There was a wild finish in Spartanburg as The Citadel snatched a victory in OT over Wofford after being down for much of the game. Chattanooga took care of business against the VMI Keydets. ETSU got its third win of the season by beating West Virginia Wesleyan on Thursday night. Mercer got a scare from a late Austin Peay rally in a crazy game. And Samford handled Western Carolina.
#5 The Citadel 24 #25 Wofford 21 (OT) (box score)
Wofford shut down The Citadel’s running game fairly well for most of this game. In fact, they held the FCS leading Bulldogs to their lowest rushing total all year at 190 yards (Furman held the Dogs to 191 early). That should have been enough to win. Should have been, but the Terriers did something else they haven’t done all year, and that is turn the ball over. This game is destined to become a classic in SOCON lore. Well, at least in Bulldog lore. It was nail biter from towards the end of the third quarter when The Citadel started to rally, all the way into OT. This game had it all: fumbles (real and imagined), big runs, an interception (of sorts), and blocked kicks. (If you didn’t see it, it is worth it to view the condensed highlights here)
The first half was a defensive coach’s dream. The teams traded four punts to open the game. On Wofford’s third possession they finally got it going and drove 66 yards in 6 plays to go up 7-0. The key play on this drive was the first of the drive as Wofford’s QB, Brandon Goodson, ran for 26 yards to the Bulldog 40. Enter the Refs. As Goodson got wrapped up, Kailik Williams took the ball right out of his hands before they hit the ground. Ruling on the field? Down by contact. This seemed to deflate the Dogs a bit. It is easy to complain about the refs, but it is not their decision in regard to replay. It is part of the game and they can’t see everything. At home on a big screen with lots of replays it is easy to see. Not on the field.
The Citadel still couldn’t get it going and they were forced to punt yet again on their next possession. Only this time a Wofford defender got a hand on the punt at The Citadel 19 yard line and it seemed like the Bulldogs were coming apart at the seams. But the Dogs got a break. Call it karma. Call it luck. Call it the bad SOCON refs. As the Terriers drove their way for another score, the Bulldogs forced a fumble and recovered at the 6. Only problem was, the Terriers runner was clearly down on his butt when the ball came loose. So call it a swap of bad calls by the refs.
But the defenses were still in form and the teams traded 4 more punts with a few first downs interspersed in there. The Citadel got the ball back with 2:16 to go in the half. It looked like they might have had something going as Rod Johnson made a great 16 yard run on a third and 10 to cross midfield. But Bulldog QB Dominique Allen tossed an interception the next play and Wofford went to work with 37 seconds remaining in the half. Two plays later they were on the Bulldog 22. But the Terriers ran out of time to try to score a TD and they kicked a field goal to go up 10-0 at half.
It was clear that the Citadel offense would have to make some adjustments in the second half against a very good Wofford defense. The Bulldogs were held to only 100 total yards in the first half. They had been gaining 437 total yards each game coming into this contest. Wofford’s defensive players were outstanding in playing their assignments both inside and outside. The Citadel’s defense was only fairly effective in limiting the Terriers and Wofford still gained 183 yards in the first half and more importantly, 10 points. This was the first time that The Citadel has been down at the half all year and Wofford definitely had the momentum going into the break.
It seemed that the second half was going to be a rerun of the first, at least to start with. The Citadel took the opening kickoff and Wofford quickly inflicted a three and out on them and the Bulldogs punted it away. But The Citadel defense was just as effective and forced their own three and out. Take two. Wofford again forced a three and out and got the ball back near mid field. This time Wofford had some success and the key play was a timely 20 yard pass from Goodson to the Bulldog 22 yard line. But the pass came on a 3rd and 24 and the Terriers had to settle for a field goal to make it 13-0.
With 6:46 to go in the third quarter, the Bulldogs again tried to find the play calls to move the ball against a stubborn Wofford defense. And they did this time. The Citadel went on their best drive of the day. They marched 75 yards in 11 plays. Allen went 2-3 in the air on this drive. Those two completions only gained 7 yards each, but it was enough to make Wofford a bit cautious and the Dogs finally got some yards on the ground. Allen also had a good run when he was forced out of the pocket attempting to pass yet again. The key play came when the Bulldogs found themselves with a 4th and 2 on the Wofford 34. With the Terriers expecting the fullback to take it, the Bulldogs pitched it and Reggie Williams took it around the edge untouched for a 34 yard TD run.
Now trailing 13-7 with 1:26 in the third quarter, The Citadel defense needed to make a stop. Wofford began their subsequent drive at their 27. On the first play from scrimmage, Goodson made a bad pitch and The Bulldog’s Tevin Floyd scooped it up and got it to the 16 before being forced out of bounds. Credit Wofford’s defense in that they made it hard for the Bulldogs to score after the turnover. After making a first down at the 5, The Citadel soon found themselves with a third and goal from the 8. They got 7 on a reverse, but found themselves with another 4th down situation. But Allen punched it in from the 1 and The Citadel had their first lead of the day 14-13 with 12:55 to go in the game. Just like that it seemed that the momentum had changed.
But the Terriers were not done yet and they went on an 11 play 75 yard drive. They spread the running around a bit and had runs of 19, 16, and 16 yards by three different runners. The TD was a 16 yard run by Lennox McAfee. They went for two and got it on a play action pass by Goodson to make it 21-14 with 8:09 to go. This drive seemed to re-motivate the Terrier defense and they forced a three and out on the Bulldogs. With only 7:16 to go, one more long Wofford drive might have sealed the game for the Terriers.
But The Citadel’s defense was not done either. After making a tackle in the backfield and stuffing another run for no gain, one of the most bizarre plays occurred deep in Terrier territory. Goodson was attempted to pitch it to the short side on the right. The only problem was that The Citadel’s Kailik Williams was already in the back field and did a jump ball to make a one handed snatch of the pitch and proceeded to stroll into the end zone. Call it a flip 6. The Citadel’s defense, burned a few times during the game, stood up big time and saved the game with this play.
Now tied at 21 with 5:57 to go in the game, Wofford was still in a good position to win, especially considering the range of their ace field goal kicker. David Marvin made a 57 yarder earlier this year. The Terriers drive made good headway and nine plays later they were on The Citadel 32. The Dogs held them and they opted to try for a 49 yard field goal, and the likely win, with 1:17 to go. Enter the Bulldog defense one more time. The Bulldog’s got a good push and blocked the low kick. The Citadel’s offense had one more chance to win it but couldn’t put anything together and had to punt it back with seconds remaining and the game went to overtime.
The Citadel went first in OT and was forced to try a field goal on a 4th and 1 at the 16 yard line. They got it but Bulldog’s Coach Brent Thompson decided to take the points off the board after Wofford was called for an off sides. The Citadel made it to the Wofford 4 but were forced to make yet another field goal try. They made it to go up 24-21. On Wofford’s possession Lorenzo Long quickly ran it for 11 yards on the first play. On the next play, Bulldog Joe Crochet ripped it out of Terrier running backs hands and the Dogs jumped on it to seal the win.
As mentioned, Wofford was very successful in stopping the Bulldog’s running game. Tyler Renew lead the Dogs with 84 yards for only a 3.7 average per carry. Wofford was only a bit off their running game with 299 yards on the ground. Lorenzo Long was the top Terrier runner with 103 on the day. The Citadel attempted 14 passes and only completed 3 for 50 yards, but they had to try against such a good Wofford running defense. Wofford went 4/7 in the air for 44 yards. They each had an interception, but the Wofford one was actually the pitch gone awry. The Terriers held about a 5 minute advantage in time of possession. There were only 5 penalties all game, with The Citadel getting flagged three times and Wofford twice.
The key stat in the game was obviously the four Wofford turnovers including three that were forced. The Wofford turnovers include a fumble inside The Citadel 5, one inside their 20 that led to a score, one for a “flip 6,” and the last fumble in OT to seal it for The Citadel. While the Terrier defense did what they needed to, so did the Citadel’s defense when it mattered, even if their offense had been stymied.
The Citadel is now 7-0 for the first time in program history. They meet ETSU in Charleston next week. Wofford, now 4-3, probably needs to win out to have a realistic shot at the post season. They get Mercer at home next week.
#10 Chattanooga 30 VMI 13 (box score)
The Chattanooga Mocs grinded out a victory over the VMI Keydets on Saturday to improve their record to 7-1, 5-1. VMI falls to 3-4, 1-3.
The two teams got off to slow starts and traded four punts to open the game. The Mocs struck first after getting great field position when VMI was forced to punt from their 8 yard line. A short return put the Mocs on the VMI 38 to start the drive. The drive of 4 plays ended when QB Alejandro Bennifield tossed a 21 TD pass to Bingo Morton.
After a quick three and out by VMI, UTC again scored on a 9 play 80 yard drive. This time they scored on a 14 yard run by Bennifield and went up 14-0. After VMI was forced to punt again after a short drive, Chattanooga was again successful, but was held to a field goal with about nine minutes to go in the first half.
The teams traded three more punts and then each turned it over on downs to go into the half. Without Derrick Craine, one question for the Mocs was whether they could find success with another rusher. They passed quite a bit in the first half with Ruchardre Bagley getting a good work out running the ball as well. They ended the first half with 272 yards of offense. The Chattanooga defense was also in form and held the Keydets to just 39 total first half yards and 1 first down.
VMI started the third quarter very well by returning the opening kickoff 71 yards to the UTC 28 yard line. But the Mocs defense stiffened up and force VMI to try a 28 field goal, which they missed wide left.
After a short drive by the Mocs, the Keydets led by QB Al Cobb struck fast in one play on a 79 yard TD pass to make it 17-7. UTC then went on an 8 play drive for 65 yards to increase their lead back to 17 at 23-7. The XP was blocked. The score came on a downfield pitch from Bennifield to Bagley.
VMI answered with a scoring drive of their own which went for 82 yards on 12 plays to close it to 23-13. VMI went two and didn’t make it.
After trading a few more punts, VMI got another drive going but was stopped at their own 45 and found themselves with a 4th and 1 with 8:22 to go in the game. They went for it. They didn’t make it and the Mocs made them pay. On their first play Bagley went the distance to make it 30-13.
VMI went on one more long drive only to get stopped on the UTC 40 and they turned it over on downs. The Mocs ran the clock out and chocked up their 7th win of the season. Bennifield went 21/33 and 224 yards with 1 TD and no interceptions. Bagley went 189 yards on the ground with two TDs. I guess they found someone as effective as Craine. Overall, the Mocs gained 519 yards on the day. They did not turn the ball over, but they did have an unusually high number of penalties with 12 for 84 yards. VMI leading tacklers were linebackers Cratsenberg and Francis who had 14 and 10 respectively.
VMI gained 249 yards on the day with nearly all of them in the second half. Al Cobb went 18/35 for 238 with 1 TD and no interceptions. VMI’s leading rusher, Daz Palmer was stuffed with only 12 yards all day. Chattanooga’s Keionta Davis had 3 sacks on the day and three QB hurries. No wonder Cobb had problems. VMI had no turnovers and one penalty. It was hard for VMI to get anything going and they held the ball for only 23 minutes.
With the win Chattanooga stays close to The Citadel in the hunt for the SOCON title and automatic berth in the playoffs. They travel to Cullowhee next week to meet Western Carolina. VMI hosts Furman next week.
ETSU 38 West Virginia Wesleyan 7 (box score)
The Bucs of ETSU faced off against the West Virginia Wesleysan Bobcats last Thursday night. As poor as the Bucs have done lately against the tough SOCON schedule, they easily handled the Bobcats.
After holding the WVW to a three and out to start the game, ETSU went on a 10 play, 70 yard scoring drive which took just over 5 minutes. Having only scored 21 total points in the last 3 games, this was badly needed. But the teams traded four punts after this until the Bucs got going again.
The Bucs scored on their next two drives going 70 and 86 yards to go up by 21. Their last score came with 54 seconds remaining in the first half. After holding the Bobcats to just 49 yards by this point, the ETSU defense must have relaxed a bit. WVW drove on a textbook 2 minute drill to score as the half ended to make it 21-7.
ETSU made a 9 play 51 yard drive to open the third quarter but were forced to settle for a field goal to make it 24-7. The Bobcats next two third quarter drives ended in fumbles and ETSU capitalized on both with TD drives to make it 38-7. The teams just traded punts for most of the4th quarter.
This was just what ETSU needed to gain a bit of confidence. They totaled 421 yards on offense including 323 on the ground and 98 in the air. Bucs QB Austin Herink went 9/14 for 93 yards. Jajuan Stinson was the Bucs leading rusher with 127. ETSU only had 4 penalties and no turnovers.
Now at 3-4 on the year, the Bucs travel to Charleston next week to meet The Citadel. The Bucs and Bulldogs last met in 2003 when the Bucs won their last game before terminating their football program.
Mercer 41 Austin Peay 34 (box score)
Austin Peay is having a pretty bad run right now. They haven’t won a game since October 2014, the only win since the beginning of the 2013 season. Even so, there are indications that the Governors of Austin Peay are getting better. The Mercer game on Saturday was a prime example. Mercer won the last couple years and I am sure they fully expected to walk away with an easy win. What they did not expect was a wild and crazy 4th quarter where the Governors almost came back.
The Mercer Bears took the opening kickoff and drove 86 yards in 12 plays for the game’s first score. The Governors began their first drive and seemed to be making some headway when they fumbled it on the Bear’s 34. But Mercer could do much and gave it back to AP after a three and out. The Governors suffered their own three and out and Mercer got to work again going 56 yards in 7 plays to go up 14-0.
Austin Peay answered with a scoring drive of their own that went 8 plays, 71 yards to make it 14-6 at the start of the second quarter. They failed in the 2 point conversion attempt. After trading punts again Mercer scored a field goal after being held at the AP 7 to make it 17-6. But the Governors started to have some success and after a good kickoff return, they connected on a 45 yard pass and were threatening at the Mercer 13. Alas for the Governors, they fumbled it again on the next play and Mercer scored again in 11 plays to go up 24-6. At this point it looked like Mercer was going to have a easy game it after all.
The Governors got the ball back with 32 seconds left in the half, and they would not go away easily. And little did anyone know that there were still three possessions left in the half. After AP went three and out, they punted it back to Mercer. On its first play Bears QB John Russ threw an uncharacteristic interception, but the long ball was probably worth the risk with so little time left. AP connected on one play for 22 yards, but ran out of time before halftime. Both teams were obviously going to make every second productive if they could.
The Governors took the opening kickoff of the second half and got some success. They made it to the Bears 33 after 13 plays and attempted a 50 yard field goal which they missed short. Mercer then went on a 58 yard drive and was also forced into trying for a field goal, which they made to make it 27-6.
Austin Peay again made good progress and drove to the Mercer 44 before the Governors QB, Timarious Mitchell threw an interception deep in Mercer territory. After holding the Bears to a three and out and getting some help on a bad Mercer kick, AP made their move. They went on a 39 yard drive in 13 plays to make it 27-13 with 11:33 to go in the game. After a short kick, Mercer started their drive from their 36 yard line. It went quick. Three plays later they scored on a 50 yard run by Kyle Trammell to make it 34-13.
The Governors started their next drive from their 23 with 10:50 to go in the game. At this point they were in desperate straits and elected to go for a 4th and 5 from their own 28 after the Bears had stopped them. They didn’t make it and it looked even worse for them. But the Bears couldn’t do anything and also got a false start penalty and they attempted a 45 field goal but missed it left. The Governors had a little life left in them though and they drove it 72 yards in 8 plays to make it 34-20. After Mercer got the ball back on their 30 it looked like Austin Peay was going to hold them. On a third and 10 the Governor’s defense got a forced fumble, recovered it and then proceeded to fumble themselves and Mercer got it back. But they held Mercer again and the Bears were forced to punt.
With only 2:38 remaining the Governors needed to score quickly if they had any hope. They scored, but it took 1:23 to go 53 yards in 10 plays. With score now 34-27 and only 1:15 remaining, they elected to go for an onside kick. Good idea, bad execution. They kicked it right to one of the Mercer up men who proceeded to sprint for a 45 yard TD to make it 41-27.
But the Governors were still not going away easily and on their next drive they went 61 yards in 3 plays to close it to 41-34 with 42 seconds remaining. They tried another onside kick, but had a off sides penalty and Mercer got the ball at the AP 41 and ran out the clock along with the Governors time outs. Wow, talk about determination. Mercer is a good team, but I think Austin Peay might be a little better than folks think.
Mercer finished with 358 yards including 203 on the ground and 155 through the air. Mercer’s Russ finished 15/29 with 1 interception. Kyle Trammell was the Bears leading rusher with 108 yards. Mercer defenders had 3 sacks against the Governors QB for 16 yards. The Governors finished with 500 total yards exactly. Mercer gave up 1 fumble, but got it back immediately, and Austin Peay had 3 fumbles given up and 1 interception. Both teams were penalized a lot with 8 for Mercer and 11 for Austin Peay.
Mercer is still alive in the playoff hunt, but at 4-3 they are on the bubble. They meet Wofford next week in Spartanburg hoping to burst the Terrier’s playoff bubble.
#17 Samford 30 Western Carolina 17 (box score)
While Chattanooga and The Citadel have been taking the headlines in the SOCON lately, The Samford Bulldogs have been quietly amassing wins. Now at 6-1 and climbing in the polls, they are poised to make some noise in the SOCON title race. But first they had to take care of business against an uneven Western Carolina team.
Samford QB, Devlin Hodges has put up some impressive numbers this year. If WCU had any hope to win this they needed to stop Samford’s passing attack. They didn’t.
After a quick three and out by the Western Carolina Catamounts, Samford got rolling on an 8 play 40 yard drive which ended on a 4th and 2 and forced Samford to try a field goal. They missed wide right.
After forcing the Catamounts to punt after a short drive, the Bulldogs drove 98 yards in 7 plays. Samford rushed once and Devlin Hodges went 5/6 for 93 of the 98 yards including a 36 yard TD pass. The Drive took 1:54. That about sums up Samford’s usual MO.
After trading punts Western went on a pretty good drive, but it ended at the Samford 32 yard line when WCU went for a 4th and 2. The Cats scored anyway three plays later when Hodges threw his only interception of the game for a pick 6 to make it 7-7.
Samford drove fairly well their next possession and they even ran the ball a bit more than they have. But the Western defense stood up and stopped them on a 4th and 7 at the Catamount 42. It appeared that the Bulldogs were going to go for it when Hodges did a quick kick. They do that every once in a while.
After another three and out by the Catamounts, Samford began their drive on their own 38. After a couple quick first downs, on four passes, Samford did something that they have not done all year. They ran the ball. Not only that, they ran it three times in a row, and for a first down. WCU called for a time out at this point. I guess they were wondering who they were playing. The Cats did hold the Bulldogs and Samford was forced to kick a field goal which they made to go up 10-7.
The Samford defense was being pretty stingy and they yet again held the Cats to a three and out. Samford went on another effective drive with a good mix of pass and run. But WCU held them again at the Western 4 and the Bulldogs were forced yet again to kick a field goal which they again made to go up 13-7
After trading punts Western got the ball back at their 9 and started to drive with 55 second to go in the first half. On a third and 5 from their 40, the Cat’s QB, Tyrie Adams tossed his only interception of the day on a deep ball with 4 seconds remaining and Samford took a knee, and a 13-7 lead into half.
The biggest surprise of the game was that Samford had so many rushing attempts. I think they realized their weakness and decided they needed some reps. On their first drive of the third though, they mostly passed again and scored after a 9 play, 75 yard drive to go up 20-7. Western answered back with a 12 play drive covering 53 yards and got a field goal to make it 20-10 about half way through the third quarter.
Samford answered right back though with an 11 play drive for 72 yards to extend the lead further at 27-10. They again ran more than normal, at least for them. After three more punts by the teams, Samford again made some progress and got another field goal, this for 36 yards to go up 30-10. Western made one more good drive of 13 plays and 74 yards to close the gap to 30-17 with 1:39 remaining and Samford ran out the clock on their final possession.
I think the big news for this game is that Samford ran for 215 yards. That almost doubled their yearly total against Div I teams. They also passed for 375 which is about par for them. Hodges went 32/49 with two TDs and the one interception. WCU managed only one sack on the day. Samford’s leading rusher was K’rondis Larry with 167 yards in the game. Who?
Western’s Adams went 17/31 for 122 yards with 1 TD and the 1 interception. He was also the leading rusher with only 48. Overall WCU gained only 255 yards in the game with 133 on the ground.
With all the running that Samford did, 41 attempts, they actually ended up on the plus side of possession at almost 32 minutes. It was clear they needed to up their running game and they did.
As a side note Samford apparently had some injuries in the game. Both were linebackers. Not good for a team that strikes quick on offense and needs to have a fresh, healthy defense.
Samford faces a tough test next week as they meet the SEC Bulldogs of Mississippi State. Western Carolina faces Chattanooga at home next week.
Power Rankings
1 – The Citadel
2 – Chattanooga
3 – Samford
4 – Wofford
5 – Mercer
6 – Furman
7 – VMI
8 – WCU
9 – ETSU