SAC Football Notes, October 12, 2008
Game notes and recaps from around the SAC for games of Saturday, October 11:
BREVARD - The Brevard College football team scored a season high 42 points on Saturday afternoon, but came up just short falling to the Tusculum Pioneers 55-42 in South Atlantic Conference football action at Pioneer Field in Greeneville, Tenn … The two teams combined for almost 900 yards - BC 394 and Tusculum 479 - and 97 points for the game … The Tornados were hurt by turnovers, as BC coughed up the ball five times which led to three Tusculum College scores … Tusculum got on the board first scoring on their opening drive, as a quarterback Corey Russell connected with wide out Ryan Tallent for a 15 yard touchdown pass, capping off a 4-play, 83 yard drive. After Gareth Rowlands' point after attempt was good, the Pioneers 7-0 early … The Tornados answered right back on their first offensive series, as BC drove down the field, going 45 yards on eight plays, finished off by a Donald Hudson one-yard touchdown run to put Brevard on the board. An extra point by Chase Henry knotted the score up at 7-7 with 8:56 to go in the first quarter … Tusculum outscored the Tornados 21-0 over the rest of the first quarter, as Russell both ran and threw for a touchdown to put the Pioneers up 28-7 after one quarter of play … In the second quarter, the two teams each crossed the goal line twice. The Tornados started the scoring in the second quarter as Hudson again reached the end zone on a two-yard run, capping off a 10-play 60 yard drive, to put the score at 28-14 … After Russell answered with a 31-yard touchdown run to put the Pioneers back on top by 21 points, BC responded as senior running back John Taylor punched the ball into the end zone from seven yards out with 7:34 to go in the half … Tusculum then scored once more, as Russell again hooked up with Tallent, this time for a three-yard touchdown pass to put Tusculum up 42-21 heading into the halftime break … In the third quarter the scoring slowed down, as the two teams combined for only 13 points … Brevard had seven of those points, as sophomore Trey Wilborn, who lined up at quarterback on Saturday afternoon, scrambled in from 20 yards out to try to cut into the Pioneer's lead. Wilborn's touchdown, his first off the season as he has lined up a free safety for most of the year, cut the Pioneer's lead to 48-28 … In the fourth quarter, Tusculum added an early touchdown by way of a Fred Jones 12-yard touchdown run, to pull ahead 55-28 with less than eight minutes to play … BC did not give in though, as the Tornados stormed into the end zone two times in the final eight minutes of play, both by way of junior running back Desmond Wilson. Wilson ran in for a 12-yard score and then caught a three-yard touchdown pass from Wilborn late in the fourth to give the Tornados 42 points for the game, a season-high … Offensively the Tornados had 394 yards, with 356 yards coming by way of the rushing game. Wilborn led the way, as the young quarterback had 116 yards on 14 carries and one touchdown … Junior fullback Xavier Johnson had 74 yards on 16 rushing attempts, while Wilson had 16 carries for 64 yards and two touchdowns on the game … Taylor, seeing action for the first time in nearly a month due to an injury, had 56 yards on nine carries and one score … BC freshman Michael Gist led the Tornados on the defensive end, as the safety had a team-high eight tackles and the lone interception of the game … Senior linebacker Justin Jefferson, sophomore corner Shorick Johnson and freshman corner Chase Waldo all had five total tackles for the game … The Tornados will again be on the road for a SAC football game next Saturday, October 18, when BC will travel to Mars Hill, N.C. to face off with the Mars Hill Lions. The game time is slated for a 1:30 p.m. kick-off.
CARSON-NEWMAN - The 21st-ranked Carson-Newman Eagles rallied for 14 points in the fourth quarter for a 21-14 comeback win at Catawba on Saturday night...Junior Alex Good led a pair of touchdown drives in the final seven minutes totaling 10 plays for 110 yards...Good had a 40-yard run on the first play of C_N's tying TD drive to knot the game at 14-14...Junior running back Buck Wakefield capped the drive with a 10-yard dive over the left side...The Eagles would get the game-winning touchdown on an 8-play, 60-yard scoring to run the game clock inside of a minute...Senior Otis Miller would haul in the game-winning touchdown catch on a hitch-and-go from 29 yards out...Good also had a touchdown run in the first half for the Eagles first score...Carson-Newman forced a fumble by Catawba's Jemelle Cuthbertson inside the five minute mark to get the football back and stall Catawba's final real threat...Senior Otis Miller knocked the ball loose from Cuthbertson...the Carson-Newman defense held the Indians to 315 yards on 60 plays...C-N did not allow Catawba to take a snap inside the Eagle 30-yard line...The Indians scored on a 34-yard pass play and a blocked punt...Junior Brian Brown led the Eagles' defensive effort with seven tackles and a sack...C-N came up with five sacks as a team and seven TFLs...Free Safety Mario Russell added six tackles...Good finished with 129 yards rushing on 19 attempts and a touchdown...Wakefield added 74 yards on 13 carries...Good was also 8-of-15 for 106 yards and a TD through the air...Miller finished with four catches for 50 yards and a score...Carson-Newman hosts Lenoir-Rhyne this Saturday for homecoming...Kickoff is at 3 p.m. at Burke-Tarr Stadium...The Eagles have beaten the Bears 29-straight times dating back to the pre-Sparks era.
CATAWBA - The Catawba Indians fell just short on its upset bid of No. 21 Carson-Newman, falling 21-14 … The Eagles got the last break of the game, recovering a fumble in their own territory with just under five minutes to play and marching for the winning score with 44 ticks on the clock … The loss negated an outstanding effort by the Catawba defense which limited a C-N offense that averaged nearly 500 yards of offense to a mere 325 … Alex Good accounted for a third of that total on two 40 yard runs and a 29-yard pass for the winning points … Jamelle Cuthbertson also had an outstanding game for Catawba, rushing for 125 yards and catching four passes for 61 yards … It marked the third straight 100-yard effort for the senior, who moved into 10th place on the all-time rushing list at Catawba with 1,673 yards … He is averaging a whopping 7.5 yards per carry … Charles McAfee recorded a dozen tackles for the Indians and recovered a fumble … Defensive tackle Brandon Sutton came up with 10 stops … Catawba went on top late in the first quarter when Aaron Cauble blocked an Eagle punt and Tyon Bennett picked it up at the C-N 15 and scored at the 2:34 mark … Late in the half, Good marched the Eagles 80 yards, which included a 42-yard run, to tie the score … Catawba went back on top with just under 10 minutes left in the third quarter as Patrick Dennis connected with Gerron Bryant on a 34-yard pass … The Indians held the lead until the final seven minutes … From midfield, Good ran for 40 yards and Buck Wakefield scored from the 10 to knot things at 14-all with 6:41 remaining … Catawba moved into C-N territory when Cuthbertson burst for 19 yards, but was hit from behind and fumbled giving the Eagles possession at its own 40 with 4:35 remaining … Good converted a fourth and one with just over a minute to play then threw the scoring pass two plays later … Catawba was bidding for its third straight win against C-N … The Indians have lost two straight for the first time since 2006 and will look to avoid its first three-game slide since 1994 as it hosts Tusculum on Saturday afternoon … Tusculum has won three of the last four meetings, including the last two.
LENOIR-RHYNE - The Lenoir-Rhyne University football team (3-4, 1-2) suffered its second straight loss when it fell to No. 15 Wingate University (7-0, 3-0) by a 35-27 score last Saturday at Irwin Belk Stadium in Wingate, N.C. … Bulldog quarterback JD Moore passed for 292 yards and three touchdowns to lead Wingate, who had to hold off a late Lenoir-Rhyne rally to remain unbeaten and alone atop the South Atlantic Conference standings … Wingate's Antonio Cotton returned a punt 71 yards for a score in the third quarter to help the Bulldogs build a 35-14 advantage before the Bears tallied a pair of fourth quarterback touchdowns to cut the margin to eight with 6:02 remaining … On their next possession, the Bears drove 41 yards but were stopped short on downs at the Bulldog six-yard line with 1:38 left to play … Wingate ran out to clock to take the win, its fourth straight and sixth in the last seven over L-R … Lenoir-Rhyne rushed for 316 yards, including a career-high 114 from junior fullback Anthony Silvers (Burnsville, N.C.) and 72 from junior starting quarterback Justin Sanders (Monroe, N.C.), despite the loss … Freshman quarterback Major Herron (Kingsland, Ga.) added 52 yards on the ground and scored the final touchdown for the Bears, but was stopped one yard short of a first down on L-R's final drive … Although Lenoir-Rhyne gave up 455 yards of total offense, just 111 came after intermission … L-R now averages 277.3 yards rushing on close to 60 carries per game … Seventeen players have carried at least once for the Bears and 10 different players have scored rushing touchdowns … Lenoir-Rhyne looks to double its win total from last year and when it travels to Jefferson City, Tenn., to take on No. 21 Carson-Newman (4-2, 2-1) Saturday at 3 p.m. … Carson-Newman leads the all-time series with Lenoir-Rhyne, 39-9, and has won the past 29 meetings between the two schools … Last year, the Eagles prevailed by a 56-13 score on October 20, 2007, in Hickory, N.C. … L-R will be visiting Carson-Newman for the third time in four years … Lenoir-Rhyne's last win over Carson-Newman came during the 1978 season, a 35-28 triumph at home.
MARS HILL - The Lions upset Newberry College Saturday afternoon in the Mars Hill's annual Homecoming game, 27-6, at the Ammons Family Athletic Center and Meares stadium … MHC improved to 4-3 overall, 1-2 in the SAC. Newberry, ranked 22nd in the D2Football.com poll and 25th in the AFCA Coaches' Poll, fell to 3-3 overall and 2-1 in the league … MHC held the Newberry offense to just 225 total yards on 60 plays, 125 yards under their season-to-date average. Mars Hill was only ahead by a single score at the half, but pulled away with two second half touchdowns … George Stripling's (Jacksonville, Fla.) 13 carries for 96 yards and two scores led the Lions ground attack … Ricky Spradling (Roan Mountain, Tenn.) was 6-of-16 for 90 yards and a touchdown … Zach Johnson (Newland, N.C.) was the Lions' leader on defense with nine tackles, two sacks, three tackles for a loss and an interception for a 15-yard return. Johnson's pick led to the Lions' first score of the game. On second and seven from the Newberry 47-yardline, Johnson intercepted a Newberry pass and returned the ball 15 yards to the NC 32-yardline … Spradling then connected with Frankie Waters (Brevard, N.C.) on the 32-yard TD strike … Stan Galbraith (Birmingham, Ala.) also tallied nine stops (6 solo), two tackles-for-loss and a sack … Deshun Nesbitt (Asheville, N.C.) led the Lions' secondary with an interception and four tackles … Mars Hill hosts SAC rival Brevard College for a 1:30 p.m. kickoff next Saturday. MHC is 114-90-1 at home. MHC leads the series against the Tornados, 2-0. The game will be broadcast on WKYK 940-AM in Burnsville and on the Internet at RedZoneMedia.com. The pregame show starts at 12:05 p.m.
NEWBERRY - The Newberry College team dropped a 27-6 decision to the Mars Hill Lions on Saturday afternoon in Mars Hill, N.C…. Newberry had been ranked 22nd nationally in the D2Football.com poll and 25th nationally in the AFCA coaches' poll… The Newberry offense was stagnant all afternoon, as the scarlet and gray earned only 225 yards of total offense and was 1-of-12 on third down conversions… Mars Hill scored twice in the first quarter on short drives that were set up by costly Newberry turnovers, including an interception thrown by Eric McCollom and a fumble on the ensuing kickoff return by Gerald Legree… Newberry finally got on the board in the second quarter, when Tharry Salley ran 26 yards for a touchdown…. The PAT failed, making it a 14-6 scoreline, which the two teams would carry to the locker room… However, it was all Mars Hill in the second half, as George Stripling had touchdown runs of 7 and 70 yards to give the Lions the win… Mars Hill controlled the game on offense, with 13 more minutes of possession than Newberry… It was the first game this season that Newberry did not force a turnover… The game was also the first time Newberry was held to one score in a game since the 2006 Presbyterian game… The game broke a three-game winning streak for Newberry in the series… Salley was the leading rusher for Newberry with 90 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries... Newberry quarterbacks McCollom and Brandon Gantt... Defensively, Newberry was led by Mike Grase, who made 13 tackles, three of which were for a loss... Devon Smalls and Will Newell each made 10 tackles... Newell is now sixth in Newberry history with 175 solo tackles, and will have 300 career tackles total with his next tackle... Newberry returns home next week to face SAC leader Wingate... Kickoff on Saturday, October 18, at Setzler Field is slated for 7 p.m.
TUSCULUM - The Tusculum Pioneers (5-2, 2-1 SAC) recorded their ninth straight home victory with a 55-42 win over Brevard… The nine straight wins at Pioneer Field is the longest home winning streak in school history… Senior QB Corey Russell accounted for six of the team's eight touchdowns as he passed for four and ran in a pair… Russell went 22-for-29 for 328 yards, while also rushing for 73 yards on seven carries… Tusculum's defense tied a school single-game record with its five fumble recoveries (TC recovered five fumbles against Charleston Southern in 2003)… TC converted those five miscues into 21 points… Russell has passed for 300 yards in five straight games and for the 11th time in his career (TC is 8-3 in those games)… Russell, who owns virtually every school passing and total offensive yardage record at Tusculum, is fifth in South Atlantic Conference history in passing yards (8033) and fifth in total offensive yards (8966)… His four TD tosses against Brevard matches a career best and the third time this season and fifth in his career that he has four touchdown passes in a game… Russell has passed for three or more touchdowns 11 times during his career (TC is 10-1 in those games)… Russell has rushed for 933 yards in his career and his 378 carries are the fourth most ever by a Pioneer and most by a TC quarterback…Senior LB Justin Scott recorded his seventh career fumble recovery, establishing a new school record… Scott made a career-best 14 tackles against Brevard, including one for loss... Scott has made 216 tackles in his career, which are the ninth most by a Pioneer… He is also fourth all-time with 40 career tackles for loss… TC head coach Frankie DeBusk recorded his 64th career win, which are the fourth most in SAC history… Tusculum will take on defending SAC co-champion Catawba this week… It will be the 13th meeting between the two schools… Catawba leads the all-time series 8-4, but the Pioneers have won the last two encounters and three of the last four meetings… TC and Catawba have played in each of the last 13 seasons, tied for the longest active rivalry for the Pioneers (TC and Wingate have also met each year since 1996).
WINGATE - Wingate University redshirt senior quarterback JD Moore threw three touchdown passes as the Bulldogs improve to 7-0 overall with a 35-27 South Atlantic Conference football victory over Lenoir-Rhyne University Saturday afternoon at Irwin Belk Stadium and John R. Martin Field on the Wingate campus … The number 15 team in last week's American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) NCAA Division II poll, Wingate is 7-0 overall for the first time in the school's senior college history. The Bulldogs (7-0, 3-0 SAC) have won eight games in a row, dating to last season … Moore's touchdowns were big for Wingate, as the hosts saw a 21-point fourth quarter lead almost evaporate in the waning moments. On the afternoon, Moore completed 15-of-32 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns. His three scoring strikes found the hands of three different receivers … The host Bulldogs led 35-14 after redshirt junior wide receiver Antonio Cotton returned a Bear punt 71 yards for a touchdown. Moore's two-point conversion run gave Wingate a 21-point bulge with 6:57 to play in the third quarter … The two teams traded a punt (LRU) and a missed field goal (Wingate) on the next two possessions. On the last play of the third quarter, the Bears started a 10-play, 75-yard drive that ended when junior quarterback Justin Sanders scored on a two-yard run with exactly 10 minutes to play in the contest. LRU freshman place kicker Colin Corpe nailed the extra point to pull the visitors within two touchdowns (35-21) … Neither team could mount any offense, as the next three drives were each three-and-out. The Bears took advantage of a 20-yard punt to start a drive on the Wingate 34-yard line with 6:38 to play. Three plays later, Bear freshman quarterback Major Herren turned a run around left end into a 22-yard TD scamper to make the score 35-27 Wingate. Corpe missed the PAT, leaving the Bears with an eight-point deficit at the 6:02 mark … Lenoir-Rhyne started its next possession in Wingate territory, as senior defensive back Barry Tate returned a Bulldog punt 14 yards to the Wingate 48-yard line. Herron and the Bears went to work, driving to the red zone as time expired … A 19-yard run by Herron put the ball on the Wingate 16. The Bulldogs held their ground, as Herron was stopped one-yard shy of a first down on a fourth-and-six play from the Wingate 12-yard line. Moore scampered 12 yards on a third-and-five from the Wingate 12-yard line, ending Lenoir-Rhyne's hopes … Moore did his damage in the first half, making touchdown connections of 10 yards, 41 yards and 28 yards. On Wingate's opening drive, the Bulldogs whizzed down the field to score on four plays. The 80-yard jaunt ended when Moore found redshirt sophomore wide receiver Delric Ellington with a 10-yard TD pass. Wingate redshirt senior punter/place kicker Michael Crutchfield added the extra point to put the Bulldogs up 7-0 with 13:29 to go in the opening frame … Lenoir-Rhyne tied the game at 7-7 midway through the first quarter. An eight-play, 53-yard Bear march ended with a one-yard touchdown run by junior running back Joey Robinson. Corpe's PAT kick tied the contest with 8:14 left on the first quarter clock … Wingate tallied 17 points in the second quarter, thanks to Moore's TD spirals to redshirt sophomore wide receivers Philip Thomas and Perry Floyd. The Moore-to-Thomas TD covered 28 yards and gave Wingate a 21-7 lead with 4:09 left before intermission … Lenoir-Rhyne sophomore running back James Pone pulled the Bears within a touchdown late in the second quarter. His three-yard scoring jaunt and Corpe's PAT made the score 21-14 Wingate with 1:33 to go in the second frame … Crutchfield added the first of his two field goals to give Wingate a 24-14 lead at halftime. His first triple was a 25-yarder with 44 seconds on the clock. Crutchfield started the third quarter at almost the same place he ended the second, booting a 22-yard field goal to put Wingate up 27-14 at the 10:20 plateau … Cotton's punt return for pay dirt followed on the next possession, setting the stage for a wild final quarter. Cotton's 71-yard punt return was his first touchdown in the Wingate blue-and-gold. The Bulldogs have returned a punt and a kick-off for a touchdown so far this season … Wingate posted 455 yards total offense. Moore's top target was Cotton, who caught five passes for 89 yards. Thomas snagged three passes for 54 yards and one score. Bulldog redshirt sophomore tailback Nelson Woods rushed 19 times for 83 yards to pace the Wingate ground game … Bulldog senior safety Dietrich Wright had 14 total stops to lead both defenses. The 2008 Charlotte Touchdown Club scholarship recipient had six solo tackles, eight assists and two tackles for losses. Wingate sophomore linebacker Ben Hinson also reached double digits, as he posted three solo tackles and nine assists for 12 total stops. Hinson participated in 1 1/2 quarterback sacks … Wingate has won six of the last seven games in the LRU/WU series. Lenoir Rhyne is one of two teams (Mars Hill is the other) Wingate has played every year since the institution revitalized football in 1986. Lenoir-Rhyne leads the series between the Bulldogs and the Bears 15-8 … The Bulldogs hit the road for their next SAC contest. Wingate visits number 25 Newberry College for a 7 p.m. league game Saturday, Oct. 18. Wingate leads the series between the two schools 10-8. Wingate had a five-game winning streak (in the series) from 1989-1995. The teams did not play in 1992 or 1993 … Wingate's 33-0 win over Newberry on Nov. 2, 2002 was the largest margin of victory for either team in the series. All the other games in the series have been decided by 12 points or less … In 2007, Newberry rallied with 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to take a 31-23 victory over number 18 Wingate at Irwin Belk Stadium and John R. Martin Field on the Wingate campus. The host Bulldogs led 23-17 entering the fourth quarter. The two teams combined for 844 yards total offense (Newberry 495, Wingate 349).