Weekly SAC Football Notes, September 30, 2007
Game notes and recaps from around the SAC for games of Saturday, September 29:
BREVARD - The Brevard College football team jumped back into SAC play on Saturday night, as they traveled to Hickory, N.C. to square off with the Bears of Lenoir-Rhyne in a battle between two 1-3 teams … The Bears were able to score late to score the 23-12 victory in what was a defensive struggle throughout … The first half was sloppy as the two teams combined for five fumbles, a safety, a missed field goal, and nine penalties, while only putting up 11 points on the scoreboard … After failing to convert on a fourth down conversion deep in the Bears territory on their opening offensive possession, the Tornados defense stood strong forcing Lenoir-Rhyne to go three and out and punt. On the punt the snap was high and mishandled by the punter Travis Rigdon, as the ball went out of bounds in the back of the end zone giving the Tornados a safety and an early 2-0 lead … On the Tornados next drive, a John Taylor fumble on first down was recovered by Lenoir-Rhyne, giving their offense great field position as they started on the Brevard 33-yard line … The Tornado defense would once again stand strong forcing the Bears to settle for a field goal attempt. The Bears kicker Andrew Coln lined up for the 36-yard field goal attempt, but pushed it to the right, turning the ball over to the BC offense … Yet BC could not take advantage as again they would cough up the ball, fumbling it at their own 32-yard line … Lenoir-Rhyne would punch the ball into the end zone early in the second quarter, as fullback Chris Durm scored on a four-yard touchdown run to give the Bears a 6-2 lead. The Bears would go for the two-point conversion, but would fail as quarterback Daniel Anderson's pass was incomplete … The teams would exchange a series of punts over the rest of the second quarter, as neither team could get their offense going … With time winding down on the first half, Lenoir-Rhyne's Coln would add a field goal to push their lead to seven at 9-2 heading into the halftime period … At the start of the second half the Tornado defense would prove to be a factor, as they would pick up two turnovers in the Bears' first two offensive possessions. On Lenoir-Rhyne's first possession, freshman cornerback Dominic Simon was able to cut in front of a Bears' receiver and intercept the pass attempt by Anderson. After BC went three and out, linebacker Devin Simpson would recover a Chris Durm fumble to again breathe new life into the Tornados offense … The Tornado offense would capitalize on the turnover this time, as they put together a nine play, 50-yard drive that was capped off by a 7-yard touchdown scramble by freshman quarterback Trey Wilborn, his first ever collegiate touchdown. After a Chase Henry extra point, the score was knotted up at 9-9 … Brevard would score again on their next possession, as Henry kicked a 30-yard field goal through the uprights, giving the Tornados a 12-9 lead with 1:38 remaining in the third quarter … However, the fourth quarter belonged to Lenoir-Rhyne as they would score twice in the last period to pick up the victory … The Bears would put together a long drive led by the running attack of fullback Durm that was 17 plays for 61-yards that not only lasted 8:07, but more importantly kept a tired BC defense on the field for most of the fourth quarter. The drive was finished off by running back James Pone, who scored from 12-yards out on a sweep play, giving the lead back to Lenoir-Rhyne, 16-12 with only 2:43 remaining in the game … On the kickoff, the Bears would add some insurance points, as during the return BC's return specialist Shaton Pratt, who was swarmed by a number of Lenoir-Rhyne defenders, had the ball fly out of his hands where it was picked up by the Bears Graphenreed who then ran it back for a touchdown. Coln's extra point was good and the Bears found themselves up 23-12 with only 2:27 left in the game … Brevard College's last effort would falter as the Bears would then run out the clock to pick up the tough home win … Freshman quarterback Trey Wilborn led the Tornados with 55-yards on 13 carries and one touchdown. Running back John Taylor added 47-yards on 11 attempts … Wilborn was perfect in the air, as he completed all three of his pass attempts for a total of 68 yards, including a 39-yard completion to Stephen Dawson which helped to setup the Tornados only touchdown of the game … On the defensive side of the ball, BC was led by safety Joshua Durm and linebacker Elliot Collins who each posted 13 tackles for the game. Linebacker Stanley Jones recorded 10 total tackles, while defensive end Brandon Rawls and linebacker Devin Simpson had eight tackles apiece … Defensive tackle David Arrowood posted two tackles for a loss of seven yards while also forcing a fumble … The Tornados next game will be next Saturday, October 6, when they will travel to Wingate, N.C. to take on the Bulldogs of Wingate University. The game is slated to begin at 1:30 p.m.
CARSON-NEWMAN - Carson-Newman wide receiver Reggie Hubbard returned the opening kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown and the Eagles used a strong second half to defeat Newberry, 49-19 in front of 4,179 fans at Burke-Tarr Stadium on Saturday … Hubbard fielded the kickoff and raced through the middle of the field for the Eagles' first score just 14 seconds into the game. Newberry's Ryan Lukshis capped a seven-play, 42-yard drive with a 34-yard field goal to cut C-N's lead to 7-3. After the Eagles went three-and-out, Newberry produced a 10-play, 65-yard drive as Alex Haynes scored from two yards out to put the Indians in the lead at 10-7 ... In the second quarter, Newberry got the ball back after Indian linebacker Mike Grase sacked Alex Rouse for a seven-yard loss. Lukshis made his second field goal of the afternoon, a 33-yarder for a 13-7 Newberry advantage … From there, quarterback Alex Good directed the Eagle offense to another score when Ricky Harris rushed up the middle for a 23-yard TD and a one-point Eagle lead at 14-13 … Anthony Toribio sacked Newberry QB Brandon Gantt for a loss of nine yards to give C-N the ball back with 1:56 to play. After Good rushed for 32 yards to the Newberry 49-yard line, he connected with Hubbard for a 49-yard TD pass for a 21-13 lead … Newberry struck quickly on a hook-and-ladder trick play which Haynes completed to the Eagle 12-yard line. From there, Gantt found Corey Seawell for a TD reception, but failed to complete the two-point conversion as Carson-Newman held a slim 21-19 lead at halftime … The Eagles received a big break early in the third quarter. After Newberry stopped the Eagles on their first possession of the second half, punter Chris Jones kicked a 51-yarder that went out of bounds at the one-yard line. On the next play, Eric Rice forced a Gantt fumble that was recovered by Denares Waites at the one. Good snuck in from a yard out to give the Eagles a 28-19 lead ... Two possessions later, the Eagles mounted a 10-play, 80-yard drive. Good completed passes of 16 and 31 yards to Otis Miller during the drive. After Tony Richardson rushed for nine yards to the Newberry two-yard line, Buck Wakefield added his first score of the game for a 35-19 Carson-Newman lead … Good then led the Eagles on a seven-play, 61 yard drive. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Good fired a 30-yard pass to James Banks to the Newberry six-yard line. Good capped the drive with a run to the left corner of the end zone to increase C-N's lead to 42-19. Ricky Harris' two-yard rush capped a 13-play, 71-yard drive to make the final score 49-19 … Good completed seven of 12 passes for 160 yards and a touchdown while Hubbard had four catches for 93 yards and a score. Combined with Hubbard's kickoff returns of 132 yards, the sophomore from Chattanooga had 225 all purpose yards. Wakefield led the Eagle rushing attack with 12 carries for 81 yards and one touchdown. Waites led the Eagle D with seven tackles and a fumble recovery while linebackers Brian Brown and Rice had six tackles apiece … The Eagles continue their SAC schedule on October 6 at Mars Hill. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m.
CATAWBA - Catawba, ranked 14th in the AFCA poll, improved to 5-0 with its 45-21 win over No. 23 Mars Hill in Thursday night's nationally televised game from Shuford Stadium ... The Catawba Indians used three second-quarter turnovers by the Lions to take a 28-0 lead at the break ... After scoring late in the first quarter on a Brad Roach 54-yard pass to Lee Page, Arthur Cromartie began a 21-point second quarter with a 66-yard interception return for a score ... Catawba would turn a second interception and a fumbled kickoff return into touchdowns in the final 2:10 of the quarter ... Roach had a solid game on a national stage, completing 17-of-23 passes for 249 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions ... He added a rushing touchdown to his evening as well ... Antwan Strong continues to be a main target with six catches for 93 yards ... Page had a career-best four grabs for 86 yards ... Kory Fisher led a 187-yard ground attack with 71 yards rushing and moved past the 2,000 mark in his career ... Jared Temple, a former Catawba baseball player, was perfect on all six point-after tries and made Catawba's lone field goal of the season in the third quarter ... He joined the team in week three after a suspension of the regular kicker for a team violation ... The Indian defense forced four turners and recorded three sacks on the night ... Ron Ellington had one sack and made seven total tackles with a pass break up and a pair of hurries ... Brandon McIntyre and Chris Noel also had interceptions ... The Thursday night TV game on CSTV and FSN South drew a record crowd of 5,514 to Shuford Stadium, where Catawba remains undefeated in six games under the new lights ... The Catawba Indians also improved to 31-1 under coach Chip Hester when scoring the first points of the game ... Catawba will face another ranked opponent this week as the Indians host Newberry ... Catawba has won its last three outing against ranked opponents.
LENOIR-RHYNE - The 2007 Lenoir-Rhyne College football team (2-3) capitalized on five Brevard College (1-4) fumbles en route to a 23-12 win over the Tornados Saturday night in front of 5,967 fans at Moretz Stadium … Lenoir-Rhyne scored 17 points off those turnovers in the first-ever meeting between the two schools … The Bears also won consecutive games for the first time since early in the 2005 season … Brevard took the lead, 12-9, with 10 points in the third quarter before Lenoir-Rhyne responded with two touchdowns in the final stanza en route to the win ... Freshman running back James Pone (Wilson, N.C.) ended a 17-play, 61-yard drive with a 12-yard run to give the Bears the lead for good, at 16-12, with 2:43 remaining … L-R then put an exclamation point on the contest when freshman defensive back Anton Graphenreed (Columbus, Ga.) picked up a fumble on the ensuing kickoff and ran it in from 26 yards out to make it a 23-12 final … Junior fullback Chris Durm (Franklin, N.C.) led all rushers with 104 yards on 20 carries with one touchdown as the Bears ran for 175 yards on 61 carries … On defense, senior defensive back Chima Okoro (Charlotte, N.C.) finished with a team-high 11 tackles as L-R held Brevard to just 228 yards of total offense … Durm is the third different Lenoir-Rhyne back to rush for 100 or more yards in a game this season … Lenoir-Rhyne has also averaged 238 yards on the ground over its last three contests and has rushed 60 or more times in back-to-back games … L-R senior Andrew Coln (Simpsonville, S.C.) moved into fifth-place all-time on the Bears' scoring list for kickers with 142 points … Lenoir-Rhyne opens up South Atlantic Conference play next Saturday when it travels to Greeneville, Tenn., to take on Tusculum (2-3, 1-0) at 2 p.m., at Pioneer Field … Both teams enter the contest on two-game winning streaks … Tusculum leads the all-time series with Lenoir-Rhyne, 7-3, and won last year's game by a 17-10 score on the Bears' Homecoming (October 7, 2006) … Lenoir-Rhyne has never won in four games at Tusculum … The two teams played each other in 1924 and every year since 1998.
MARS HILL - Catawba capitalized on three second-quarter Mars Hill turnovers and claimed a 45-21 win over the visiting Lions in South Atlantic Conference football action on Thursday night at Shuford Stadium and Kirkland Field. The Catawba Indians, ranked 14th in the AFCA Division II poll, improves to 5-0 overall and 1-0 in the SAC. The 23rd-ranked Lions fall to 4-1 and 0-1 … The Lions would get on the scoreboard on their opening drive of the second half as Ricky Spradling tossed a 10-yard pass to Jamel Fayson (Jacksonville, FL) … Mars Hill cut the deficit to 38-21 on a 38-yard pass from Spradling to Travis Prince (Jacksonville, FL) with 10:35 remaining, but Catawba used another long drive to eat away the clock … George Washington (Warner Robbins, GA) ran for 127 yards to pace Mars Hill. Spradling was 15-of-33 for 227 yards … Mars Hill hosts Carson-Newman on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
NEWBERRY - No. 9 Newberry College fell in its South Atlantic Conference opener at No. 7 Carson-Newman, 49-19, in Jefferson City, Tenn., on Saturday... The 30-point loss is Newberry's largest margin of defeat since a 38-7 loss to Presbyterian on November 5, 2005... Senior running back Alex Haynes led the team's rushing attack with 93 yards on 16 carries... Haynes was injured just before halftime and did not return to the game... The nature of Haynes' injury is unconfirmed... Brandon Gantt was 11-of-23 passing for 117 yards and a touchdown... Corey Seawell caught a 12-yard touchdown pass from Gantt with one second before halftime... Ryan Lukshis was 2-for-2 on field goals, connecting from 34 and 33 yards out... Will Newell led the team defensively with 9 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, a forced fumble and a sack... Carson-Newman's Reggie Hubbard returned the opening kickoff of the game 94 yards for a touchdown - the first kickoff return for a touchdown Newberry has allowed since at least 1999... Newberry stays on the road for another key SAC matchup, as the Indians travel to Salisbury, N.C., for a 7 p.m. Saturday tilt with Catawba College.
TUSCULUM - The Tusculum Pioneers were victorious in their 31-28 win over No. 18 Wingate in the South Atlantic Conference opener for both teams… The TC offense exploded for 477 yards, while the defense made two huge stands in the final quarter, picking off two interceptions in the end zone, including one with a minute remaining… Junior QB Corey Russell passed for a school record 438 yards… That tally is also the eighth most by a SAC signal caller… Russell went 26-for-40 and four touchdowns… Two of those scoring tosses went to rookie WR Calvin Britt, who had a career day with is six catches for 196 yards, the second most ever by a TC receiver... Sophomore WR Ryan Tallent tallied eight catches for a career-best 118 yards and a TD… On defense, junior LB Justin Scott tallied 11 tackles, including two for loss, a sack and a fumble recovery, his third of the season… Jeremy Thompson added six stops and two interceptions… One of his picks came in the end zone in the fourth quarter to stop a potential go-ahead drive by Wingate… Senior WR Jamichael Caldwell continued his string of consecutive games with a reception at 34 in a row… TC ended a three-year losing skid to the Bulldogs as the Pioneers are now 5-3 against WU in conference openers… Tusculum's win also increases its mark to 9-17 all-time against ranked opponents… Senior RB Patrick King reached a personal milestone, rushing for over 1,000 yards in his TC career (1,012)… Russell eclipsed the 4,000 passing yards plateau last week as he enters this week's action with 4,166, which is third in school history… After going 0-3 to start the season, the Pioneers have won two straight while averaging 50 points per game in those contests… Tusculum's three losses have come against opponents (Charleston, Liberty, North Alabama) with a 12-3 combined record… Tusculum hosts Lenoir-Rhyne this weekend for homecoming… Tusculum holds a 7-3 advantage over the Bears in a series that began in 1924… TC won last year's meeting 17-10 at L-R's homecoming game… Since 1936, Tusculum has posted an 8-15 record when playing in front of the alumni, but the Pioneers have won five of their last seven homecoming contests… Tusculum defeated Lenoir-Rhyne 10-9 at the 2000 homecoming, when D.J. Starling blocked a fourth quarter field goal to preserve the win.
WINGATE - Wingate University redshirt junior quarterback JD Moore completed 22-of-38 passes for 286 yards passing and two touchdowns as the number 18 Bulldogs dropped a tough 31-28 SAC decision at Tusculum College Saturday. Classmate Shawn Barrett led the Bulldogs with six receptions for 91 yards and a touchdown, while senior tight end Chris Conklin added four receptions for 61 yards and a TD … The Bulldogs and the Pioneers combined for over 850 yards of total offense as Tusculum out-gained Wingate by a 477-377 margin, including 438-286 in the passing department. Wingate freshman tailback Nelson Woods had 17 carries for 77 yards and one touchdown ... The contest was a close affair throughout as the game was tied three times and saw two lead changes. Wingate redshirt freshman linebacker Ed Doughty scored his first career touchdown as he sprinted 50 yards with an interception for six points and a 14-7 Wingate advantage with 6:55 left before halftime … Tusculum led 21-14 at intermission. The Bulldogs tied the contest in the third quarter on a Conklin TD reception. The Pioneers sprinted to a 31-21 lead, but the Bulldogs mounted another comeback to cut the margin to 31-28 on a Woods' four-yard scoring scamper with 4:33 to play in regulation … Wingate moved the ball to the Tusculum 11 and the Tusculum 27 on two different fourth-quarter drives, but the Pioneers' defense withstood the challenge. The Bulldogs were only one-for-three on red-zone chances Saturday. Wingate entered the game 21-of-23 on red-zone scoring opportunities … On the defensive end, Wingate junior linebacker Aaron Plyler led all tacklers with 14 hits, while redshirt senior linebacker Bobby Floyd finished with a dozen stops. Doughty and senior linebacker Tyler Johnson each finished with 10 tackles for the Bulldogs … The Bulldogs lead the Wingate-Tusculum series 7-5. The Pioneers snapped a three-game losing streak to the Bulldogs with Saturday's win. The Bulldogs won the first four meetings and the last three meetings between the two schools, while the Pioneers won four WU-TC series games in a row from 2000-03 … The Wingate University football team was ranked number 18 in last week's American Football Coaches Association NCAA Division II Coaches' Poll, released Tuesday from the AFCA headquarters. The Bulldogs jumped one spot from last week's number 19 listing. In addition, Wingate (4-0 overall) charted at number 23 in last week's D2Football.com poll … The Wingate University home football game versus Newberry College on Saturday, October 20, has been selected by the NCAA Division II President's Council and the Media Advisory Group as one of four broadband streaming video NCAA Division II Football Games of the Week for the aforementioned weekend … The 1:30 p.m. game will be broadcast live from Irwin Belk Stadium and John R. Martin Field on the Internet at http://NCAAsports.com/dii. The Newberry at Wingate contest is one of only four Division II football games to be broadcast (via streaming video) by the NCAA on October 20 … The 2007-08 academic year is the second year that the NCAA has offered Division II regular season broadband packages. This fall, Division II football and volleyball games are being aired over the Internet. During the winter, the NCAA will broadcast men's and women's basketball contests on TV and over the Internet … The NCAA broadcasting involvement includes network television broadcasts, cable television, radio, satellite radio and Internet presentations of every NCAA championship … Wingate will host SAC newcomer Brevard College on Saturday, October 6 at 1:30 p.m. Brevard joins the SAC with a one-year-old football program in 2007.