Weekly SAC Football Notes, September 28, 2008

Game notes and recaps from around the SAC for games of Saturday, September 27:

BREVARD - The Brevard College men's football team opened up their 2008 South Atlantic Conference season on Saturday afternoon, as the Tornados fell to the Bears of Lenoir-Rhyne 40-14 at Brevard Memorial Stadium … The Tornados got off to a very slow start in their first home afternoon contest on the year, as the Bears jumped out to an early 14-0 lead after the first quarter by way of two touchdown runs - one by quarterback Justin Sanders and the other by running back Joey Robinson. The Bears scored again in the early minutes of the second quarter of play, as L-R kicker Colin Corpe booted a 32-yard field goal to put the visitors up big, 17-0 with 11:14 to go in the first half. BC answered by way of the pass, as quarterback Kye Hamilton connected with freshman wide receiver Hasan Carriel for a 21-yard touchdown pass in the back right corner of the endzone to put BC on the board. The catch was Carriel's first touchdown catch of his career at Brevard College. After a Chase Henry extra point, the Tornados found themselves down ten at 17-7 with a little over 10 minutes to play in the opening half … L-R's offense answered as Sanders scored on a five-yard scurry to cap a 6-play, 20 yard drive, all set up by a 75-yard kick return by Barry Tate. The score put the Bears back up by 17 at 24-7 … Yet the BC duo of Hamilton and Carriel would hook up again only six minutes later, as Hamilton connected with Carriel, who was draped by an L-R defender, down the BC sideline for a 49-yard touchdown play with only 1:13 remaining in the half … With the score at 24-14, L-R again answered with a score, as Corpe connected with his second field goal of the game, a 27-yard kick that sailed through the uprights and gave the Bears a 27-14 heading into the halftime break … In the second half, the Bears controlled the game as the offense was on the field for close to 21 minutes of the final 30 minutes of play, keeping the Tornados offense both off the field and wearing down an already injury depleted BC defense … L-R's Corpe had a field goal in the third, a 26-yard kick, which proved to be the only scoring in the quarter as neither team could find the endzone for the 15 minutes of play. In the fourth, L-R's Anthony Silvers scored on a one-yard touchdown run and Corpe kicked his fourth field goal of the game, a 36-yarder, to wrap up the scoring in the second half and give the Bears the 40-14 win over the Tornados … Offensively, BC was held to only 188 yards for the game with 139 yards coming by way of the passing game. Hamilton was 8-of-16 for 121 yards with two touchdowns and one interception … Running back John Compton, who was the primary back due to the absence of injured John Taylor, recorded 23 yards on 11 carries. Backup quarterback Matthew Gaines had 22 rushing yards and 18 passing yards in limited action in the fourth quarter … Junior receiver Donald Hudson had two catches for 34 yards, while Carriel had a career-day, gathering in three passes for 83 yards and two touchdowns in only his third career game at the college level … BC linebacker Stanley Jones was everywhere for the Tornados on the defensive side of the ball, as the junior had 21 total tackles on the game, seven solo and 14 assists. Fellow linebacker Brandon Rawls had 12 total tackles and one sack, while senior Justin Jefferson and junior John Hardee combined to have 13 total tackles and a sack on the day … The Tornados will continue their tough SAC slate next Saturday night, when BC will play host to the Wingate University Bulldogs at 6 p.m. at Brevard Memorial Stadium.

CARSON-NEWMAN - The Carson-Newman Eagles proved to be their own worst enemy in a 27-21 loss in overtime on Saturday at Newberry ... C-N fumbled five times, losing four, and committed 112 yards worth of penalties in the loss ... C-N Alex Good rushed for a career-high 209 yards in the win, but lost two fumbles, including one on first down at the Newberry 10-yard line...C-N jumped out to a 7-0 lead on the first play from scrimmage as Good darted around left end for a 77-yard touchdown run ... The play marked the third time this season the Eagles scored on the first snap from scrimmage ... C-N has led all four games it has played this season 7-0...Carson-Newman would intercept Newberry three times in the first quarter ... Twice returning picks of starter Eric McCollum to Newberry territory...Three Eagles, Otis Ballard, Elliott Bishop, and Revel Coffey all had interceptions for C-N ... The Eagles gad eight drives end on the Newberry side of the field, including overtime, seven ended inside the 33-yard line or better ... C-N would take a 14-10 lead into the half after Good found junior Reggie Hubbard for a 35-yard touchdown ... The Eagles final TD came on a short run by Buck Wakefield late in the game to make it a 21-13 C-N lead with 86 second to play ... C-N led for all but just under three minutes of the timed game ... Darius Wrentz led the defense with a pair of sacks on the day ... Carson-Newman returns to action this Saturday at home against Mars Hill College ... Kickoff is at 1 p.m ... The Eagles beat the Lions 49-28 a season ago.

CATAWBA - The Catawba Indians, ranked 23rd in the Sept. 23 AFCA poll, used a strong defensive effort to win its South Atlantic Conference opener at Mars Hill ... The Catawba Indians held Mars Hill to just 278 total yards, including a mere 39 on the ground in taking a 24-7 victory ... it marked the 12th win in the last 13 meetings for Catawba against the Lions ... The Catawba defense set the tone early, setting up the first score by pinning MHC deep in its own territory ... Howard Williamson threw a 13-yard scoring pass to Eric Morman to give Catawba an early lead ... Mars Hill would tie the game on its next possession, but the Indians took the lead back for good on a Williamson two-yard toss to Antonio Hall with 6:01 left in the first half ... Thomas Trexler made good on Catawba's first field goal attempt of the season, connecting from 42-yards out on the final play of the opening half for a 17-7 lead at the break ... The Lions managed just 100 yards in the first half with 52 coming on two plays, a 38-yard pass and a 14-yard run ... Mars Hill missed two scoring chances in the second half, failing on a pair of short field goal attempts and Jamelle Cuthbertson helped seal the win with a 67-yard run to set up the final score ... Cuthbertson finished with 115 yards on 11 carries and moved into 20th place on Catawba's all-time rushing list with 1,440 yards ... Patrick Dennis threw an 11-yard pass to Brandon Bunn for the final points, giving Bunn a TD catch in each of the first four games this season ... Defensive lineman Brandon Sutton had an interception and the defense half the Lions twice on fourth down to close out the game ... Williamson finished with 83 yards on 9-of-19 passes with the two scores ... he also ran for 32 yards ... Bunn and Antwan Strong each had three receptions ... Charles McAfee led the way with seven tackles, including three for losses and a sack ... Sutton also had a sack and a forced fumble ... The Indians as a team have 13 sacks and 43 tackles for losses on the season ... McAfee has recorded nine stops for losses to lead the squad ... Catawba will travel to Newberry this week.

LENOIR-RHYNE - The Lenoir-Rhyne University football team (3-2, 1-0) opened South Atlantic Conference play with a 40-14 victory over Brevard College (1-3, 0-1) Saturday afternoon at Brevard Memorial Stadium in Brevard, N.C. … The Bears also snapped a two-game losing streak and a 10-game losing streak on the road dating back to 2006 … Lenoir-Rhyne won its first league game away from Moretz Stadium in over three years as well (a 27-24 victory in overtime at Newberry on September 24, 2005) … Junior quarterback Justin Sanders (Monroe, N.C.) passed for 200 yards to go along with a game-high 53 yards rushing and two scores to lead the Bears … L-R jumped out to a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter on the strength of touchdown runs by Sanders and junior tailback Joey Robinson (Tampa, Fla.) of eight and nine yards, respectively … Brevard tried to comeback with a pair of touchdown passes by Kye Hamilton to Hasan Carriel later in the stanza but the Bears countered with another touchdown run by Sanders and a 27-yard field goal by Colin Corpe (Ocala, Fla.) for a 27-14 advantage at halftime … L-R took complete control in the second half, outscoring Brevard by a 13-0 margin and rushing for 129 yards … L-R put the contest away with a one-yard scoring run by junior fullback Anthony Silvers (Burnsville, N.C.) that culminated by a 17-play, 80-yard drive early in the fourth quarter … Lenoir-Rhyne held the ball for 41:01 of the possible 60 minutes while Corpe tied the school record with four field goals … Lenoir-Rhyne also held a 422-188 advantage in total yards including a 222-49 margin on the ground … L-R has already surpassed last year's victory total and is 1-0 in the league for the first time since 2005 … The Bears are only giving up 14.8 points per game and is averaging 277.4 yards rushing and over 60 carries per contest … The Bears' 200 yards passing is a season high and the most since 229 yards against North Carolina Central on September 9, 2006 … Lenoir-Rhyne returns home to face Tusculum (3-2, 0-1) on Homecoming Saturday beginning at 2 p.m. … The Pioneers lead the all-time series with the Bears, 8-3, and won last year's contest by a 31-16 score on October 6, 2007, in Greeneville, Tenn. … Tusculum is 7-1 in its last eight meetings with Lenoir-Rhyne.

MARS HILL - The Mars Hill Lions' football team lost their SAC opener to No. 23 Catawba College, 24-7 Saturday afternoon at the Ammons Family Athletic Center and Meares Stadium. MHC fell to 3-2 overall and 0-1 in the SAC while Catawba improved to 3-1 on the season and 1-0 in the league … Eric Morman (Rockingham, N.C.) caught a 13-yard pass from Howard Williamson (Greensboro, N.C.) with 5:42 left in the first quarter to put the Catawba Indians ahead 7-0 after a successful PAT kick from Thomas Trexler (Wilmington, N.C.). MHC tied the game at 7-all with 2:24 left in the opening frame after Elroy Harris (Orlando, Fla.) dove in from three yards out. Michael Pinkerton's (Bogart, Ga.) PAT kick sailed through the uprights to tie the contest. Unfortunately that would be all the scoring MHC would muster … Antonio Hall (Greensboro, N.C.) pulled in a two-yard touchdown strike from Williamson with 6:01 left in the half and after another PAT kick by Trexler, Catawba led 14-7. Trexler than nailed a 42-yard field goal as the horn sounded to end the first half and Catawba took a 17-7 lead into the locker room at halftime … After a scoreless third quarter, Brandon Bunn (Virginia Beach, Va) caught an 11-yard touchdown pass from Patrick Dennis (Durham, N.C.) to end the scoring in the game. Trexler again converted the PAT kick … Ricky Spradling (Roan Mountain, Tenn.) threw for 239 yards completing 18-36 passes. Tyrea Allen (Murphy, N.C.) was on the receiving end of five of those passes for 103 yards … Zach Johnson (Newland, N.C.) led the defense with 10 tackles, six solo and a pass break-up. Darius Clark (Lancaster, Calif.) recorded 11 stops (7 solo). Stan Galbraith (Birmingham, Ala.) tallied six tackles, one for loss and a fumble recovery … Mars Hill will play at No. 11 Carson-Newman College next Saturday in Jefferson City, Tenn, at 1 p.m. The Eagles lost to Newberry College today 27-21 in overtime.

NEWBERRY - The Newberry College football team came back from a late deficit to knock off No. 11 Carson-Newman, 27-21, in overtime at Setzler Field on Saturday… Newberry moves to 2-2 overall and 1-0 in SAC play… This is Newberry's second straight home win over Carson-Newman… Newberry wore black jerseys for the first time in recorded history… It was Newberry's first overtime game since a 43-37 overtime victory at Catawba in 2005… Newberry is 2-3 all-time in overtime games… Newberry earned the win in the hands of wide receiver David Pressley (Anderson, S.C.) and quarterback Eric McCollom (Camden, S.C.) in the late stages of the game. McCollom connected with David Brown (Goose Creek, S.C.) on a 2-yard touchdown pass with 16 seconds left in regulation to bring Newberry within two points. McCollom found Pressley in the end zone to score the two-point conversion that sent the game to overtime… After Carson-Newman missed a 24-yard field goal on the first drive of the overtime, McCollom pump faked and then threw to Pressley for the touchdown strike on third-and-10 to seal the victory… The game did not start out nearly as well as it would end for Newberry, as the scarlet and gray struggled through a first quarter that was sloppy on both sides… C-N quarterback Alex Good put the Eagles up on the first play of the game, as he kept the ball and scampered 77 yards for a touchdown… From there, the two teams traded turnovers on three straight drives before Britt Blackmon (Kershaw, S.C.) put Newberry on the board with a 23-yard field goal, narrowing the margin to 7-3 with 6:51 left in the opening quarter... Each team turned the ball over on the next two drives, totaling five turnovers in the first quarter… Newberry took the lead on its first possession of the second quarter with Brandon Gantt (Lexington, S.C.) leading the offense on a 8-play, 60-yard drive... Gantt would finish the drive off with a 24-yard quarterback keeper, putting NC up 10-7 after the Blackmon PAT… Carson-Newman answered on the next drive, as Good connected with Reggie Hubbard (Chattanooga, Tenn.) for a 35-yard touchdown pass that would give the Eagles a 14-10 lead they would carry into the half… Newberry cut the lead to one point with 4:13 left in the third quarter, as Blackmon's 32-yard field goal capped a 9-play, 75-yard drive that made the score 14-13… The Newberry defense stood strong in the fourth quarter, as NC stopped Carson-Newman on three consecutive drives inside the Newberry 40-yardline... But Carson-Newman's final drive ended with a Buck Wakefield (Drummonds, Tenn.) 1-yard touchdown plunge, giving the Eagles a 21-13 lead with 1:26 to play… Newberry only had one timeout and 1:21 to cover 77 yards and force the overtime... A roughing the passer and personal foul against Carson-Newman gave Newberry 30 free yards and put the scarlet and gray inside the Eagle 11... McCollom rushed down to the Eagle 2 on third down, but that set up a 4th-and-1 with 0:21 left… The senior quarterback found Brown in the end zone to set up the potential tie… From there, Pressley caught the two-point conversion to force OT… After holding C-N to the missed field goal on the first overtime drive, Newberry rushed for no gain on first and second downs, setting up a third-and-10... But McCollom pump faked before finding Pressley in the end zone and giving Newberry the conference-opening win… Newberry went with dual quarterbacks again, as Gantt was 14-of-23 for 130 yards and an interception, while McCollom was 8-of-16 for 95 yards with 2 INTs and 2 touchdowns in the game... Gerald Legree (Beaufort, S.C.) was Newberry's leading rusher, carrying the ball five times for 73 yards, including a 64-yard carry that set up Blackmon's first quarter field goal... Brown caught 10 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown to lead the receiving corps… Good was Carson-Newman's offensive leader, carrying the ball 26 times for 209 yards and a touchdown, as well as completing 6-of-15 passes for 106 yards and a touchdown. Hubbard caught four passes for 71 yards and a touchdown… Defensively, Newberry was led by Will Newell (Irmo, S.C.), who recorded 14 tackles, forced a fumble, broke up a pass and recorded a quarterback hurry... Ryan McClain (Charleston, S.C.) also recorded double digit tackles, as he made 10 tackles - including nine solos - as well as a fumble recovery… Lance Clark (Florence, S.C.), Derrell Kinard (Boiling Springs, S.C.) and David Harris (Ninety Six, S.C.) each recorded sacks, while McClain, Stewart Good (Rock Hill, S.C.) and Andre Moyd (Andrews, S.C.) were all beneficiaries of fumble recoveries… Newberry returns to action next weekend, as the scarlet and gray host Catawba (3-1, 1-0 SAC) for Homecoming at 7 p.m. on October 4… Newberry dropped a 28-18 decision to Catawba in Salisbury, N.C., last year.

TUSCULUM - The Tusculum Pioneers (3-2, 0-1 SAC) dropped its South Atlantic Conference opener at No. 22 Wingate, 37-33… The contest was a thriller as the lead exchanged hands on five occasions, including a pair of ties… The Pioneers outgained the Bulldogs in offensive production, 554-388, but Tusculum couldn't overcome four turnovers… Senior QB Corey Russell established a new TC single-game record with 463 total offensive yards, surpassing the previous record of 449 by Carson Bradley against Carson-Newman in 2002… Russell passed for a season-high 341 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for a career-best 122 yards on 19 carries and a score… The 122 rushing yards by Russell are the second most ever by a TC quarterback and came 10 yards shy of matching the 132 yards by TC Hall of Fame signal caller Chip Walker against Lambuth in 1993… Russell eclipsed 8,000 total offensive yards for his career this past weekend… He has 8,185 to his credit, which are tops in TC history and fifth in the SAC Record Book… Russell's 7,330 passing yards are seventh most in SAC history… Tusculum's 37-33 loss marked the first time the Pioneers have lost a game when scoring at least 30 points in seven years… The last time came Nov. 3, 2001 when Presbyterian outlasted Tusculum 48-41… Tusculum is now 54-4 all-time when scoring 30 or more points… Senior LB Justin Scott has 198 tackles to his credit as a Pioneer, needing two more to become only the 12th player in recorded school history with 200 stops… Scott's 39 tackles for loss are tied for fourth most in TC history with former All-American linebacker Craig Pritchett… The all-time TFL record at Tusculum is 48, set by Daris Robinson from 2001-04… Tusculum will be on the road this week to face Lenoir-Rhyne for a 2 p.m. kickoff at Moretz Stadium in Hickory, N.C… Tusculum will be looking to end a four-game road losing streak… This will be the 12th meeting between the Pioneers and the Bears… TC leads the all-time series 8-3 and has won the last two encounters… The series is the third oldest on the Tusculum schedule with the first meeting coming in 1924.

WINGATE - Wingate University redshirt senior wide receiver Shawn Barrett caught a career-high three touchdown passes as the Bulldogs outlasted Tusculum College 37-33 in South Atlantic Conference action Saturday afternoon at Irwin Belk Stadium and John R. Martin Field on the Wingate campus. Wingate leads the series with Tusculum 8-5. The Bulldogs have won four of the last five meetings between the two schools … Barrett caught the game-winner with 9:06 remaining and the Bulldog defense made it stick, putting together a red-zone stop as time expired. The number 22 team in this week's American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) NCAA Division II poll, Wingate is 5-0 overall and 1-0 in the SAC. Tusculum is 3-2 overall and 0-1 in the SAC. The Bulldogs have won six games in a row, dating to last season … Tusculum took a 33-30 lead when senior quarterback Corey Russell found sophomore wide receiver Calvin Britt for a 39-yard touchdown on a third-and-16 play. The PAT by sophomore place kicker Gareth Rowlands gave the Pioneers a three-point edge with 10:48 to go in the contest … Wingate sophomore running back Patrick Pinchinat returned the ensuing kick-off 73 yards to the Tusculum 22-yard line, putting the Bulldogs in position for the game-winning score. Three plays later, Wingate redshirt senior quarterback JD Moore connected with Barrett for a 24-yard TD strike. Classmate Michael Crutchfield nailed the extra point to give the hosts a 37-33 bulge … Tusculum's next drive stalled at the Wingate 37 and the Pioneers turned the ball over on downs, thanks to a fourth-down sack by Bulldog redshirt freshman defensive lineman Josh Yon. Wingate couldn't capitalize, but Crutchfield booted a 47-yard punt out of bounds at the Pioneer one-yard line … Russell and his mates weren't fazed, as the Pioneers marched down the field in the waning moments. Tusculum ran 15 plays for 86 yards on the potential game-winning drive. On fourth-and-five from the Wingate 13-yard line, Russell threw an interception to Bulldog redshirt junior linebacker Greg Harmon. A South View High School product, Harmon returned the errant throw 33 yards to Wingate 36-yard line as time expired … The Wingate-Tusculum contest had more plot twists than a soap opera. The two teams combined for 942 yards total offense (Tusculum 554 yards, Wingate 388 yards). Russell set a Tusculum College school record for individual total offense with 463 yards. He completed 28-of-45 passes for 341 yards and two touchdowns. In addition, Russell rushed 19 times for 122 yards and another score … Bulldog sophomore tailback Nelson Woods posted his third 100-plus yard performance of the season, rushing 28 times for 125 yards and two touchdowns. Moore was very efficient, completing 23-of-36 passes for 215 yards and three scores. Wingate junior signal-caller James Hall spelled Moore for a second quarter drive and led the Bulldogs on a 12-play, 52-yard drive that ended with a Woods TD scamper … Barrett caught seven passes for 66 yards and three touchdowns. The All-SAC performer wasn't Wingate's receptions leader, as redshirt senior wide receiver Jordan Softcheck recorded a career-high 11 catches for 103 yards. Softcheck is also Wingate's holder for extra points and field goals … The intangibles favored the Bulldogs, as Wingate won the turnover battle 4-2. Tusculum had two interceptions and lost two fumbles, while Wingate allowed one interception and lost one fumble. The Bulldogs were big in the clutch, as Wingate converted 10-of-16 third-down opportunities … Crutchfield had a huge day, as the Northwest Cabarrus High School graduate booted four punts for a 45.8 yard average. He had three punts inside the 20 and one touchback. Crutchfield's long punt traveled 52 yards. His deep kick-offs and booming punts helped Wingate win the field position battle. The Bulldogs' average field position was the Wingate 43-yard line, while the Pioneers' average field position was the Tusculum 25-yard line. Crutchfield also scored seven points with one field goal and four extra points … For the Wingate defense, Harmon did everything but sell popcorn at halftime. He had a game-high and career-best 16 stops (five solo, 11 assists) with a fumble recovery, an interception and a shared sack. Bulldog redshirt sophomore cornerback Terrence Stephens also had his best day in the blue-and-gold with 14 tackles (nine solo, five assists) … The Bulldogs hit the road for another SAC contest on Saturday, Oct. 4. Wingate visits Brevard College for a 6 p.m. start. In 2007, The Bulldogs spotted the BC Tornados a 7-0 lead, then scored 51 unanswered points in a 51-7 home victory on Oct. 6. The contest was the first modern-day meeting between the two schools … Wingate's 5-0 start equals the best start in the school's senior college football history. The 2004 team and the 2005 team also started the season 5-0 overall. The 2004 Bulldogs are one of three Wingate senior college football teams to win eight games. The 1997 team and the 2006 team also accomplished the feat … During the Joe Reich era, the Bulldogs are 27-12 overall at Irwin Belk Stadium and John R. Martin Field. Wingate's recent three-game home stand ended with the Tusculum contest. The modern-day Bulldogs have had three straight home contests on three other occasions: 1986, 1989 and 2001. In 1989 (Wingate's first year in the SAC), Wingate won three consecutive home games against Newberry, Presbyterian and Concord (W.Va.) to match the achievement of the 2008 squad.