Wofford 34, Mercer 33 (OT)
MACON, Ga. – The Wofford College football team needed overtime, but defeated Mercer University 34-33 on Saturday night at Five Star Stadium. The Bears scored ten points in the last four minutes to tie the game. Mercer scored first in overtime but missed the point after. Wofford’s Evan Jacks scored a touchdown and the point after was good by David Marvin for the win.
The Terriers are 3-2 on the season, while the Bears are 2-2. In the Southern Conference opener for both teams, Wofford moves to 1-0 in league play. Wofford was led by Lorenzo Long with a career-high 187 yards rushing and a touchdown, while Evan Jacks added 112 rushing yards and two touchdowns. The Bears were led by Tee Mitchell with 110 rushing yards and two touchdowns, while John Russ was 23-of-41 passing for two touchdowns and 277 passing yards.
The Terriers had the ball first and went three-and-out. Mercer gained one first down and then had to punt. Wofford went three-and-out for the second straight possession and the Bears took over near midfield. After two first downs, Boston Bryant forced a fumble that was recovered by Drake Michaelson and returned it to the Mercer 45-yard line. On the next play, a fumbled snap was recovered by Blake Jones at the 50-yard line with 8:24 left in the first quarter.
Mercer gained a first down and then were faced with a fourth-and-five. The quarterback was hit for no gain and Wofford took over on downs. After a first down by a personal foul penalty, Brandon Goodson and Lorenzo Long ran for first downs to reach the red-zone. A nine-yard touchdown run up the middle by Nick Colvin gave the Terriers a 7-0 lead with 3:01 remaining in the first quarter.
With the ball back, the Bears gained four first downs on twelve plays before kicking a 43-yard field goal to make it a 7-3 game with 12:38 on the clock in the second quarter. Evan Jacks entered the game at quarterback for the Terriers, but a run by Lorenzo Long on fourth-and-one was short and Wofford turned the ball over on downs. With a short field, the Bears drove inside the ten and attempted a 27-yard field goal. The ball hit the left upright and Wofford took over at the 20-yard line with 7:35 left in the second quarter.
On the first play of the next drive by the Terriers, Evan Jacks went 60-yards for a first down. Chase Nelson added a first down and Raymond Smith scored from three yards out for a touchdown. The point after attempt was blocked, but Wofford had a 13-3 lead with 5:12 remaining in the first half. Mercer answered with a nine-play, 70-yard drive that was capped by a 13-yard touchdown by Tee Mitchell. With 2:05 left in the first half, the Wofford lead was 13-10. Wofford used a 60-yard run by Lorenzo Long to set up a 27-yard field goal attempt that was blocked to end the first half.
To begin the second half, Mercer had the ball and gained one first down before punting. Wofford began at the 11-yard line and drove the length of the field in twelve plays to take a 20-10 lead on a 13-yard touchdown run by Evan Jacks with 7:19 on the clock in the third quarter. Mercer gained two first downs and had fourth-and-one. Steven Cornellier stopped the running back for a loss and Wofford took over on downs.
Wofford went three-and-out and punted on the ensuing drive. A sure interception by the Terriers was dropped and Mercer went on to score on a two-yard touchdown run by Tee Mitchell to make it a 20-17 game with 36 seconds left in the third quarter. Wofford wasted little time in responding, as Lorenzo Long went 53-yards up the middle for a touchdown. The Terriers had a 27-17 lead with 14:28 on the clock in the fourth quarter.
On the next drive by Mercer, a sack by Brandon Curtis on third down forced a punt. Paul Nelson returned the punt 21 yards to the 35-yard line and a 24-yard run by Chase Nelson moved the ball inside the red-zone. A 28-yard field goal attempt by David Marvin was blocked and the Bears took over at the 20-yard line with 8:01 left in the fourth quarter. After a first down, Mercer converted a fourth-and-one with six minutes on the clock. The Bears had three more first downs before John Russ found Avery Ward for a 17-yard touchdown reception. With 3:27 on the clock in the fourth quarter, the Wofford lead was 27-24.
The onside kick was recovered by Nick Colvin and Wofford had the ball at the 49-yard line. The pitch on the first play was fumbled by the Terriers and Mercer recovered the ball. The Bears completed a fourth-and-three and after another first down were at the six-yard line. A 23-yard field goal with three seconds left in the fourth quarter tied the contest at 27-27. The Terriers covered the short kickoff and the game headed to overtime.
Wofford won the toss and elected to go on defense. Mercer needed only one play, a 25-yard touchdown pass from John Russ to Avery Ward, to take a 33-27 lead. The extra point was wide right. With the Terriers on offense, Lorenzo Long picked up a first down and then Evan Jacks ran it in from 14-yards out to tie the game at 33-33. The extra point by David Marvin was good and the Terriers took home the 34-33 victory.
Wofford had 434 total yards, with 391 on the ground. Mercer had 464 total yards, 277 of which were passing. Mercer had a 31 to 22 advantage in first downs. Wofford was 4-of-10 on third downs and 0-of-1 on fourth down. Mercer was 6-of-16 on third down and 2-of-4 on fourth down. Wofford was called for seven penalties to Mercer’s five. Mercer had a 33:07 to 26:53 time of possession advantage.
Furman 17, South Carolina State 3
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Triston Luke rushed for a pair of touchdowns and Furman turned in a strong defensive performance to post a 17-3 victory over South Carolina State in football action Saturday evening in rain-soaked, wind swept Paladin Stadium.
Luke, a freshman running back from Clarksville, Tenn., rushed 22 times for 75 yards and scored on runs of six and eight yards — the second coming with 7:37 remaining to remaining — to help give Furman (3-2) its two-touchdown margin and a third straight victory.
A fumble recovery by Brad Minter at the S.C. State 5-yard line led to the game’s first score, a 22-yard Jon Croft Hollingsworth field goal in the final minute of the first quarter.
The Paladins stretched the advantage to 10-0 just before the half, using a 49-yard run by fullback Ernie Cain to the S.C. State 11 to set up back-to-back runs of five and six yards by Luke to reach the end zone. Hollingsworth’s PAT finished off the first half scoring for the Paladins.
Furman turned back S.C. State’s first scoring threat of the game in the third quarter, using a Brian Ross tackle of Dondre Lewis-Freeman at the Paladin 4-yard line to blunt the Bulldogs on a fourth-and-goal play that originated at the one-foot line.
The Bulldogs finally got on the board early in the fourth quarter on a Tyler Scandrett 24-yard field goal.
Furman’s offense, which combined for just 32 total yards in the second and third quarter, delivered a nine-play, 59-yard drive in the fourth period to put the game away. A 20-yard run by quarterback Reese Hannon gave the Paladins a first down at the State 40. Following a pair of eight-yard bursts by Luke, Hannon converted Furman’s lone third down play of the contest with an 11-yard completion to Chad Scott to the State 13, and two plays later Luke bounced outside and outran the defense around left end to the pylon to complete an 8-yard touchdown run. Hollingsworth’s PAT made it 17-3 with 7:37 remaining.
From that point the Paladin defense shut the door on the Bulldogs, forcing a punt on the ensuing possession and getting junior safety Trey Robinson’s second interception of the contest at the Furman 41 with just over two minutes to go.
Furman, which registered three takeaways in the game and did not suffer a turnover, got a career high 19 tackles from linebacker Carl Rider and 13 stops from Cory Magwood.
The Bulldogs posted a 272-221 advantage in total offense. Quarterback Caleb Cobb led the way, completing 19-of-29 passes for 192 yards, but he was picked off twice and was charged with a fumble that led to Furman’s first score.
Jalen Simmons rushed for 70 of S.C. State’s 80 yards.
Western Carolina 33, Presbyterian 21
CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Sophomore tailback Detrez Newsome rushed for a career-high 189 yards and two touchdowns as Western Carolina pushed past Presbyterian, 33-21, in nonconference action on Saturday afternoon at a rain-soaked E.J. Whitmire Stadium / Bob Waters Field.
Trailing 21-20 entering the fourth quarter, Western Carolina (2-2) controlled the final frame, outscoring Presbyterian, 13-0, while holding the football for nearly 11 of the 15 minutes in the frame to seal the victory. WCU out-gained Presbyterian, 151-to-27, including 115 yards on the ground against just 13 rushing yards by the Blue Hose in the fourth.
Newsome finished Saturday’s game with over 200 all-purpose yards for a second-straight game, just missing his career-high of 241 established at Tennessee. Including 48 yards on three kickoff returns to accompany his career-night out of the backfield, the Raeford, N.C., product amassed 237 total yards. Saturday was also his sixth career, two touchdown game – the first coming this season.
Western Carolina senior quarterback Troy Mitchell accounted for 301 yards of total offense including 226 through the air and 75 yards and a touchdown on the ground in guiding the Catamounts to the win, halting a two-game seasonal slide. Mitchell’s 14 completions were spread to just four different receivers with classmate Karnorris Benson leading the way with a season-high seven receptions for 149 yards.
Freshman placekicker Logan Howard also bested the elements for a pair of field goals, splitting the uprights from a career-long 46 and 45 yards, respectively.
Presbyterian (1-4) grabbed an early lead as Darrell Bridges scored from two yards away midway through the first quarter to give the visitors the 7-0 advantage. The Catamounts managed to convert the game’s first turnover into its first points, capitalizing on a takeaway created by Tahjai Watt. The second-year defensive end knocked the football loose from Bridges and fell on the orb to give WCU possession in the red zone. Two plays later, Mitchell found tight end Tyler Sexton on a nine-yard strike to knot the game at seven.
Howard’s first field goal capped a 12-play drive to give the Catamounts their first lead, 10-7, early in the second quarter.
Two scores coming 41 seconds apart provided the halftime tally, 17-14, in favor of WCU. Presbyterian defensive lineman Ugonna Akoh scooped-and-scored on a Catamount fumble, racing 73 yards in a convoy of Garnet & Blue for the short-lived, 14-7, lead. On the ensuing possession, it took the Catamounts just two plays to regain the advantage as Newsome raced a career-long 72 yards for the go-ahead score.
Howard’s number was again called on WCU’s first possession of the second half, nearly matching his career-long boot of 46 yards with a 45 yarder to stretch the Catamount edge to six, 20-14. The advantage held until late in the frame when PC quarterback Tamyn Garrick orchestrated an 82-yard drive, capping it with a 14-yard TD pass to DaShawn Davis – the first passing TD for the Blue Hose this season.
Newsome put Western Carolina ahead for good early in the decisive fourth quarter, capping an 80-yard drive with an eight-yard romp to make it 26-21. Then, following the first of two Trey Morgan interceptions, Mitchell ran the read-option to perfection with a 36-yard scamper around the left end for the game’s final score.
Morgan’s two picks were the first two of 2015 for the SoCon’s returning leader from a season ago.
Linebackers Daniel Riddle and Tyson Dickson both finished with double-digit tackles, led by Riddle’s career-high tying 18 stops. Dickson recorded 13, while Sertonuse Harris had eight stops including a tackled for loss – and nearly returned a lateralled interception for a touchdown which was negated by a penalty. Senior Caleb Hawkins harassed the PC signal caller much of the day, tallying a sack and was credited with a trio of quarterback hurries.
For Presbyterian, Bridges rushed for 121 yards and a score while Garrick finished 11-of-26 but tossed two interceptions to go along with his touchdown pass. Marquel Hines paced the Blue Hose with 171 all-purpose yards.
Bucknell 28, VMI 22 (OT)
LEXINGTON, Va. - Matt DelMauro ran for a 23-yard touchdown in the first overtime, giving the Bucknell Bison a dramatic 28-22 win over the VMI Keydets in non-conference football action Saturday at Foster Stadium in Lexington.
After Dillon Christopher had missed a 38-yard field goal on VMI's possession in overtime, Will Carter grabbed a two-yard pass and, after a Bucknell (3-1) timeout, DelMauro scampered 23 yards up the middle for the game-winning touchdown.
With the victory, Bucknell won its third straight game over the Keydets (1-4) with an average margin of victory of less than eight points per game.
Al Cobb finished 26 of 47 for 251 yards and two touchdowns for the Keydets, two scores that tied him with Dave Brown and Jonathan Wilson for third on VMI's all-time touchdown passes thrown list, while R.J. Nitti was 17 of 34 for 188 yards and a score to lead the Bison.
Carter had eight grabs for 81 yards and a touchdown that briefly put the visitors ahead in the fourth quarter, while Aaron Sanders had seven receptions, including one for a touchdown, for VMI.
Bucknell got on the board first. The Bison took over with 10:05 left in the first quarter and went 47 yards in seven plays, a drive capped by Nitti's six-yard touchdown run that made it 7-0.
The Keydets countered on their next drive. Cobb completed passes to four different receivers, including a one-yard touchdown to Sanders, on an 11-play, 63-yard drive that tied the score, 7-7. That was the score after one quarter, but VMI took the lead on the lone score of the second period, a one-yard Cobb pass to Sam Patterson to account for the halftime score of 13-7, VMI.
The rain, which had stayed away for much of the first half, picked up at times in the third quarter and the offenses felt the effects. There were six punts in the period, as neither team scored and VMI still held a 13-7 advantage headed to the fourth quarter.
The Keydets pushed their margin to 12 early in the fourth, when Dontae Mauck scored on a 42-yard reverse for a 19-7 Keydet lead, but the Bucknell rally started on the ensuing kickoff. Joey DeFloria ran the kick back 85 yards for a touchdown, cutting the lead to five at 19-14 with 10:34 to go.
After a VMI punt, Bucknell promptly went 57 yards in eight plays, capped by a nine-yard Nitti to Carter touchdown pass, a fade to the back corner of the endzone that gave the Bison the lead. Nitti converted a rush for the two-point play, making it 22-19 with 4:55 left.
VMI got the ball back with 1:50 to go, still trailing by three, and quickly responded. Cobb completed four of his first five passes on the drive, and a swing pass to Derrick Ziglar with six seconds to go set up Christopher for a 40-yard field goal. The kick was good as regulation time expired, tying the score and setting the stage for the overtime dramatics.
Ben Richard had 18 tackles to lead Bucknell defensively, while Ryan Francis had 11 stops for the Keydets. VMI outgained Bucknell 395-290 in the game, but four sacks for BU made a difference in the contest.