Note: With today's results, The Citadel and Chattanooga have both ended the conference season with identical 6-1 records and are co-champions for 2015. By virtue of today's win, Chattanooga has earned the league's automatic berth to the FCS Playoffs.
Chattanooga 31, The Citadel 23
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - It's a three-peat in the Scenic City as the eighth-ranked Chattanooga Mocs beat No. 20 The Citadel 31-23 at Finley Stadium. That ties the Mocs and Bulldogs at 6-1 in the Southern Conference, the third league title in a row for the home team. It also nets UTC the SoCon's automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs.
The Mocs scored early and often in building a 21-0 lead. On the game's first play, Jacob Huesman threw a backwards pass in the flat to backup quarterback Alejandro Bennifield. The southpaw looked deep and found Xavier Borishade open in the secondary. He led him nicely for a 75-yard touchdown strike and the fastest score in school history.
Huesman added one and nine-yard runs for the three-score lead at the half. The second of those made him just the fourth quarterback in the FCS to record 40 touchdowns both running and passing in a career.
The Citadel did not fade away. Tyler Renew's 52-yard run up the middle with 2:02 left in the third quarter cut the lead to 24-14.
After trading punts, Derrick Craine rumbled down the right sideline for a 46-yard score midway through the fourth quarter. His career-long scoring dash capped a 92-yard drive. The Bulldogs added a field goal and a touchdown at the last horn for the final margin.
Huesman and his receivers had quite a day. The senior QB ran for 100 yards (118) for a school-record 14th time. He added 192 yards in the air on 13-of-17 passing. C.J. Board (5-116) and Xavier Borishade (5-107) became the first receiving duo to record dual 100-yard games at UTC since 2008.
Renew led the Bulldogs with 115 on 18 carries. Dominique Allen added another 99 on the ground to go with 98 in the air on eight-of-16 passing with two touchdowns.
The Citadel ran for 291 yards, but that's 58 yards below its 349.6 average. The Mocs used a balanced attack with 222 rushing and 267 passing.
Nakevion Leslie had a career-high 15 tackles, including a tackle for loss. Vantrel McMillian also tallied a career high with 10 stops, while Keionta Davis had eight with two sacks.
Malik Diggs had 11 tackles and a forced fumble to lead the visitors. Tevin Floyd and James Riley added seven apiece with a tackle for loss each with Riley recovering a fumble.
Mercer 27, Furman 20 (OT)
GREENVILLE, S.C. - Alex Lakes’ 2-yard touchdown run in overtime gave Mercer the lead, and Zach Jackson’s interception sealed a 27-20 victory over Furman in Southern Conference football action Saturday afternoon at Paladin Stadium.
Furman (4-6, 2-4 SoCon) rallied from a 20-0 second half deficit to tie the game at 20-20 on a 2-yard touchdown run by Kealand Dirks with 43 seconds remaining, but Dirks was flagged for spiking the football in the end zone, leaving the Paladins with a 35-yard extra point to take the lead. Jon Croft Hollingsworth’s PAT attempt missed, forcing overtime.
In the extra period Mercer (5-5, 2-4 SoCon) only needed three Alex Lakes’ runs to reach the end zone, the final one covering two yards to put the Bears up 27-20 lead following the extra point.
On Furman’s overtime possession, Blazejowski’s pass down the middle of the field on first down was intercepted by Jackson at the 2-yard line to end the game.
Blazejowski, who started the contest before giving way to Reese Hannon late in the second quarter, came off the bench on the Paladins’ final drive in regulation after Hannon was shaken up following an incomplete second down pass at the Furman 27. He connected with Jordan Snellings for 34 yards to the Mercer 39 and then hit Logan Carter for 37 yards to the Mercer 2. Two plays later Dirks bulled over right tackle for the game tying score before the Paladins were flagged 15 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct, leading to the missed PAT.
Lakes rushed 19 times for 141 yards and the game winning touchdown. The Bears piled up 286 yards on the ground and finished with 374 total yards. Furman, meanwhile, nearly overcame a dismal first half that saw the Paladins shutout for the second time in the last three games and net only 34 yards, finishing with 285 yards in total offense.
Mercer led 13-0 at intermission and took advantage of a Furman fumble on the Paladins’ first offensive play of the second half to go up 20-0 on a 3-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jon Russ to Avery Ward.
Hannon ignited Furman’s second half comeback with a pair of touchdown strikes to Andrej Suttles covering 22 and 26 yards — the second one coming with 11:41 remaining in the game to pull the Paladins to within 20-14.
The remainder of the fourth quarter saw both teams squander chances to win the game.
After Furman cut the Bears’ lead to 20-14, Russ’ under-thrown pass was picked off by Paladin cornerback Reggie Thomas at the 5-yard line. Following a Furman punt, Paladin defensive tackle Jordan Hawkins pounced on a Mercer fumble at the Furman 32, but four plays later Hannon was sacked by the Bears’ Tosin Aguebor, who recovered his forced fumble at the Furman 40. From that point Mercer moved to the Furman 25 before a pair of penalties, one of which wiped out a first down, led to a missed 44-yard field goal by Jagger Lieb with 1:15 remaining.
Lieb booted a pair of first half field goals from 43 and 19 yards, and Mercer used the first of two Russ-to-Avery scoring strikes, covering six yards, to fashion a 13-0 lead heading into halftime.
The first half saw Furman initiate its first four drives own 17, 4, 10, 18 yard lines.
The Paladins managed only 60 yards rushing on 26 carries.
Hannon completed 10-of-21 passes for 133 yards and two touchdowns. Suttles caught eight passes for 101 yards and two scores.
Cory Magwood registered a game high 14 tackles for Furman. Redshirt freshman safety Joe Farrar added 13 tackles in his collegiate starting debut, and true freshman Aaquil Annoor, making his first start at free safety contributed 11 stops.
Samford 37, Wofford 27
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Wofford College football team fell 37-27 to Samford on Saturday afternoon at Gibbs Stadium. The Terriers had a 14-7 lead after the first quarter, but the Bulldogs scored the next 30 points on the way to the victory.
The Terriers are 4-6 on the season and 2-4 in Southern Conference play, while the Bulldogs are 5-5 and 2-4 in the league. Wofford was led by Lorenzo Long with 162 rushing yards and a touchdown, while Evan Jacks added 115 rushing yards and a touchdown. Samford quarterback Devlin Hodges was 28-of-38 passing for 345 yards and three touchdowns and he also ran for 94 yards.
The Bulldogs had one first down on the game’s opening drive before punting. The Terriers took over at the one-yard line and used a 57-yard run up the middle by Lorenzo Long to move into Samford territory. After a first down pass to Zach Muller, Hunter Windham ran the ball in from 15-yards out for a 7-0 lead with 10:26 on the clock. Samford answered with a ten-play drive that covered 75 yards and was capped by a 16-yard pass from Devlin Hodges to Karel Hamilton to tie the game.
Wofford ran for a pair of first downs before having to punt back to Samford. The Bulldogs had one first down before Daryl Vining forced a fumble that was recovered by Jaleel Green at the 36-yard line. Evan Jacks had a 63-yard run to move the ball into the red-zone. Jacks capped the drive with 3-yard touchdown run for a 14-7 lead with 57 seconds left in the first quarter.
Samford drove inside the five-yard line on their next drive. It appeared that Samford scored a touchdown, but the Bulldogs were called for an illegal formation. Samford settled for a 19-yard field goal to make it a 14-10 score with 13:06 left in the third quarter. The Terriers then went three-and-out and punted on their next drive. The Bulldogs started on the 48-yard line and needed only three plays to score a touchdown when Denzel Williams went in from 6-yards out. Samford had a 17-14 lead with 10:49 on the clock in the second quarter.
On the next drive for the Terriers, they gained two first downs before having to punt. Samford had just one first down before they returned the punt to Wofford with 7:06 left in the first half. The Terriers had one first down, but then failed to convert on fourth-and-one from the 25-yard line. With the short field, the Bulldogs were able to take advantage with a 27-yard field goal for a 20-14 lead with 2:56 remaining in the half. Wofford was able to move the ball across midfield with a three first downs. With twelve seconds left, Evan Jacks put up a long pass that was intercepted by Jamerson Blount at the five-yard line. The Bulldogs took a knee to end the first half with a 20-14 lead.
To open the second half, Wofford gained one first down before having to punt. The Bulldogs picked up five first downs and added a touchdown on a 10-yard pass completion to Kelvin McKnight from Devlin Hodges. Samford had a 27-14 lead with 8:39 on the clock in the third quarter. On the next drive for the Terriers, they had one first down before failing to convert a fourth-and-three. The Bulldogs took over at the 28-yard line and methodically moved down the field. The drive stalled inside the five-yard line and Samford settled for a 19-yard field goal at the 14:56 mark of the fourth quarter for a 30-14 lead.
On the ensuing kickoff, the return was fumbled and recovered by the Bulldogs at the 18-yard line. Devlin Hodges hit Denzel Williams for a 6-yard touchdown pass and the Bulldogs led 37-14 with 13:25 left in the game. Wofford was able to convert a pair of fourth downs on their next drive and Lorenzo Long scored a four-yard touchdown. The two point attempt failed and Samford had a 37-20 advantage with 8:17 on the clock. Wofford recovered the onside kick attempt and had fourth-and-twelve. A 20-yard pass from Brandon Goodson to Nick Colvin picked up the first down. Lorenzo Long then picked up a first down on fourth-and-one to keep the drive alive. Raymond Smith capped the drive with a three-yard touchdown run to make it a 37-27 game with 3:43 left on the clock.
The Terriers tried another onside kick, but Wofford was called for a penalty. The second onside attempt went out of bounds as it was being recovered by the Terriers and Samford took over at the 38-yard line. The Bulldogs converted a fourth-and-two and a fourth-and twelve and were able to run out the clock for the win.
Wofford had 548 total yards, with 486 rushing. Samford had 496 total yards, 345 of which were passing. Samford had a 28 to 24 advantage in first downs. Wofford was 6-of-15 on third downs and 3-of-5 on fourth down. Samford was 6-of-13 on third down and 3-of-3 on fourth down. Wofford was called for two penalties to Samford’s five. Wofford had a 35:20 to 24:40 time of possession advantage.
Texas A&M 41, Western Carolina 17
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Kyler Murray threw for 191 yards and three touchdowns including two to Christian Kirk as Texas A&M pulled away from upset-minded Western Carolina, 41-17, on Saturday night in nonconference action at Kyle Field.
Consecutive second quarter touchdowns including a 17-yard Detrez Newsome reception and a scoop-and-score by Avery Worsham on a fumbled kickoff return pulled Western Carolina even at 14. The Aggies took a one-score edge into the halftime locker room, 21-14, after the first of Kirk’s receiving scores.
Texas A&M (7-3) outscored the NCAA FCS-member Catamounts 20-to-3 after intermission to pull away for the victory.
Troy Mitchell completed 17-of-31 passes for 165 yards and the 17-yard touchdown pass to Newsome in his return to his home state – the lone Texan on WCU’s roster. Newsome rushed for 111 yards, the second time the sophomore back eclipsed the century mark against an SEC opponent this fall. It was Newsome’s fifth, 100-yard rushing performance giving him 968 yards on the ground in 2015.
Newsome added a team-high seven receptions for 31 yards while Spearman Robinson paced the team with 64 receiving yards on three catches, making two leaping grabs on the night.
In addition to Murray’s 191 passing yards, running back Tra Carson rushed for 109 yards and a two-yard score, all coming in the first half. Senior Brice Dolezal carried the ball 18 times for 84 yards after intermission.
Texas A&M ran a combined 97 plays offensively as compared to just 58 for the Catamounts.