Weekly SAC Football Notes, September 14, 2008

Game notes and recaps from around the SAC for games of Saturday, September 13:

BREVARD - Junior wide receiver Donald Hudson hauled in a career-high nine catches for 128 yards, while fellow receiver Shaton Pratt had a career-high 101 yards on four catches on Saturday afternoon, however it wasn't enough as the Tornados squandered a 20-3 lead to fall on the road at Chowan University, 23-20 … The loss drops the Tornados to 1-2 on the season. The Tornados stormed out of the gates in the first quarter, as in their first offensive possession junior quarterback Kye Hamilton connected with Hudson on a fly route down the BC sideline for a 63-yard reception all the way down the Chowan three-yard line. After a John Taylor rush attempt was stopped at the one-yard line, Hamilton then hit a wide open Curtis Lorenz in the back left corner of the end zone to put the Tornados up 6-0. Chase Henry's extra point attempt was good, putting the Tornados up 7-0 early in the contest. The touchdown catch was the first of Lorenz's career … Two offensive possessions later, the Tornados again reached the end zone by way of the air, as on a third down and six yards to go, Hamilton this time hooked up with receiver Shaton Pratt for a 56-yard touchdown pass, the longest touchdown play on the season for the Tornados. With the score the Tornados found themselves up 13-0 with 4:17 remaining in the first quarter of play … However, the Tornados offense would sputter over the next 20 minutes of play, gaining only 34-yards over their next five offensive series. Chowan cut into the BC lead early in the second quarter, as the Hawk's kicker Cory Cline kicked a 23 yard-field goal to cap of an 18-play, 89-yard drive, to cut the lead to 10 at 13-3. The Tornados would head into the halftime break with a 13-3 lead, their largest halftime lead on the year … Brevard did not take long to add on to their 10 point lead, as Hamilton threw his third touchdown pass of the day, this time connecting with freshman Michael Gist on an isolation fade route for a 6-yard touchdown score. With the Henry extra point, the Tornados took a 20-3 lead with 5:26 to go in the third quarter … Yet the lead would slowly disappear, as over the final 20 minutes of play Chowan outscored the Tornados 20-0 to pick up the 23-20 come from behind win … Down 20-3 in the third quarter, Chowan scored their first touchdown of the season on a Tim Watson one-yard touchdown run. The run capped off an 8-play 73-yard drive that was aided by two BC penalties and a fourth-down conversion by the Hawk's … With the scoreboard reading 20-10 in favor of the Tornados heading into the fourth and final quarter of play, Chowan did not go away scoring 13 points in the final 15 minutes of play … Chowan cut the lead to three at 20-17 early in the fourth, as running back Brandon Myrick broke through a fatigued BC defense for a 47-yard touchdown scamper which was followed by a Cline point after attempt. On the ensuing BC offensive possession, Hamilton had his pass intercepted at the line of scrimmage, as Chowan linebacker Jomo Brown made a very athletic play to jump and grab the ball out of the air and then return it to the Tornados on 21-yard line … After Chowan was called for a false start, quarterback C.J. Westler then connected with receiver James Fox for a 26-yard touchdown pass to put the Hawks up for the first time in the game 23-20 with 8:05 to play in the contest … The Tornado offense would have the ball two more times in the final eight minutes of play, including a long 43-yard field goal attempt, but were unable to put any more points on the scoreboard to fall to the Hawks 23-20 … Offensively, the Tornados were led by Hamilton, who was 28-of-53 for 297 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Hamilton hooked up with Hudson for nine catches, gaining 128 yards. Pratt had four receptions for 101 yards, including the 56-yard touchdown catch, while freshmen Darius Williams and Kyle Irby caught three and two passes, respectively … On the ground the Tornados as a team rushed for only 37 yards on 17 carries, as Taylor who left midway through the third quarter had seven carries for 31 yards. Desmond Wilson had four carries for 10 yards out of the backfield, while newcomer John Compton had two carries for four yards … Defensively, the Tornados were led by junior linebacker Stanley Jones who had six solo tackles and one assist, while also forcing a Chowan fumble. Fellow linebackers Ricky Morton and Zac McAlister had nine tackles combined, while big defensive lineman Bryan Jones had two solo tackles and three assists. Gist, who caught a touchdown pass, also had an interception for the game … The Tornados will have two weeks to regroup, as BC has a bye week next week. The Tornados will return to action in two weeks on Saturday, September 27, as BC will play host to Lenoir-Rhyne University on Family Weekend. The SAC opener for the Tornados is slated for a 2 p.m. kick-off.

CARSON-NEWMAN - The 7th-ranked Carson-Newman Eagles scored 45 unanswered points to roll by Bentley 59-18 on Friday night in Waltham, Mass. … C-N (2-1) used two interception returns for a touchdown and a kickoff return for a touchdown to keep the pressure on a Falcon offense that struggled to move the football … The Eagles entered the game trying to put their first loss of the season, a 20-13 setback to North Alabama last Thursday, behind then, and it took only one play … Sophomore Mario Russell (Columbus, Ohio) stepped in front a pass from Falcons' quarterback John White on the first snap of the game, and returned it 39 yards up the sideline for a touchdown. It was the second interception in as many weeks for Russell … Junior Alex Good (Greensboro, N.C.) would come out and steer the Eagles on an 8-play, 77-yard touchdown drive, highlighted by runs of 22 and 27 yards by Buck Wakefield (Drummonds, Tenn.). Junior Ricky Harris would cap the drive with his second touchdown of the year from three yards out to make it 14-3. Wakefield finished with 151 yards on nine carries … The 7th-ranked Eagles played the first Friday game in the Ken Sparks era...The Eagles scored 49+ points for the eighth time in nine games dating back to last season... Otis Ballard would add an interception return of 42-yards in the second half... Freshman Otis Rumph (Chattanooga, Tenn.) added touchdowns of 11 and 19 yards … Freshman Marcus Huie (Knoxville, Tenn.) made the most of his first career kickoff return, taking it back 90 yards for the Eagles final score … Carson-Newman will enjoy a bye week on Sept. 20 ... The Eagles will travel to Newberry on Sept. 27 for their SAC opener ... Kickoff with Newberry is at 1:30 p.m ... C-N beat Newberry 49-19 at Burke-Tarr Stadium last season ... The Eagles improve to 2-1 on the year, and will enjoy an off week before traveling to Newberry for a 1:30 p.m. kickoff at Newberry on September 27. The game is the South Atlantic Conference opener for both teams.

CATAWBA -The Catawba Indians claimed their ninth straight Mayor's Cup and improved to 10-0 all-time against city rival Livingstone with a 49-0 win on Saturday night … Sophomore quarterback Patrick Dennis stepped in for injured starter Howard Williamson and equaled a school record with five touchdown passes in the victory … He connected with five different receivers for scores with three covering over 40 yards … He capped the opening drive with a 44-yard strike to Eric Morman and added three strikes over a six minute span in the third quarter to break the game open … Catawba led 19-0 at the half … Jasmon Carpenter returned an interception 42 yards for a score and Dennis hooked up with Travis Landrum for the halftime edge … Following a safety, Dennis tossed a 40-yard pass to Gerron Bryant, a 10-yarder to Grayson Downs and a 51-yard pass to Brandon Bunn to extend the lead to 42-0 … Livingstone scored with 3:34 remaining to avoid the shutout, but had just 163 yards and three first downs … 101 of those yards came on two long pass plays and the Blue Bears netted just 17 yards rushing … Catawba totaled over 400 yards for the second straight week, getting 179 yards on the ground and 248 through the air … Dennis completed 12-of-23 passes for 242 yards with no interceptions and the five scores … Jamelle Cuthbertson led a balanced rushing attack with 63 yards, while Antonio Hall ran for 57 yards and a score … Freshman Princeton Brooks had 10 carries for 45 yards … Bunn led the receiving corps with three catches with Morman Antwan Strong and Landrum each hauling in two passes … Marcus Glenn also had an interception for the defense, which picked up four sacks on the day … On the season, Catawba has produced 10 sacks and 32 stops for losses … The Indians will be idle for a week before opening league play at Mars Hill on Sept. 27.

LENOIR-RHYNE - The 2008 Lenoir-Rhyne University football team (2-1) lost its first game of the year in thrilling fashion, 20-16, to the hands of Davidson College (1-1) Saturday night in front of 7,826 fans at Moretz Stadium … Davidson's Justin Williams scored from one yard out with 18 seconds left to take the victory for the visitors … The Wildcats' response was a 12-play, 80-yard drive after the Bears took a 16-13 lead on sophomore running back Andrew Courman's (Beaufort, N.C.) seven-yard scoring run with 3:53 remaining in the game … Davidson, which has now beaten Lenoir-Rhyne three straight years, scored the lone touchdown in the first half when quarterback Ryan Alexander hit Kirk Konert for a 13-yard touchdown pass on the last play of the first quarter … The Bears offense woke up in the third quarter with back-to-back scoring drives culminated by junior quarterback Justin Sanders' (Monroe, N.C.) two-yard touchdown run for a 10-7 lead … However, Davidson's two touchdowns in the final quarter proved to be the difference … The contest featured four lead changes and Alexander (229 yards passing) and Konert (100 yards receiving on six catches) led the way for the Wildcats … L-R did run for 206 yards and redshirt freshman tight end Nick Stutts (Statesville, N.C.) totaled four receptions for 71 yards despite the loss … On defense, Davidson's Daniel Hauffe and Lenoir-Rhyne sophomore defensive back Carl Brooks (Raleigh, N.C.) each tallied 13 tackles to pace their respective squads … The game was the last of a three-game home stand for the Bears, who now hit the road for four of their next five contests … Lenoir-Rhyne has averaged 305 yards on the ground after three games and eight different players have scored rushing touchdowns so far this season … The Bears' defense has only given up 14.3 points per game as well … L-R faces Benedict next Saturday in Columbia, S.C., at Charles W. Johnson Stadium beginning at 6 p.m. … L-R leads the all-time series with Benedict, 2-0, and won last season by a 38-13 score on September 22, 2007, in Hickory, N.C. … That victory over the Tigers was the first for Fred Goldsmith as Bear mentor … Benedict, a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC), enters the game 1-2 after falling to No. 14 Tuskegee, 37-14, last Saturday in Tuskegee, Ala.

MARS HILL - The Lions football team defeated St. Augustine's 31-14 on the road Saturday afternoon. MHC improved to 2-1 while the Falcons dropped to 1-2 on the season … Mars Hill opened a 17-0 halftime lead on Michael Pinkerton's Bogart, Ga.) field goal, George Washington's (Warner Robbins, Ga.) 12-yard scoring run and Ricky Spradling's (Roan Mountain, Tenn.) 50-yard touchdown pass to John Brown (Daleville, Ala.). Washington added a seven-yard touchdown run for a 24-0 third quarter lead, and Garrison McDowell (Landrum, S.C.) scored on a 35-yard run for a 31-7 fourth quarter lead … The Lions gained 304 total offensive yards including 229 rushing yards. Washington led the Lions with 124 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries … Free safety Keadran Pinckney (North, S.C.) recorded a game-high 10 tackles for the Lions … The Falcons had three turnovers which led to 10 points for the Lions, while the Lions had three turnovers which led to seven points for the Falcons. The Lions lead the season series 5-1 including two straight victories over the Falcons … The Lions travel to West Liberty State for a 1 p.m. non-conference contest. The game will be broadcast on WKYK 940-AM in Burnsville and on the Internet at RedZoneMedia.com. The pregame show starts at 12:45 p.m.

NEWBERRY - The No. 22 Newberry College football team moved to 1-1 on the season with a 41-3 victory over North Greenville University on Thursday night at Setzler Field... The win gives Newberry a 9-0 lead in the all-time series against the Crusaders... Several Newberry players stood out to push the scarlet and gray to victory, most notably linebacker Will Newell ... Newell switched from his normal number 45 to don the 46 jersey in honor of his older brother John, who passed away last week... Newell recorded 15 tackles in the first three quarters of the game, including 12 in the first half and 14 that were recorded as solos... Newell now stands at 271 career total tackles, which is ninth in the Newberry records... He is also eighth in solo tackles at 161... The defense limited North Greenville to 154 yards of total offense, including minus-8 yards rushing...Newberry recorded six sacks in the game... Newell sacked NGU quarterback Richard Harb twice, while Isaac Johnson, Marcus Nelums, Curtis Rice and Lance Clark each recorded sacks... Newell also led the team with four tackles for loss, while Ron Parker had two... David Harris and Jim Page also added TFLs... Isaac Johnson and Kamaal McIlwain each snagged interceptions as well... The Newberry offense also had several players shine in the rout... Wide receivers Kelton Tindal and Brandon Bostick each recorded two touchdowns - one through the air and one on the ground... Tindal was the scarlet and gray's top receiver, catching four passes for 101 yards... The Newberry offense received an unexpected boost when true freshman quarterback John Carnell entered the game late in the first quarter... Carnell saw his first collegiate action late in the first quarter and proceeded to complete 13-of-19 passes for 213 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions... Carnell's first career completion was a six-yard swing pass to running back Tharry Salley on the least play of the first quarter and his second pass... That was the first of a string of five consecutive completions over the course of the first half, the last of which was a 44-yard touchdown completion to Tindal with 4:04 left in the second quarter... That pass went for his longest completion of the game... He was 2-of-3 on his first drive of the second half, capping the drive with a 23-yard touchdown pass to Bostick... Carnell also connected on an 11-yard touchdown strike with David Pressley... Five of his 13 completions were on plays of 15 yards or more... Five of the seven drives Carnell led resulted in Newberry touchdowns (three passing, two rushing)... Tharry Salley also ran for 100 yards on 10 carries from his tailback position... Lyndon Ingram also recorded a 3-yard touchdown run... The offense ran for 199 yards on 34 carries... The passing game completed 16-of-24 passes with one interception, three touchdowns and 237 yards... Newberry returns to action on Saturday, September 20, with the final non-conference game of the season... It will be the longest road trip in school history as Newberry travels to Wichita Falls, Texas, for a matchup with Midwestern State University... It will also be Newberry's first game against a team from the state of Texas and first against a Lone Star Conference team... Kickoff at Wichita Falls' Memorial Stadium is set for 8 p.m. Eastern (7 p.m. local)... Fans will be able to listen to Jimmie Coggins and Brice Zimmerman with the call on WKDK-AM 1240 in Newberry County, as well as www.WKDK.com and www.RedZoneMedia.com on the internet.

TUSCULUM - The Tusculum Pioneers scored 32 straight points, but had to hold off a furious fourth quarter rally in a 32-30 win over visiting Elizabeth City State in the first-ever meeting between the two schools… The Pioneers (2-1) racked up 597 yards of offense, including 366 passing yards from senior quarterback Corey Russell… Tusculum led 32-7 with 5:16 left in the game following a safety by the Pioneers on a bad snap sending the ECSU punter out of the back of the end zone… But two TC fumbles and a pair of on-side kick recoveries by the Vikings made the game a thriller heading down the stretch… ECSU accounted for three TD passes and a field goal in the final five minutes and had a chance to tie the game with 32 seconds remaining on a two-point conversion attempt. But the pass sailed high preserving the TC lead… On the ensuing kickoff, Russell hauled in the on-side attempt for the Tusculum victory, its seventh straight victory at Pioneer Field… It was a record-breaking night for Russell who became TC's all-time leader in passing yards (6666), completions (547) and total offensive yards (7370)… He went 25-for-44, including four touchdown passes… He also rushed for 75 yards on 14 carries, giving him 441 total yards on the night which were the third most in school history… Junior Ryan Tallent was TC's top receiver with his six catches for 93 yards and a pair of touchdowns… Junior Nate Binder hauled in four receptions for 85 yards and a TD, while Jarrell NeSmith tallied five grabs for 45 yards and his second TD catch of 2008… Tusculum punter John Gregory continues his stellar play of the season as he averaged 46.8 yards on his four punts, including three inside the ECSU five-yard line… On defense, Javon Forsett and Jarvis Littlejohn led the charge with six tackles each, while Forsett tallied four hits behind the line of scrimmage… Justin Scott added five stops, including three for loss, while Terrence Smith finished with three tackles for loss… The Pioneers tied a pair of school records with its six turnovers and five lost fumbles… TC's recorded 30 first downs on the night, the second most in school history… TC also had 90 offensive plays (T4th in TC history)… Tusculum remains undefeated in its six contests against CIAA schools… Tusculum is now 54-3 all-time when scoring 30 or more points… Russell is also the school's all-time leader in TD passes (52)… His passing yardage total (6666) is now eighth all-time in SAC history, while his 7370 total yards are sixth on the conference charts… The Pioneers will wrap up its non-conference slate this Saturday when they host the Urbana Blue Knights in the inaugural meeting between the two schools… TC will be looking to tie the longest home streak in school history… The longest is eight in a row from Aug. 30, 2001 to Oct. 12, 2002.

WINGATE - Junior tight end Ryan Webber scored the first two touchdowns of his Bulldog career, helping the Wingate University football team take a 23-16 NCAA Division II victory over UNC Pembroke Saturday afternoon at Irwin Belk Stadium and John R. Martin Field on the Wingate campus … With the triumph, Wingate improves to 3-0 overall. The South Atlantic Conference members have won four games in a row, dating to last season. UNC Pembroke falls to 2-1 overall. The Bulldogs play game two of a three-game home stand Saturday, Sept. 20, hosting Elizabeth City State University at 1:30 p.m. … The two teams traded field goals in the first 15:52 of the contest before Webber and the Bulldogs went to work. The Robinson High product caught a five-yard scoring strike from redshirt senior quarterback JD Moore with 9:54 remaining in the second quarter to give the hosts a 10-3 advantage. The extra point by junior place kicker RP Lopez capped a six-play, 81-yard drive (2:42) … The Wingate defense held the Braves three-and-out on the next series. A deep kick-off by senior punter/place kicker Michael Crutchfield forced the UNC Pembroke return man to go out-of-bounds at the UNCP four-yard line. Thanks to the subsequent defensive stand, the Bulldogs had good field position on the UNC Pembroke 47-yard line … Bulldog redshirt freshman quarterback Cody Haffly entered the game and promptly marched the hosts 47 yards on three plays (1:01). Haffly connected with Webber for a 22-yard touchdown at the 7:03 mark of the second frame. Lopez nailed another PAT, putting Wingate up 17-3. The Bulldogs would take the 14-point bulge into the halftime locker room … The Braves did not quit, posting 10 third-quarter points to cut the deficit to four. A 46-yard kick-off return by freshman wide receiver Jamal Williams and a Wingate personal foul penalty gave UNC Pembroke the ball at the Bulldog 40-yard line. The visitors capitalized, picking up the second of three field goals from UNCP freshman place kicker Taylor Baskett at the 10:17 plateau. The 30-yarder cut the Wingate lead to 17-6 … UNC Pembroke converted an interception into a touchdown later in the quarter. Brave sophomore linebacker Adam Deese picked off a Moore pass at the Wingate 43-yard line. UNC Pembroke took eight plays to cover the 43 yards, as sophomore quarterback Cory Smith found senior wide receiver Charles Nieves for a 16-yard TD to finish the charge. The Baskett PAT made the score 17-13 Wingate with 1:23 to go in the third period … Moore and his troops clinched the victory with a time-consuming 13-play, 78-yard scoring drive on Wingate's next possession. Moore sealed the deal with an 11-yard touchdown pass to sure-handed redshirt senior wide receiver Jordan Softcheck, giving the Bulldogs a 23-13 advantage with 10:53 remaining in the contest … The visiting Braves added a field goal in the waning moments, but Wingate kept them out of the end zone the rest of the day. The only fourth-quarter points UNC Pembroke could muster were a Baskett three-pointer at the 3:55 mark … The Bulldog offense continued to post big numbers, as Wingate recorded 446 yards on 62 plays. Moore completed 23-of-32 passes for 232 yards and two touchdowns. On the day, Moore and Haffly (two-for-two, 35 yards, one TD) utilized 10 different receivers … Wingate sophomore Patrick Pinchinat had his biggest day as a Bulldog, rushing six times for 104 yards. The reigning SAC Special Teams Player of the Week, Pinchinat returned two kick-offs for 32 yards and caught one pass for good measure. Webber led the Bulldog receiving corps with five catches for 74 yards and two scores. Softcheck and two other Wingate wide-outs caught four passes each … The Wingate defense held the Braves to 62 yards rushing. ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® candidate Brandon Lawson had seven solo stops from his cornerback position. Bulldog sophomore linebacker Ben Hinson had six solo tackles and three assisted tackles for the victors. He added one tackle for loss ... Wingate improves to 2-0 lifetime against the second-year UNC Pembroke program. In 2007, Moore threw for 291 yards and four touchdowns as the visiting Bulldogs topped the Braves 57-14 on Sept. 15, 2007. Wingate's upcoming home contest against Elizabeth City State will be the first-ever meeting between the Bulldogs and the CIAA member Vikings. During the Joe Reich era, Wingate is 24-12 overall at Irwin Belk Stadium and John R. Martin Field.