That’s right, we have a two part installment this week for the AGS Game of the Week. In what was a hard fought battle on the Any Given Saturday web site, the members made it a battle royal for which game would come out on top as the Game of the Week. With much lobbying, many lead changes, and voting strategies, it made for a great competition. In the end The SOCON game came out on top, but barely. As a result, both games will be highlighted on The FCS Wedge as Games of the Week. After the voting ended, it could only be hoped that the games themselves lived up to their billing.
Both of the games had all the makings of great FCS football. The #5 Chattanooga Mocs, with their FCS leading defense, traveled to Charleston, SC to face the leading FCS rushing team, the #7 Bulldogs of The Citadel. And while there is still a lot of season left to play, this game will have big implications for the Southern Conference title and seeding in the FCS playoffs. The other game that vied for Game of the Week was a classic rivalry game pitting the Jackrabbits of South Dakota State against the current and 5 time FCS Champions, the North Dakota State Bison. Up for the taking was the coveted Dakota Marker trophy. That game could also have big repercussions on the Missouri Valley Conference race and seeding as well.
In the last battle of unbeatens in FCS football this year, The Citadel returned home to Charleston for only the third time in its last 10 games in a face off with the 2015 SOCON co-champions Chattanooga. The Mocs won the head to head last year, but both finished 6-1 in the conference to claim a share of the title.
With the top spot in the SOCON at stake, a beautiful fall day in Charleston, and Parents Day festivities going on at The Citadel, 14,590 fans came out to watch. With at least 8000 seats currently condemned at Johnson Hagood Stadium, this was a pretty good turnout. The Mocs took the opening kickoff and went to work. They had been averaging 464 yards a game behind a very capable QB Alejandro Bennifield and running back Derrick Craine. On the first play from scrimmage, the Mocs connected for 18 yard pass and it looked like their offense was in gear. But they lost yards on the next two rushing plays and it was clear a slugfest was on. The drive ended on a 4th and 7 on the Dogs 17 and the Mocs opted for as field goal, which they missed wide left.
The Citadel, averaging 389 yards a game on the ground coming into the contest, also got a great first play. Dominique Allen rushed for 15 yards. In a typical Bulldog drive, they drove the field methodically and patiently. They converted three third downs on the 80 yard, 13 play drive. Allen punched it in from the Mocs one yard line. The drive took over 6 and a half minutes.
The Dogs did not have much success with its fullback, Tyler Renew, up the middle on this drive, but it was finding room on the edges with Cam Jackson’s speed. This continued for most of the game as well. At this point, it was clear the Dogs could move the ball against the stout Mocs defense, but whether the Bulldog defense could hold against the Mocs powerful offense had still yet to be answered. It was answered quickly on the next play from scrimmage as Bennifield connected with C.J. Board for a 75 yard TD pass after Board gained some space on the Bulldogs cornerback. The UTC possession took 11 seconds.
Starting from its own 12 after a holding penalty on the ensuing kickoff return, the Dogs went to work again. The Bulldogs executed a carbon copy of the first drive, only it was longer. The 19 play, 88 yard drive took 9:27. The Dogs called a pretty good play mix to keep the Chattanooga defense working hard. Allen again scored on a 1 yd TD run to make it 14-7, The Citadel. Now with 10:10 to go in the second quarter, each team had only had the ball twice.
Chattanooga’s first play on their next drive again went for big yards as Craine took it 24 yards to near midfield. But the Bulldogs defense began to stiffen up and made it harder the Mocs. They drove all the way to the 5 yard line before Bennifield looked to score on a second down, but he fumbled. Luckily for the Mocs, they recovered on the 1 and Craine punched it in on the next play. The 13 play, 76 yard drive took 6 and a half minutes. Only 3:32 remained in the half with the score tied at 14. Both defenses were making it harder for the teams to score, but they were simply slowing them down and not getting stops.
While the Dogs have scored quickly here and there during the season, it would be tough against the Mocs with so little time left before half. They did get great field position on a good kickoff return to start from their 38 yard line. They stuck to what they knew best, although they did toss a couple passes to try and speed things up and to keep the Mocs defense honest. Taking their timeouts as well, the Dogs ended up on the Mocs 20 after a 13 play drive. With three seconds on the clock they kicked the go ahead field goal to take the 17-13 lead into half.
There had only been a total of 6 possessions in the first half, combined, and the difference was one missed field goal. It was clear that the first team to get a stop was going to get a big advantage. The Dogs took the kickoff to start the third quarter and they got their first third down conversion. But the Mocs defense got the first stop on the next set of downs and the Dogs made the first punt of the day. Not to be outdone, The Citadel defense delivered the first three and out of the day on the next Chattanooga possession. Matching it, the Mocs answered right back with a three and out defensive performance of their own. The defensive adjustments made by each team appeared to be working. In fact neither team scored another TD in the game.
The Bulldogs had better success on their next drive going 11 plays for 49 yards, but gave it up on downs on a fourth and one from the UTC 10. It was a calculated risk to not go for the field goal at this point. I am sure that the armchair coaches were all screaming at this point, but being up by 6 doesn’t give you much and the potential benefit of being up by 10 surely outweighed the risk.
The Bulldogs defense has been lights out in the fourth quarter all year. As the Mocs took over at their 10, with 1:18 to go in the third, the Dogs defense started a little early this game. After connecting for an 11 yard pass, Bennifield was sacked for a 12 yard loss. On the next play, the last of the third quarter, he was going down again, this time in the end zone and in the tackle box, but he got a wild pass off at the last moment. It might be argued that it was in the direction of a receiver, but it was just throw out of bounds 10-15 yards from his receiver, and the refs agreed and the Dogs went up 5 on the safety. Just as important as the 2 points, the Dogs got the ball back on the free kick.
Unfortunately for the Dogs, they stalled after gaining a couple first downs and punted it back to the Mocs. With 10:51 to go in the game, the Mocs needed to score on their next drive. Craine had gone out with a knee injury earlier in the third quarter. Losing such a versatile and productive player really hurt the Mocs effectiveness on offensive, but Bennifield still moved the ball well. They drove all the way to the Citadel 37 before being stopped on a 4th and 7. With just 5:18 to go in the game, The Citadel looked to score one more time and put it out of reach for the Mocs.
The Dogs made a 12 play 48 yard drive that took almost five minutes off the clock. They ended up settling for a 32 yard field goal to make it 22-14 with 24 seconds left. After a touchback on the kickoff, UTC made it to midfield on a couple passes underneath, but the Dogs secondary held and the Bulldogs broke their skid against the Chattanooga Mocs to take the lead in the SOCON race.
If there was a key stat to the game, it had to be the time of possession. The Bulldogs held the ball 39:31. Very few teams can win holding the ball for only 20 minutes. On the day, the Dogs rolled up 354 yards on the ground. They kept their drives going and made 13/20 third down conversions. Dominique Allen made some outstanding option reads. He pitched it sometimes at the last possible millisecond. Some of the fake shoulder movements he made froze the Chattanooga defenders just long enough to get an extra step. Allen finished with a career high 135 yards rushing and two TDs. He only went 1/4 for 7 yards through the air. But the Dogs did not need to pass with their running game so effective. Neither team committed a turnover in the game. The Citadel was flagged 5 times and the Mocs twice, they were both very disciplined teams.
Alejandro Bennifield went 17/28 for 240 yards and 1 TD. Craine had 8 rushes for 35 yards and two receptions for 55 yards, but he went out midway in the third. He is a bruising, crafty, and a fast runner. Get him in space and he will burn you. The Mocs can ill afford to lose him. As it was, the Bulldog defense was able to limit the Mocs to their lowest offensive output on the year at 295 yards. I say the defense, but the offense had a hand in that as well with the ridiculously high TOP they maintained.
The Citadel, now 6-0, 4-0, travels to Wofford to continue their quest for the SOCON title. Chattanooga, 6-1, 4-1, gets VMI at home to try and stay close in case The Citadel stumbles.
If you were looking for a flashy game and a track meet for a Game of the Week, this wasn’t it. It was an old fashion defensive slugfest, especially in the second half, and a hard fought battle the entire game.