on for his second successful attempt.
Defensively, Nick Willis led the Bulldogs with 11 tackles and one tackle for loss, while senior Sadath Jean-Pierre and freshman Tevin Floyd each recorded eight stops.
Jean-Pierre also posted a tackle for loss and pass breakup to close out his career as a Bulldog. Junior Justin Oxendine added another sack and finished out his junior season with 4.5 sacks and a team-leading 11.5 tackles for loss.
Alabama 49, Chattanooga 0
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team wrapped up the 2013 regular season with a 49-0 loss at top-ranked Alabama this afternoon. The Mocs finish with an 8-4 overall record, winning a share of the Southern Conference title for the first time since 1984 with a 6-2 league tally.
UTC only trailed 7-0 at the end of the first quarter. After forcing a three-and-out on the first possession of the game, Alabama fumbled a Nick Pollard rugby punt that was recovered by Chattanooga sophomore Sema’je Kendall. UTC had first-and-ten from the Crimson Tide 34, but could only move the ball five yards before turning it over on downs.
Alabama scored on the next possession when Kenyan Drake ran over the right side for 13 yards.
The Mocs had a nice defensive stand in the first quarter. After allowing A.J. McCarron to rush for 15 yards and a first down at the UTC 44, Chattanooga held from there.
Senior Chaz Moore broke up a would-be touchdown pass to Kenny Bell over the middle on first down. Three plays later, Alabama decided to go for it on fourth and four at the UTC 38. Moore sniffed out a screen pass, stopping Jalston Fowler for a loss and ending the Alabama drive.
The Crimson Tide found the end zone three times in the second quarter and carried a 28-0 lead into the locker room. One of those scores was a 75-yard punt return for a score by Christion Jones.
The last time the Mocs allowed a punt return for a score was also against Alabama. Javier Arenas ran one back 66 yards in th Tide's 45-0 win on Nov. 21, 2009.
Derrick Henry ran for a 5-yard score and A.J. McCarron threw a 28-yard touchdown to Kevin Norwood for the other two strikes before the half. Alabama’s second unit posted three more scores in the second half for the final tally.
UTC finished with 175 yards of total offense, compared to just 84 in the 2009 game. The Mocs were without a number of starters, including sophomore quarterback Jacob Huesman. Huesman came in for one play in the first quarter when Terrell Robinson lost his helmet and had to come out.
Robinson finished 10-15 for 82 yards and one interception. He also led UTC in rushing with 37 yards on 13 carries. Freshman Derrick Craine put up 32 rushing yards on 10 attempts. Junior Marquis Green led the receiving unit with three catches for 15 yards.
Moore was the leader on defense, posting a career-high 10 tackles. He had two stops for loss, including the fourth down play in the first quarter. Senior D.J. Key also posted 10 tackles and a breakup.