- The Gardner-Webb football team earned a convincing 34-10 road victory over Southeast Missouri on Saturday afternoon at Houck Field, snapping a two-game losing streak and improving to 3-6 overall and 2-2 in Ohio Valley Conference play.
The Runnin' Bulldogs totaled 410 yards of offense, including 201 rushing yards, while holding the Redhawks to 187 total yards. Gardner-Webb also forced three turnovers, including a 50-yard interception return for a touchdown by Southeast Missouri that accounted for the Redhawks' only touchdown of the afternoon.
Adrian Cormier gave Gardner-Webb an early lead with a 59-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. Southeast Missouri answered with an interception return for a touchdown to even the score at 7-7, but the Runnin' Bulldogs responded with a 40-yard field goal from Tyler Simpson to regain the lead, 10-7, at the end of the opening quarter.
Gardner-Webb extended its advantage in the second quarter behind quarterback Lan Farmer. Farmer connected with Christian Vann on a 14-yard touchdown pass to cap a five-play, 77-yard drive. After the Redhawks added a field goal to cut the deficit to 17-10, Farmer scored on an eight-yard run to give the Runnin' Bulldogs a 24-10 advantage heading into halftime.
The Gardner-Webb defense kept Southeast Missouri off the scoreboard throughout the second half. Simpson added a 43-yard field goal late in the third quarter to push the lead to 27-10 before Farmer and Kory Jones connected for an 18-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter. The scoring play capped a 10-play, 76-yard drive that took more than five minutes off the clock and secured the 34-10 victory.
Farmer finished the afternoon with 209 passing yards and two touchdowns while adding 39 rushing yards and another score. Jones led the receiving corps with four catches for 87 yards and a touchdown, while Sean Brady also hauled in four passes for 52 yards. Cormier paced the ground game with 76 yards on four carries, highlighted by his 59-yard touchdown run.
Defensively, Cahari Haynes led the Runnin' Bulldogs with seven tackles, including one tackle for loss. Tre Yanez added six tackles and a tackle for loss as Gardner-Webb limited the Redhawks to just 56 rushing yards and 131 passing yards.
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Western Illinois delivered a dramatic finish Saturday, scoring with 15 seconds remaining to defeat Charleston Southern 42-35 in a high-scoring comeback victory.
The Leathernecks overcame multiple momentum swings, including a fourth-quarter rally by the Buccaneers that erased a 14-point deficit, before putting together a game-winning drive in the final minutes.
Western Illinois struck first in the opening quarter when Kennedy McGill broke free for a 50-yard touchdown run, giving the Leathernecks a 7-0 advantage. Charleston Southern answered with a touchdown of its own, and the two teams traded scores to enter halftime tied at 14-14.
The Leathernecks took control early in the third quarter. After a pair of lengthy runs from McGill helped move Western Illinois down the field, McGill punched in a four-yard touchdown to put WIU ahead 21-14.
Following a Charleston Southern turnover on downs, Western Illinois capitalized on the opportunity. McGill connected with Israel Hiraldo for a 44-yard touchdown reception, extending the Leathernecks' lead to 28-14.
Charleston Southern responded with a touchdown, but McGill quickly answered with the biggest play of the afternoon, breaking loose for an 84-yard touchdown run to push the Western Illinois advantage to 35-21.
The Buccaneers mounted a fourth-quarter comeback, scoring on a 39-yard interception return before recovering a fumble and returning it 19 yards for another touchdown. The two defensive scores brought Charleston Southern even at 35-35 with 5:55 remaining.
After a Charleston Southern punt pinned Western Illinois at its own one-yard line, the Leathernecks put together a clutch 99-yard drive. McGill led the offense down the field with several key runs and completions, including a 32-yard connection with Tysean Griffin on fourth-and-one to move into the red zone.
Ihson E. Jackson-Anderson capped the drive with a 14-yard touchdown run with just 15 seconds remaining. Ronan Culkin added the extra point to give Western Illinois the 42-35 lead.
Charleston Southern managed one final possession, but the Leathernecks held on as time expired to secure the seven-point victory.
LINDENWOOD 27, TENNESSEE STATE 0
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - The Lindenwood football team (4-4, 3-1 OVC) picked up a 27-0 shutout win over Tennessee State (2-6, 0-4 OVC) on Saturday afternoon from Steward Field at Hunter Stadium.
It was a defensive battle early as both teams combined for just seven first downs across the opening 15 minutes of play, and the game was scoreless after one.
Lindenwood struck first to begin the second when Pops Battle connected with Drew Krobath over the middle from 27-yards out, giving the Lions a 7-0 lead. On its next offensive possession, the Black and Gold took advantage of good field position but had to settle for a field goal from Will Graham, extending the lead to 10-0. Lindenwood kept up its stout play defensively, forcing a pair of turnovers. DeVonta Owens picked off a pass and a few minutes later, Mason Burke forced a fumble on a sack. However, both turnovers did not result in points, and the Lions took a 10-0 lead into halftime.
The Lions opened the third quarter with a stop and were set up in TSU territory after a good return by Christopher Bennett Jr. However, the Lions had to settle for three and took a 13-0 lead after another field goal from Graham. On the ensuing possession, an interception by Zech Pratt gave Lindenwood good field position. It took the offense two plays to find the end zone with Batt
le finding Jalen Smith over the middle for a 29-yard strike, growing the lead to 20-0 which would be the score after three.
In the fourth, Lindenwood put together a 13-play 98-yard drive that took nearly seven minutes off the clock, capped off by a Jared Rhodes score, making it 27-0. The defense kept their dominant day going, closing out the game with a sack by Andrew Baumgart, his third of the day.
It was Lindenwood's first shutout since 2024 and the first time winning three games in a row since the 2022 season.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 45, UT MARTIN 16
MARTIN, Tenn. - A big offensive day by several Eastern Illinois players helped catapult the Panthers to a 45-16 road win on Saturday afternoon at UT Martin.
The win was the first for the Panthers at UT Martin since the 2015 season and snapped a seven-game win streak by UTM in the series. EIU improved to 3-6 overall, 2-2 in the OVC. UTM dropped to the same record at 3-6 overall, 2-2 in the OVC.
EIU opened up the offense in the fist quarter with a pair of touchdowns as Cole LaCrue hit Devin Whitlock for a 14-yard pass to end EIU’s opening drive. Charles Kellom ran in from 5-yards out on the next possession as EIU scored on its opening three drives of the game with good third down consistency.
The Panthers converted on their first five third down opportunities and finished 7-of-11 on third down for the day. LaCrue passed for 269 yards and four touchdowns. The junior quarterback also rushed for 112 yards and another score as EIU churned out 283 yards on the ground and 552 yards for the game.
Leading 17-0 and driving for a fourth straight score, EIU had a ball intercepted at the goal line to end a drive in the second quarter. The Skyhawks had a big 50-yard run by Jaydon Peete to give their offense some momentum as they cut the lead down to 17-13 with two rushing scores by Chris Franklin. Peete had 99 yards and Franklin 67 on the ground.
The momentum swung back to EIU right before the half as the Panthers tacked on one more score with 13 seconds left in the half. Jeremy Reeves caught a 12-yard touchdown from LaCrue staking EIU to a 24-13 lead.
The Panthers iced the game with two big scoring plays in the fourth quarter. The first a LaCrue 50-yard touchdown run. The second a LaCrue 67-yard screen pass to Jacarre Fleming-Page. Fleming Page rushed for 98 yards and had 75 yards receiving.
Eli Evans caught the other LaCrue touchdown toss in the third quarter with Brandon Sims kicking a 39-yard field goal for the final Skyhawks points.
Jerry Addo-Boateng and Makhi Wilson both had fourth quarter interceptions as EIU extended its consecutive game streak with at least one turnover gained to 12 straight contests. Ja’Wuan Nickson led EIU’s defense with eight tackles. Addo-Boateng added six.
Farand Washington, Jamarcus Smith and Nissi Mukulu each had six tackles for UTM.