This Week's Schedule
Thursday, September 15
Union College at UT Martin, 6:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
Saturday, September 17
Southeast Missouri at Purdue, 11:00 a.m. (BTN)
Georgia State at #16 Jacksonville State, 2:30 p.m. (CSS)
#14 Chattanooga at Eastern Kentucky, 5:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
*Tennessee State at Murray State, 6:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
Austin Peay at Memphis, 6:00 p.m.
*Tennessee Tech at Eastern Illinois, 6:30 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
Union College Bulldogs (1-1, 0-0 Mid-South)
at UT Martin Skyhawks (0-1, 0-1 OVC)
Thursday, Sept. 15 • 6:00 p.m. CT
Graham Stadium (7,500) • Martin, Tenn.
TV:.................................................. WLJT/OVCSports.TV
Live Stats: http://www.utmsports.com/livestats/football/xlive.htm
Series Record:............................................. First meeting
Last Meeting:.............................................................. n/a
Tommy Reid at Union College:.................... 43-61 (10 yrs.)
Tommy Reid Overall:.............................................. same
Jason Simpson at UT Martin:........................ 32-26 (6 yrs.)
Jason Simpson Overall:.......................................... same
Union College Last Week:... W, 27-0 vs. Kentucky Christian
UT Martin Last Week:................................................. Idle
GAME NOTES: Coming off a bye week UT Martin will open the home portion of its schedule on Thursday night when Union (Ky.) College comes to Graham Stadium. It marks the second game in a row the Skyhawks have played on a Thursday night; UTM will also play on Thursday night next week (Sept. 22) as well. It will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams.
SCOUTING UNION COLLEGE: Union College is a NAIA school located in Barbourville, Ky. The Bulldogs opened their home season on Saturday by shutting out Kentucky Christian 27-0. That victory followed a 30-14 loss to Campbellsville to open the season. In the win over KCU junior running back Rob Brown rushed for 117 yards and two touchdowns on just 15 total carries. In the process Brown moved to 10th place on the school's career rushing list (1,145 yards). While Brown was putting up good numbers on offense, the Bulldogs defense limited Kentucky Christian to 158 yards of total offense, most of which came in the final quarter of play (after three quarters KCU had just 44 yards of offense). Union quarterback Ryan Moses passed for 119 yards and a touchdown, as Demetrius Hicks caught three of those passes for 73 yards and a score.
SCOUTING UT MARTIN: UT Martin opened the season two weeks ago against OVC foe Jacksonville State (ranked No. 9 at the time). The Skyhawks got off to a quick start in leading 10-0 early in the second quarter. UTM would eventually lead 23-10 with 14:11 to play in the game, only to see Jacksonville State score 14 unanswered points (the last coming with 38 seconds to go) to pull off the 24-23 victory. The Skyhawks had one last shot to win the game, but the clock ran out on a pass play before the team could attempt a potential game-winning field goal. Junior quarterback Derek Carr completed 23-of-36 passes for 325 yards and a touchdown in the loss. On the ground Jason McNair ran for 85 yards including a long run of 60 yards in the first half. Kicker Cody Sandlin connected on field goals of 25, 43 and 45 yards and making both of his extra point attempts. For his efforts Sandlin was named FCS National Placekicker of the Week by the College Football Performance Awards (CFPA). Georgia Tech transfer Quentin Sims pulled in three passes for 60 yards in his UT Martin debut. The JSU defense limited JSU to 10 yards of total offense in the first quarter of the game. Junior Julius McNair had five tackles and a sack to lead the defense. UT Martin has two players who lead statistical categories among all FCS players as Sandlin is first in field goals made/game (3.0) and Taino Perez is first in fumbles recovered/game (1.0).
Southeast Missouri State Redhawks (0-1, 0-0 OVC)
at Purdue Boilermakers (1-1, 0-0 Big Ten)
Saturday, Sept. 17 • 11:00 a.m. CT
Ross-Ade Stadium (62,500) • West Lafayette, Ind.
TV:........................................................................... BTN
Live Stats:................................... www.PurdueSports.com
Series Record:............................................. First meeting
Last Meeting:.............................................................. n/a
Tony Samuel at Southeast Missouri:............. 22-36 (6 yrs.)
Tony Samuel Overall:.................................. 56-93 (14 yrs.)
Danny Hope at Purdue:................................ 10-16 (3 yrs.)
Danny Hope Overall:.................................... 45-38 (8 yrs.)
Southeast Missouri Last Week:................................... Idle
Purdue Last Week:................................... L, 24-22 at Rice
GAME NOTES: After its bye week, Southeast Missouri State will travel to Purdue for its first-ever matchup with Purdue and first game with a Big Ten opponent. Southeast Missouri is 1-15 all-time against Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) opponents (since the division split in 1978); the team's lone win came against Middle Tennessee State in the 2002 season. Southeast Missouri is 1-3 in games following its bye week under head coach Tony Samuel. Purdue is coming off a 24-22 loss at Rice. Southeast Missouri head coach Tony Samuel spent the 2005 season as defensive ends coach at Purdue prior to accepting the Redhawks head coaching job. Purdue head coach Danny Hope was the head coach at Eastern Kentucky for five years, compiling an OVC mark of 32-8; he was 4-1 in games against Southeast Missouri during his tenure in the OVC.
SCOUTING SOUTHEAST MISSOURI: Southeast Missouri opened the 2011 season against No. 17 Southern Illinois in a game played in front of a sellout crowd (10,136 fans) at Houck Stadium. The Redhawks lost that game 38-10 and were idle this past week. In the loss to SIU, senior quarterback Matt Scheible rushed for a game-high 91 yards and passed for 144 yards and a touchdown. Scheible is now just 281 yards away from reaching 2,000 rushing yards for his career which would make him one of only seven players in Southeast history to achieve that feat. The senior also needs just 474 passing yards to reach 4,000 for his career. Scheible tossed his 25th career touchdown in the Southern Illinois game, moving him into sixth place on the school's career list. Junior linebacker Blake Peiffer recorded a career-high 12 tackles in the loss to SIU; he also added a forced fumble in the loss. Senior linebacker Philip Klaproth inched closer to the 200 career tackles mark in the opening game of the season and is now just 13 tackles away.
SCOUTING PURDUE: Purdue opened its season with a 27-24 victory over Middle Tennessee before losing 24-22 at Rice this past weekend. After blocking a field goal in the season-opener to secure the victory over MTSU, they Boilermakers were on the other end of the block this past Saturday as Rice blocked a 31-yard field goal attempt as time expired to snap its 10-year losing streak to teams from Bowl Championship Subdivision (BCS) conferences. Purdue had taken a 17-10 lead late in the second quarter only to see Rice tie the game as time expired in the first half; Rice would then score early in the third quarter and would not trail again. Purdue rushed for 183 yards in the game as Akeem Sanders had 69 yards on 11 carries while quarterback Caleb TerBush ran for 68 yards and a score in addition to his 183 passing yards and a score. For the season TerBush has completed 57.8 percent of his passes for 403 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 111 yards. Defensively senior linebacker Joe Holland has 24 tackles through two games.
Georgia State Panthers (1-1)
at #16 Jacksonville State Gamecocks (1-1, 1-0 OVC)
Saturday, Sept. 17 • 2:30 p.m. CT
Burgess-Snow Field at JSU Stadium (24,000) • Jacksonville, Ala.
TV:.......................................................................... CSS
Live Stats: http://www.jsugamecocksports.com/sports/2010/9/1/FB_0901102541.aspx
Series Record:....................... Jacksonville State leads 1-0
Last Meeting:. Jacksonville State won 34-27 in OT (9/18/10)
Bill Curry at Georgia State:............................... 7-6 (2 yrs.)
Bill Curry Overall:................................... 90-110-4 (19 yrs.)
Jack Crowe at Jacksonville State:............... 75-49 (12 yrs.)
Jack Crowe Overall:.................................... 89-79 (17 yrs.)
Georgia State Last Week:......... L, 40-17 vs. Old Dominion
Jacksonville State Last Week: L, 38-17 at #23 Chattanooga
GAME NOTES: Jacksonville State and Georgia State are playing for the second-straight season in 2011. The Panthers had their inaugural season of football a year ago and are under the direction of legendary head coach Bill Curry. Last year's meeting at the Georgia Dome was full of excitement and had to go into overtime before JSU came away with a 34-27 victory. The game was back-and-forth the entire way as no team led by more than seven points any time during the contest. After falling behind 7-3, Jacksonville State scored early in the second quarter and would not trail again, although the game would be tied three more times. Georgia State was able to force overtime after scoring with 3:57 to play in the game. In overtime Jax State needed just four rushing plays to score, as Marques Ivory ran it in from four yards out. On defense the Gamecocks forced a 4th-and-goal from the two-yard line and GSU's final pass was ruled out-of-bounds, giving JSU the win. Ivory finished the game 24-of-32 for 283 yards and a touchdown to go along with 21 rushing yards and his game-winning score. Drew Little passed for 227 yards for the Panthers in that loss.
SCOUTING GEORGIA STATE: Georgia State is playing its last season as a FCS Independent before joining the CAA in 2012. The Panthers topped Clark Atlanta 41-7 in the home opener before falling to future CAA rival Old Dominion 40-17 on Saturday. Travis Evans had 62 rushing yards and a touchdown for GSU while Bo Schlechter completed 9-of-27 passes for 147 yards in split time with Little (6-of-17, 59 yards) at quarterback. Schlechter shares some of his team's punting duties as does Jacksonville State starting quarterback Coty Blanchard. Dexter Moody led the way with 12 total tackles.
SCOUTING JACKSONVILLE STATE: Jacksonville State entered last week ranked No. 10 nationally but lost 38-17 at No. 23 Chattanooga in its first road game of the season. The Gamecocks fell behind 7-0 in the game before responding with 14-straight points as Washaun Ealey and Calvin Middleton (who now has eight rushing scores in his last eight games) had touchdown runs in the first quarter. With the game tied at 17 with just under five minutes to play in the second quarter, Chattanooga marched down the field, needing only four plays to go 73 yards and score to push its advantage to 23-17 at halftime. That marked the first of three unanswered scores for the Mocs who would score 14 points in the second half on its way to the victory, its first for JSU in its last five attempts. Jacksonville State's offense was stymied in the second half as the Gamecocks managed just 17 total yards and one first down after halftime and finished the game with 224 total yards, its lowest output since playing Mississippi State in the 2006 season. At the same time the JSU defense allowed UTC to rack up 508 yards of total offense, the most allowed by the Gamecocks since Furman had 521 yards in a game in Nov. 2004. Ealey had 49 rushing yards and nine receiving yards for JSU. Sophomore quarterback Coty Blanchard finished the game with 164 yards passing, completing 13-of-23 passes. Rashad Smith had eight solo tackles to lead the Gamecocks for the second-straight week; Smith is currently averaging 8.5 tackles/game which is 10th in the OVC. After the loss JSU slipped from No. 10 in both FCS polls and are now No. 16 in the FCS Coaches poll and No. 17 in the Sports Network/Fathead.com poll.
#14 Chattanooga Mocs (1-1, 0-0 Southern)
at Eastern Kentucky Colonels (1-1, 0-0 OVC)
Saturday, Sept. 17 • 5:00 p.m. CT
Roy Kidd Stadium (20,000) • Richmond, Ky.
TV:........................................................... OVCSports.TV
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/eku/football/index.htm
Series Record:........................................ Series tied 2-2-1
Last Meeting:................. Chattanooga won 42-24 (9/18/10)
Russ Huesman at Chattanooga:.................... 13-11 (3 yrs.)
Russ Huesman Overall:........................................... same
Dean Hood at Eastern Kentucky:.................. 20-16 (4 yrs.)
Dean Hood Overall:................................................ same
Chattanooga Last Week: W, 38-17 vs. #10 Jacksonville State
Eastern Kentucky Last Week:.. W, 28-24 vs. Missouri State
GAME NOTES: Eastern Kentucky will entertain Chattanooga on Saturday night in Richmond. It marks the second-straight season the two teams have played and the sixth time overall. It marks the first meeting in Richmond since the 1986 season (a 23-3 EKU victory). Through five meetings the series is all square at 2-2-1, although UTC has won two in a row including 42-24 a year ago in Chattanooga. In that game the Mocs led 28-9 at halftime on its way to the 18-point victory. EKU was limited to just 58 net yards of rushing on the night but did gain 236 yards through the air as quarterback T.J. Pryor completed 27 passes and tossed two touchdowns. UTC quarterback B.J. Coleman completed 24-of-32 passes for 375 yards and four touchdowns and Errol Wynn rushed for 122 yards and a score as the Mocs high-octane offense out-gained the Colonels 548-294. Saturday marks the second-straight week the Mocs have played a team from the OVC. Eastern Kentucky has a seven-game winning streak dating back to the 2009 season (the team's last home loss was 24-7 to Western Carolina on Nov. 14).
SCOUTING CHATTANOOGA: Through two weeks of the 2011 season the Mocs have played two nationally-ranked teams, opening the season at Nebraska (No. 10 in the FBS) and last week playing Jacksonville State (No. 10 in the FCS). After losing 40-7 at Nebraska, Chattanooga rolled up 508 yards of offense against the Gamecocks (the first team in six years to have that many yards against JSU) in a 38-17 victory. The Mocs defense was extra tough in the second half, limiting Jacksonville State to just 17 yards and one first down after halftime. B.J. Coleman completed 23-of-33 passes for 296 yards and two touchdowns and Joe Bradford caught 15 of those passes, racking up 162 yards and a score on his way to Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Week honors. Sophomore linebacker Wes Dothard was named Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Week after netting five tackles, a forced fumble, a pass break-up and intercepting a pass in the fourth quarter that he returned 30 yards for a touchdown. After the win UTC jumped from No. 23 to No. 14 in the Sports Network Top 25 poll.
SCOUTING EASTERN KENTUCKY: After taking FBS foe Kansas State to the limit in week one, Eastern Kentucky returned home this past weekend and topped Missouri State 28-24. The Colonels got off to a hot start and led 14-0 at halftime. After the Bears had cut the lead to 14-10 in the third quarter, senior Jeremy Caldwell took the ensuing kickoff 88 yards for a touchdown. That output earned Caldwell OVC Co-Specialist of the Week honors. Offensively Jeremiah Williams led the team with 119 rushing yards and two touchdowns on his way to OVC Newcomer of the Week honors. Williams scored in the second quarter and then added a score with 3:55 to play in the game to secure the victory. After missing the first game of the season due to injury, quarterback T.J. Pryor saw his first action of the season and completed 14-of-22 passes for 146 yards and a score and rushing for 69 yards. On defense sophomore Ichiro Vance had his best day as a Colonel, netting 19 tackles (9 solo) and forcing a fumble at mid-field that led to an EKU touchdown four plays later. The 19 stops are the second-most by a FCS player this season and the third-most among all Division I players (FBS and FCS combined). They were the most tackles by an EKU player since Bob Head had 21 against Eastern Illinois in 1996. Vance earned OVC Defensive Player of the Week honors for his outstanding performance. EKU won despite being out-gained 411 to 391 by Missouri State.
Tennessee State Tigers (1-1, 0-0 OVC)
at Murray State Racers (1-1, 0-0 OVC)
Saturday, Sept. 17 • 6:00 p.m. CT
Stewart Stadium (16,800) • Murray, Ky.
TV:........................................................... OVCSports.TV
Live Stats: http://goracers.com/sports/2010/7/6/GEN_0706100406.aspx?id=186
Series Record:....................................... Series tied 11-11
Last Meeting:................ Murray State won 28-23 (11/20/10)
Rod Reed at Tennessee State:......................... 4-9 (2 yrs.)
Rod Reed Overall:.................................................. same
Chris Hatcher at Murray State:.......................... 7-6 (2 yrs.)
Chris Hatcher Overall:............................... 101-33 (12 yrs.)
Tennessee State Last Week: L, 35-29 vs. Jackson State (Memphis, Tenn.)
Murray State Last Week: W, 39-0 at Mississippi Valley State
GAME NOTES: Murray State and Tennessee State will play for the 23rd time on Saturday evening. The team's first started playing in the 1988 season when the Tigers joined the OVC. The all-time series is currently tied at 11. Murray State has won three in a row, and four of the last six, against Tennessee State. Last season the two teams played the final game of the season in Murray, and the Racers came away with a 28-23 victory. Murray State quarterback Casey Brockman completed 22-of-33 passes for 300 yards and a touchdown and carried the ball 13 times for 112 yards and two additional scores on his way to OVC Offensive Player of the Week honors. TSU signal caller Jeremy Perry completed 23-of-41 passes for 289 yards and three scores and Terrance Wright rushed for 133 yards. Tennessee State is looking to break a seven-game losing streak in OVC action; the Tigers were winless in the OVC last season and last won an OVC game in the last week of the 2009 season when they went on the road to top nationally-ranked Eastern Illinois.
SCOUTING TENNESSEE STATE: Tennessee State suffered its first loss of the season on Saturday, falling 35-29 against Jackson State in a game played in front of 43,532 fans at the Liberty Bowl in Memphis. Tennessee State had a 24-21 lead at halftime but managed just a safety and a field goal in the second half as JSU scored a pair of touchdowns. After rushing for 342 yards and compiling 512 total yards of offense the opening weekend, TSU was limited to just 78 rushing yards and 304 yards of total offense against Jackson State. Quarterback Jeremy Perry had 226 passing yards for two touchdowns, as three of his passes went to Travis James who had 115 yards receiving and a score. James also had 111 yards in kickoff returns to account for 226 all-purpose yards on the night, the fifth-highest output in the FCS on the season. For his efforts James was named OVC Co-Specialist of the Week. Senior linebacker Rico Council had 11 tackles (7 solo), 2.0 tackles-for-loss, a sack and forced a fumble. Council is averaging 10.0 tackles/game this season, which ranks fourth in the league. As a team TSU is fourth nationally in turnover margin (+2.5/game).
SCOUTING MURRAY STATE: Murray State went on the road last week and toppled Mississippi Valley State, winning 39-0 to record its first shutout since the 2004 season (38-0 vs. UT Martin). Overall it was the first road shutout for the team since the 1996 season (when the Racers won the OVC Championship) when they beat rival Southeast Missouri 16-0. Senior running back Mike Harris was named OVC Offensive Player of the Week after rushing for 104 yards and two touchdowns in the win. Harris reached the 100-yard plateau for the second-straight week and for the sixth time in 11 career games at Murray State. Harris currently ranks 14th nationally with a 110.0 rushing yards/game average. Overall the Racers rushed for 189 yards as Duane Brady had five carries for 50 yards and Tyler Lavea rushed three times for 34 yards. After struggling to open the season at Louisville, Brockman completed 21-of-33 passes for 238 yards and a score. Sophomore defensive back Brandon Wicks had six tackles, intercepted a pass and blocked a punt that was recovered by a teammate for a touchdown. Junior newcomer Sam Small had 10 tackles, three tackles-for-loss and a sack for MSU. That Murray State defensive unit limited the Delta Devils to just 59 yards rushing and 3-of-13 on third downs.
Austin Peay Governors (0-1, 0-0 OVC)
at Memphis Tigers (0-2, 0-0 CUSA)
Saturday, Sept. 17 • 6:00 p.m. CT
Liberty Bowl (62,380) • Memphis, Tenn.
TV:.......................................................................... none
Live Stats:............................................. http://bit.ly/rqajfb
Series Record:.................................... Memphis leads 6-0
Last Meeting:......................... Memphis won 41-0 (10/5/57)
Rick Christophel at Austin Peay:................... 15-30 (5 yrs.)
Rick Christophel Overall:......................................... same
Larry Porter at Memphis:................................ 1-13 (2 yrs.)
Larry Porter Overall:................................................. same
Austin Peay Last Week:.............................................. Idle
Memphis Last Week:.................. L, 47-3 at Arkansas State
GAME NOTES: Austin Peay will travel to Memphis to battle the in-state Tigers for the first time since the 1957 season on Saturday. The two teams have met annually on the basketball court but have only played six times on the gridiron and not in 44 years. Dating back to last season Austin Peay is trying to snap a nine-game losing streak.
SCOUTING AUSTIN PEAY: Austin Peay is opening the season with games against two Football Championship Subdivision (FBS) teams. The Governors lost at Cincinnati the opening weekend and had a bye week last week before playing Memphis this weekend. The Govs are 2-12 all-time against FBS foes as a member of the OVC (2-14 all-time). In the team's 72-10 loss to Cincinnati to open the season, Ryan White and Wesley Kitts each ended up with 65 yards rushing while Kitts found the end zone for APSU's lone touchdown of the game. Quarterback Jake Ryan completed 16-of-23 passes for 149 yards but had a pair of interceptions after passes bounced off the hands of his receivers. Devin Stark led all APSU wideouts with four receptions for 61 yards. Defensively safety Amius Smith led the team with seven first half tackles and finished the game with nine total stops, including two for loss. Kicker Stephen Stansell had a 21-yard field goal in the game and also served as the team's punter, averaging 40.7 yards/punt.
SCOUTING MEMPHIS: Memphis is currently 0-2 after a season-opening loss to Mississippi State (59-14) and a 47-3 road loss to Arkansas State this past weekend. After coming into the game in relief the opening weekend, true freshman quarterback Taylor Reed had his first collegiate start in the ASU contest. He completed 13-of-29 passes for 87 yards and completed passes to five different receivers. Senior wideout Tannar Rehrer set a career-high with five catches on Saturday; four of his receptions came in the opening quarter of the game. Akeem Davis had a career-high 11 tackles against Arkansas State and leads Memphis with 18 total tackles on the season. True freshman defensive back Bakari Hollier had his first career interception on Saturday. Hollier also returned kickoffs and netted 99 total yards on five returns.
Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles (1-1, 0-0 OVC)
at Eastern Illinois Panthers (1-1, 0-0 OVC)
Saturday, Sept. 17 • 6:30 p.m. CT
O'Brien Field (10,000) • Charleston, Ill.
TV:.................................................. WEIU/OVCSports.TV
Live Stats:.......... http://www.sidearmstats.com/eiu/football
Series Record:.......................... Eastern Illinois leads 12-5
Last Meeting:........... Tennessee Tech won 34-20 (10/16/10)
Watson Brown at Tennessee Tech:................ 19-28 (5 yrs.)
Watson Brown Overall:......................... 113-179-1 (27 yrs.)
Bob Spoo at Eastern Illinois:................ 143-123-1 (24 yrs.)
Bob Spoo Overall:................................................. same
Tennessee Tech Last Week:.. W, 56-7 vs. Maryville College
Eastern Illinois Last Week:........... L, 42-21 at Northwestern
GAME NOTES: After a pair of games for each team, including one each against a Big Ten foe, Tennessee Tech will travel to Eastern Illinois to kick off the Conference season for both teams. It marks the 18th meeting between the two schools. Eastern Illinois has won 12 of the meetings and had won five in a row before the Golden Eagles came out on top 34-20 a year ago in Cookeville. In that meeting Tech used 21 unanswered points in the third and fourth quarters to break a 17-17 tie. The difference in the game was the running game as Tennessee Tech piled up 233 yards on the ground including 127 yards and two touchdowns from Jocques Crawford. Dontey Gay added 68 yards for the Golden Eagles. Eastern Illinois was limited to just 39 net rushing yards after being sacked eight times and losing 40 yards. Starter Brandon Large was sacked seven times and intercepted twice. Marcus Edwards earned National Defensive Player of the Week honors after netting seven tackles and 4.5 sacks.
SCOUTING TENNESSEE TECH: Tennessee Tech bounced back from a season-opening loss at FBS Iowa to defeat Division III Maryville College 56-7 last Thursday night. The Golden Eagles piled up 566 yards of total offense, the most in five seasons under head coach Watson Brown. Tech led 28-0 after one quarter and 42-0 at halftime. On the ground Dontey Gay netted his second consecutive 100-yard rushing game (one of two OVC players to do that in the first two weeks of the season this year), carrying the ball 19 times for a career-high 155 yards and a touchdown. Junior quarterback Tre Lamb completed 11-of-14 passes for 222 yards and four touchdown passes, a career-high and one shy of the school record. Senior wideout Tim Benford pulled in six passes for 131 yards and two touchdowns. Benford moved into ninth place in OVC history for catches (164) and is now just 105 yards away from moving into the OVC career receiving yards list. On defense both Travis Adkins and Corey Watson picked off passes and returned them for touchdowns. True freshman Tra'Darius Goff had a career-best eight tackles in the game.
SCOUTING EASTERN ILLINOIS: After a season-opening victory over Illinois State, the Panthers stayed in-state to play Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) foe Northwestern for the first time in school history. The Panthers fell behind 14-0 but cut the margin in half when sophomore Jimmy Garoppolo hooked up with Kenny Whittaker for a 72-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter. But the Wildcats would go on to score the next three touchdowns in putting the game out of reach. Garoppolo finished the game 14-of-25 for 209 yards and the score. Redshirt freshman Jimmy Lera had a team-high 78 yards on just three carries as he ripped off a 76-yard run late in the game. It was the longest run for a Panther since Vincent Webb had an 83-yard run in the 2005 season. Sophomore linebacker Antonio Taylor recorded a game-high 14 tackles in the game.