THURSDAY'S SCORES
@#19 Eastern Kentucky 38, Robert Morris 6
UT Martin 31, @#24 Chattanooga 21
@Tennessee Tech 63, Cumberland 7
@Southeastern Louisiana 45 ,
Southeast Missouri 7
#19 EASTERN KENTUCKY 38, ROBERT MORRIS 6
RICHMOND, Ky. - In its first Thursday night season-opener in 13 years, the Eastern Kentucky University football team rolled to a 38-6 win over visiting Robert Morris.
The 19th-ranked Colonels (1-0) scored on four of their first five possessions to take a 28-6 lead at halftime. The Eastern defense began the second half with an interception in its own territory and held the Colonials (0-1) on downs on their next two possessions to put the game away.
Junior quarterback Jared McClain had a hand in four of Eastern’s five touchdowns, throwing for two and running for two more. McClain accumulated 232 yards of offense combined passing (155), rushing (44) and receiving (33). The Hiram, Ga., native completed 16-of-21 passes, ran the ball 12 times and caught one pass.
The Colonels wasted little time putting seven on the new Daktronics video board at Roy Kidd Stadium. McClain capped EKU’s first possession with a 10-yard scoring pass to senior Ike Ariguzo. McClain took care of business himself on Eastern’s next possession, taking it in from a yard out for a 14-0 lead.
With just over seven minutes remaining in the second quarter, McClain rolled out and found a wide open senior tight end Nathan Watts from two yards out for his second passing score of the game. The extra-point made it 21-0 in favor of the home team.
Robert Morris closed the gap to 21-6 with a 20-yard scoring pass from Paul Jones to Alex Caratelli inside of two minutes to go in the first half. The extra-point was blocked, Eastern’s second blocked kick of the game.
EKU was not done with its first half scoring. The Colonels drove 73 yards on eight plays in 1:54 to make it 28-6 at the break. McClain completed passes of eight and 33 yards, and ran for 18 during the drive. Junior Caleb Watkins took the hand-off from two yards out and finished the drive with his first collegiate touchdown.
McClain completed 12 of his 15 first half pass attempts for 118 yards.
Robert Morris opened the second half with a drive into Eastern territory in attempt to get back into the game, but redshirt freshman Jason Fergerson deflected a pass right into the hands of sophomore Johnny Joseph at the EKU 22-yard line to end that threat.
After the Colonel defense held the Colonials on downs on their next possession, the Eastern offense put together a methodical scoring drive that began with 4:48 left in the third and ended with 14:21 showing on the clock in the fourth quarter. EKU ran the ball eight times for 37 yards and attempted four passes that covered 34 yards. McClain’s eight-yard touchdown run polished off the drive.
Eastern Kentucky totaled 401 yards of offense, with 207 coming on the ground. Robert Morris ran for just 55 yards.
Redshirt freshman Jared Sanders rushed for 53 yards on eight carries for EKU while fellow redshirt freshman JJ Jude had 50 yards on nine carries. Watkins finished with 39 yards on nine carries.
RMU’s Jones was 16-of-28 through the air for 177 yards. The Penn state transfer had one interception and one touchdown pass. Deontae Howard led the Colonials with 58 yards on 13 carries.
UT MARTIN 31, #24 CHATTANOOGA 21
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - In a matchup between in-state Football Championship Subdivision heavyweights, the University of Tennessee at Martin prevailed tonight, downing No. 24 Chattanooga by a 31-21 margin in the season-opener at Finley Stadium.
After UT Martin held a 7-0 halftime lead, the contest projected to be a battle of the defenses. However, the Skyhawk rushing attack proved to be the difference this evening – as UT Martin piled up 289 yards on the ground, the most rushing yards against a Division-I squad since Oct. 9, 2008 against Eastern Illinois (a span of 50 games).
DJ McNeil led the way for UT Martin, tallying a career-best 134 yards on 26 carries. The redshirt senior also passed the 1,000 career yard rushing mark this evening, earning his place in history in the third quarter. Trent Garland also eclipsed the 100-yard mark tonight, accumulating 116 yards on just eight carries. The duo also rushed for a touchdown apiece.
Jarod Neal and Dylan Favre split time at quarterback tonight. Neal earned the start, going 10-for-15 for 79 yards with an interception. Favre went 9-for-12 for 83 yards and a touchdown, while adding 37 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
Jeremy Butler tallied game-highs of 10 receptions and 91 yards this evening, while Chris Thompson caught four passes for 40 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, Tony bell and Thad Williams led the way with eight tackles apiece for UT Martin. J’Vontez Blackmon added six stops and a big interception for the Skyhawks, who limited Chattanooga to 368 yards of total offense.
For Chattanooga, Jacob Huesman passed for 226 yards and three touchdowns, while adding 22 carries for 90 yards. Faysal Shafaat (four catches, 45 yards) was responsible for two touchdown catches while Marquis Green (five catches, 73 yards) added a touchdown catch.
In a sign of things to come, the UT Martin defense started their season with a three-and-out, limiting the Mocs’ offense to two short rushes and an incomplete pass.
If there were any signs of nerves in his first career start, Neal didn’t show it. He completed his first seven passes on the offense’s first drive, five of which went to Butler. McNeil also accounted for 35 rushing yards on the first drive before Chattanooga forced and recovered a fumble to take over at its own 23-yard line.
The Skyhawk defense held their own on their next two drives, including a sack by Ryan Isom and DJ Roberts to put an end to Chattanooga’s third drive.
Favre then made his Skyhawk debut with 36 seconds left in the first quarter, finding Butler for a completion on his first attempt. However, the first quarter came to a close with no score.
Chattanooga’s next drive stalled, thanks to a tackle for loss by Roberts and quarterback hurry by Bobby Ellis. The UT Martin defense held once again on its next two drives before breaking through to create the game’s first score.
On third-and-five from the Chattanooga 28-yard line, Blackmon stepped in front of a Huesman pass for an interception. It was the third interception in 12 career games at UT Martin for the senior from Bryam, Miss.
After a 24-yard return and a facemask penalty put the ball on the Chattanooga 5-yard line, McNeil strolled in for a two-yard touchdown at the 3:56 mark. Jackson Redditt added the PAT to give the Skyhawks a 7-0 advantage.
On the Mocs’ next drive, UT Martin kept the shutout intact with two big sacks – one by Keith Jones and one by Roberts/James Ratliff to close out the half. It was the first time since Sept. 13, 2012 against Southeastern Louisiana that the Skyhawks had carried a shutout into halftime.
Both squads could not put points on the scoreboard in their first possessions of the second half, but Favre led UT Martin on a lengthy scoring drive during the waning moments of the third quarter. The Skyhawks used a balanced rushing attack – gaining 64 yards on the ground – during a 12-play, 89-yard drive that spanned 4:38. Garland boasted rushes of 15 and 12 yards on the drive, setting up Favre for a 13-yard touchdown scamper on third-and-six. Redditt added the PAT to give UT Martin a 14-0 cushion.
Chattanooga answered quickly, putting together a 75-yard scoring drive on four plays that spanned 1:16 to pull within one score at 14-7.
The Skyhawk offense wasted no time marching back down the field, putting together a nine-play, 83-yard scoring drive that spanned 2:58. Garland continued his hot stretch with two carries for 30 yards on the drive, but it was Thompson who UT Martin prominently featured on the drive. Favre found Thompson for a crucial 11-yard gain on third-and-four from the Skyhawk 23-yard line. He also added another 11-yard reception before snagging a 13-yard touchdown catch with 12:56 left to play in the contest. Redditt split the uprights for a PAT that resulted in a 21-7 UT Martin lead.
Less than two minutes later, Chattanooga came right back with a touchdown, scoring on a 29-yard screen pass on an all-out Skyhawk blitz to make the score 21-14 with 7:16 to go.
However, Corey Jordan made sure the momentum swung back in UT Martin’s favor – taking the ensuing kickoff back 68 yards to the Chattanooga 31-yard line. Seven plays later, Redditt booted a clutch 29-yard field goal from the left hash to extend the Skyhawk lead back out to 24-14 with 4:35 remaining.
The Skyhawks then essentially sealed the victory with another strong defensive stand. UT Martin forced four incomplete passes when the Mocs took over with 4:35 to go. Johnson and Taino Fears-Perez each had pass breakups on the final two plays of the drive.
Garland followed with a 33-yard touchdown run on third-and-eight to push the UT Martin advantage out to 31-14 with 2:35 left to play.
Chattanooga answered with a 13-yard touchdown pass, using just 1:02 in the process. On the ensuing onside kick attempt, Jake Overbey cleanly received the ball to put the finishing touches on the Skyhawk victory.
TENNESSEE TECH 63, CUMBERLAND 7
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Young players made huge plays to set the tone and Tennessee Tech scored on nine of its first 10 possessions to roll to a 63-7 opening night victory Thursday in non-conference action over Cumberland University in a very crowded Tucker Stadium.
Sophomore return man Ladarius Vanlier (in photo) was an absolute monster all over the field, despite playing just one half in the Golden Eagle victory. He earned his first career rushing score, scampering 52 yards to give Tech a 21-0 lead early in the second frame. Vanlier also broke a Tech record for longest punt return, taking one 93 yards to the house in the second quarter. He finished with 188 all-purpose yards in the half.
Junior quarterback Darian Stone made the most of his opportunities, connecting on eight of his 11 pass attempts for 143 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 36 yards on the ground on eight carries with two rushing scores. His four total touchdowns were a single-game high for the Clinton, Tenn. native.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Jared Davis made his Golden Eagle debut and started his Tech career off on a high note. Davis connected with receiver Colton Belew for a 39-yard score on his only pass attempt of the game.
Tech totaled 323 rushing yards as well as 182 yards through the air to mark the sixth time in head coach Watson Brown's tenure that the offense accounted for at least 500 yards. Tech finished with 505 yards of total offense while Cumberland had 179, with 128 rushing and 51 through the air.
The 56-point victory set a program mark as the largest opening day win in school history.
Freshman Maleek Hall made a sensational diving catch in the end zone, grabbing a 16-yard toss from Stone for the game's first score on the opening drive, a 10-play, 54-yard march after Vanlier opened the contest with a 44-yard kickoff return.
Following a four-year TD run by Stone for a 14-0 lead late in the first quarter, Vanlier scored back-to-back touchdowns with a 52-yard run and his 93-yard punt return.
Cody Matthews added a leaping catch against the sideline in the end zone for a 26-yard touchdown pass from Stone with 27 seconds left in the half for a 35-0 lead at halftime.
Stone went nine yards and Stephen Bush 10 for third quarter touchdowns before Davis took over in the pocket. The first pass of his career was a perfectly thrown ball down the middle of the field that fellow redshirt freshman Colton Belew grabbed for the first catch of his career, a 39-yard TD to make it 56-0.
The final score was a seven-yard run by freshman Isaiah McKinney to cap off a nine-play, 75 yard scoring drive in which Cody Forbes did much of the damage. Forbes, returning from an injury redshirt season, had a career-best 69 rushing yards on eight carries to top Tech's balanced ground attack.
In addition to Forbes, Bush, Vanlier and sophomore Radir Annor all netted 51 yards and McKinney added 47.
With 71 players seeing action in the game, 32 different Golden Eagles made tackles. With so many players seeing action, nobody posted big numbers as sophomore Bill Dillard and junior Tra'Darius Goff leading the tackle chart with seven each.
Cory Webber and Avery Rollins each notched their first career interceptions, while Malcolm Mitchell had a team-best 1.5 tackles-for-loss, one quarterback sack and forced a fumble. Rollins, Cory McDonald and Jimmy Laughlin also had sacks.
SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 45, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 7
HAMMOND, La. - Oregon transfer quarterback Bryan Bennett threw for 169 yards and ran for 106 yards and three touchdowns to lead Southeastern Louisiana (1-0) to a 45-7 win over Southeast Missouri (0-1) Thursday night in the season-opener for both teams.
Bennett completed 9-of-15 passes and averaged nearly nine yards per carry (8.8) on 12 rushes in his first career start. Nine different receivers caught a pass for a Southeastern offense that put up 494 total yards.
Xavier Roberson immediately gave Southeastern a short field to work with when he returned the opening kickoff 65 yards to the Southeast 32-yardline.
The Lions used a 10-yard run by Rasheed Harrell and an 18-yard pass from Bennett to Devante Scott to move to the Redhawks-3. Bennett then scored his first touchdown of the season on a 3-yard run to give Southeastern an early 7-0 lead just 1:30 in.
Southeast went three-and-out on its first drive and Southeastern began its next possession at its own 32.
Bennett hooked up with Chris Malott for a 23-yard gain, putting the Lions in Redhawk territory at the 33. Bennett completed a 14-yard pass to Tony McCrae on a 3rd-and-7 to keep the drive alive.
Two plays later, Roberson crossed the goal line on a 2-yard run, extending Southeastern's lead to 14-0 with 7:45 remaining.
Like Bennett, Ohio University transfer Kyle Snyder made his first career start at quarterback and first appearance since playing in a backup role at Akron on Oct. 22, 2011.
Snyder calmed down the Southeast offense by throwing a perfect 3-of-3 passes for 50 yards to orchestrate a nice 10-play, 75-yard season-opening score.
Snyder's third completion, a 15-yard pass to Paul McRoberts, moved Southeast to the 8-yardline. Lennies McFerren closed things out with a 6-yard run to narrow Southeastern's lead to 14-7 with 2:27 left. It was the second touchdown of McFerren's career.
Two more big returns helped set up another 10 points for Southeastern in the second quarter.
Harlan Miller ran back a Joe Vucic punt 21 yards to Southeast's 42-yardline. Bennett, after being sacked by Austin Black for a loss of 5 yards, completed a 14-yard pass to Jeff Smiley and picked up a first down on a 3-yard carry.
Kody Sutton took over from there rushing for 17 yards on three-straight carries. Sutton's 4-yard touchdown gave Southeastern a 21-7 advantage with 13:03 on the clock.
Southeast ran three plays before lining up in punt formation again. This time, Miller ripped off a 44-yard return. An illegal formation by the Redhawks tacked on an additional five yards to the run, giving Southeastern a 1st-and-10 at the Southeast-31. The Lions, however, settled for a 45-yard field goal by Seth Sebastian at the 9:31 mark.
Scott Lathrop entered the game and moved the ball swiftly. Lathrop ran for 19 yards and threw a 13-yard pass to McRoberts on his first four touches. The Redhawks managed to get to Southeastern's 24-yardline before a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty pushed them back. As a result, Ryan McCrum attempted his first career field goal which missed from 47 yards out.
Southeast regained possession when George Neuhaus hit Harrell behind the line of scrimmage. Harrell fumbled on the play and Travis Sanders recovered at the 50-yardline.
Snyder sprinted for nine yards on the first play after the fumble and limped off the field after he was tackled by Josh Dakin.
Lathrop then picked up where he left off and picked up a big first down with a 19-yard run on a 4th-and-11 to get the Redhawks to Southeastern's 17-yardline. A 2-yard rush, two incompletions and a false start penalty led to a 37-yard field goal by McCrum which was blocked, ending the first half.
Snyder returned in the third quarter and Southeast came away empty on its first two drives of the second half.
The Redhawks were forced to punt before facing a 4th-and-1 at the Southeastern 14-yardline the next time it had the ball. Snyder was dropped for a loss of two yards by Justin Church.
On the ensuing play, Bennett completed a pass to tight end Jeremy Myers, who broke free for 56 yards to the Southeast-28. Bennett's 30-yard touchdown run widened the Lions lead to 31-7 with 7:27 remaining.
Two more touchdowns, including a 7-yard run by Bennett and a 1-yard run by Jordan Barnett put the game away.
Special teams and penalties hampered Southeast, which suffered its fourth-straight season-opening loss. Southeastern piled up 499 yards on eight kickoff returns and ran back four punts for an additional 60 yards. The Redhawks also had nine penalties for 83 yards.
Snyder threw for 75 yards on 6-of-13 passes and ran for six yards in his debut. DeMichael Jackson led the Redhawks with 61 yards on eight carries and had a 37-yard run, Southeast's longest of the night.
Lathrop chipped in 41 rushing yards on 12 attempts. McRoberts and Spencer Davis added a game-high three catches apiece, as well. Defensively, Ben Kargbo and Cantrell Andrews led Southeast with a game-high nine tackles each.
Southeast finished with 206 yards rushing, marking the eighth time in the last nine games where the Redhawks have surpassed 200 rushing yards as a team.