SoCon Football: Week 6 produces surprises and upsets

Week six in SoCon football was highlighted by weather delays, an upset, a couple of thrillers and a blowout.   With Chattanooga's 35-28 loss to Mercer, only one unbeaten remains alone atop the Souhthern Conference, and that's the VMI Keydets. The Cardiac Keydets moved to 5-0 with a thrilling 36-31 come-from-behind win at Wofford, moving to 5-0 despite the fact that preseason SoCon Offensive Player of the Year Reece Udinski missed the game under center for VMI. 

East Tennessee State was able to weather one of Western Carolina's strongest efforts of the spring season, as the Bucs held off the Catamounts 24-17 in the Blue Ridge Border Battle. The final result of the day was the most resounding, as Samford handed The Citadel its school record 11th-straight loss, with a 55-7 win in Charleston. 

Samford 55, The Citadel 7

The Citadel suffered its school-record 11th-straight loss, and it came in decisive fashion, as Samford came to Charleston and handed The Citadel a 55-7 setback on its home turf Saturday afternoon at Johnson Hagood Stadium. It was Samford's largest road win in Southern Conference play since a 45-0 win at Furman on homecoming in 2014. 

With the win, Samford moved to 3-3 overall and 3-3 in the SoCon this spring, while The Citadel dropped to 0-9 overall and 0-4 in the SoCon in the 2020-21 season. 

Samford had an offensive explosion for the second week in row, amassing 550 yards of total offense, while Samford's opportunistic defense caused seven turnovers en route to the big win. 

Following a school-record 570 passing yards last Saturday vs. VMI, Samford quarterback had another big week, completing 19-of-35 passes for 306 yards and three touchdowns, while rushing 13 times for 139 yards and a touchdown.

Jai'Rus Creamer led what waas a big day for the Samford passing attack, hauling in three Welch deliveries for 97 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

On the defensive side of the ball for Samford, linebacker's Trimarcus Cheeks and Nathan East recorded a team-high 13 tackles. Cheeks also had a fumble had a fumble recovery, along with five other defender's on the Samford defense, which recorded fumbles. Linebacker Thomas Neville, safety Chris Edmonds, defensive end Jeremy Garth,  safety Lamar Anderson, and defensive end Joseph Mera all had fumble recoveries for Samford,  while cornerback Hakeem Johnson recorded the Bulldogs' only interception Saturday.  Anderson's fumble recovery he returned 68 yards for a touchdown.

The Citadel was led on offense by quarterback Darique Hampton, who finished the day with 98 rush yards on 22 carries. Hampton also finished the contest with 22 pass yards and one touchdown. 

Samford's success offensively started from the outset of the contest, as the Bulldog offense drove 75 yards in 10 plays to go ahead 7-0 on a 20-yard scoring strike from Welch-to-Creamer for a 7-0 lead with 12:28 remaining in the opening quarter of play. 

After a Mithcell Fineran 19-yard field goal gave Samford a 10-0 lead with 6:34 remaining in the first quarter, The Citadel was driving deep inside Samford territory, facing a 4th-and-goal from the Samford five-yard line, Cheeks recovered a fumble for Samford to halt the scoring threat for The Citadel and giving Samford the ball at its own seven yard line. The Bulldogs then put together an impressive 93-yard drive, with Welch capping the drive with a nine-yard scoring run, giving Samford a comfortable 17-0 lead with 9:25 remaining in the half. 

A 70-yard touchdown pass from Welch-to-Creamer with 4:03 left in the opening half gave Samford a 24-0 lead, and the rout was on. After the Samford defense held The Citadel when Jeremy Garth recovered a fumble on the first play of the drive, Welch tossed his third scoring pass of the half, when he hooked up with tight end Michael Vice for a 20-yard score, making it a 31-0 game with 3:52 remaining until the break.

The Citadel would score its only points of the game with just under a minute to play in the half, as Darique Hampton found all-conference wideout Raleigh Webb on a 25-yard scoring pass to make it a 31-7 game. Fineran scored the final points of the half for Samford, as his 48-yard field goal with just six seconds to play in the opening half gave Samford a 34-7 lead at the break.

Samford put up the lone touchdown of the third quarter when Demarcus Ware scored on a 16-yard run to make it 41-7 with 8:33 left in the third. 

In the fourth quarter, the Samford defense got into the scoring act, as Lamar Anderson picked up a Citadel fumble and raced 68 yards the other way to make it a 48-7 game with 13:40 remaining. Ware provided the final points of the afternoon, as his one-yard plunge gave Samford a 55-7 lead with 9:26 left.

Samford returns to the field next Saturday for a key SoCon showdown, hosting Chattanooga in a 2 p.m. EST contest at Seibert Stadium. The Citadel will be on the road in Spartanburg to face Palmetto State rival Wofford next Saturday.

No. 13 VMI 36, Wofford 31

VMI WR Jakob Heres (photo courtesy of VMI athletics)

VMI continued its thrilling spring season, as the 13th-ranked Keydets moved to 5-0, as the Keydets trailed the contest four different times, before coming back for the second-straight week to get a 36-31 win over Wofford in SoCon action Saturday afternoon at Gibbs Stadium.

The win saw the Keydets move to 5-0 and 5-0 overall, and coupled with Chattanooga's home loss to Mercer, VMI now sits alone atop the Southern Conference standings. Woffrord dropped to 1-3 overall and 1-3 in SoCon play. The by the Keydets marked its first-ever win in Spartanburg, while snapping an eight-game losing streak to the Terriers, which dates back to 2004. The last VMI win over Wofford was a 27-16 win over the No. 18 Wofford Terriers in 2002. 

VMI's 5-0 start to the season is its best since the John McKenna era in 1960, while the victory also ensured its first winning season since 1981. 

The Keydets were without offensive stars Reece Udinski at quarterback, running back Korey Bridey, and wideout Leroy Thomas, however, Seth Morgan stepped under center and put on a masterful performance, leading the Keydets from behind seemingly all afternoon. 

Morgan finshed the contest connecting on 25-of-34 passes for 375 yards, as he showed maturity well beyond his class, as a redshirt freshman in his first-career start for the Keydets. The native of a state and city not short on quarterback talent, hailing from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Morgan tossed four touchdown passes, and added 76 rushing yards, finishing with 451 yards of total offense, which is the second-best performance in program history. 

Not to be outdone, VMI wideout Jakob Heres had the signature performance of his outstanding VMI career, as he hauled in a career-high 15 passes for 207 yards and three touchdowns, including the game-winner, as he now has 19 career scoring catches to rank second in school history in that particular category. 

VMI trailed 17-7 at the half, however, Morgan hit Heres on a 21-yard strike and after the Keydet defense held serve, connected with freshman Chance Knox on a 17-yard pass a few minutes later, giving the Keydets a 20-17 lead with a quarter of football remaining.

That's where things would once again interesting for VMI. Wofford scored on a 10-yard run by Nathan Walker just nine seconds into the final quarter, helping Wofford regain the lead, 24-20. 

However, the Keydets went back ahead when Heres hauled in a 15-yard scoring pass, and then place-kicker Jerry Rice added a 28-yard field goal with 1:58 left to give the Keydets a 30-24 win, and seemingly looked like a win.

But things are never that easy in the Southern Conference, and they wouldn't be on this day, as Landon Parker hauled in a 75-yard scoring pass just 15 seconds after Rice's field goal had put the Keydets ahead by six. Walker Gliamaris' PAT gave the Terriers a 31-30 lead with 1:43 remaining.

That's when Morgan and Keydets showed their grit and moxie, moving 79 yards in seven plays, as the redshirt freshman hooked up with Heres one final time, with this one being a 14-yard scoring strike to give the Keydets a 36-31 lead in remarkable fashion with 35 seconds left. Michael Jackson's pass on the PAT failed, and the Terriers held a 36-31 lead with 35 seconds remaining. 

VMI's defense would hold on Wofford's final possession, as the Keydets held on for a thrilling five-point win. VMI returns to Foster Stadium next Saturday when it hosts ETSU in a 1:30 p.m. game, while Wofford hosts The Citadel in a 1 p.m. contest at Gibbs Stadium.

East Tennessee State 24, Western Carolina 17

Despite two weather delays, East Tennessee State held off Western Carolina in another Blue Ridge Border Battle that came down to the wire, as the Bucs held off the Catamounts, with a 24-17 win over Western Carolina in what was a spring hailstorm at William B. Greene Jr. Stadium.

With the win, ETSU improved to 3-1 overall and 3-1 in the SoCon, while the Catamounts fell to 1-8 overall in 2020-21, with a 1-5 league mark. 

Following a 90-minute delay to the start due to lightning and hail, both offenses came out hot. The two offenses combined to score 34 points and roll up 509 yards combined total offense in the opening half alone. Both team's went to the halftime locker room deadlocked, 17-17, following a school-record 54-yard field goal from ETSU's Tyler Keltner to close out the first half.

While the first half saw the offenses come out strong, the second half would see both defenses take over the contest, and in complete contrast to the combined 509 yards in the opening half, the two teams only mustered a combined 174 yards and a touchdown. The lone scoring run came on a Quay Holmes 5-yard touchdown run with 12:40 left in the game.

It was a big day for the Bucs ground attack, as both Holmes and Jacob Saylors went over the 100-yard plateau for the first time this spring. Holmes finished the contest by rushing for 197 yards and a pair of scores, while Saylors finished the day with 136 yards on 15 carries. 

All told, the Bucs out-gained the Cats 405-278, including 350-66 on the ground. Brock Landis earned his first-career start for the Bucs, completing 8-of-16 passes 55 yards. 

ETSU will be on the road next week, facing VMI in a 1:30 p.m. contest at Foster Stadium. The Catamounts will be back at home next Saturday, hosting Chattanooga in a 1 p.m. contest.

Mercer 35, No. 9 Chattanooga 28

For the first time since taking over as head coach at Mercer, head coach Drew Cronic recorded a win over a ranked opponent, as his Mercer Bears went on the road and held off No. 9  Chattanooga late to get a 35-28 win over Mercer. It was Mercer's first win over a ranked foe since Sept. 15, 2018 when the Bears knocked off No. 9 Samford 30-24 in 2018. 

With the win, the Bears improved to 3-5 overall in the 2020-21 season and 3-2 in league play, while Chattanooga fell to 3-2 overall and 3-1 in SoCon play this spring. 

Carter Peevy had his best day yet as a Mercer signal-caller, as the freshman completed 13-of-17 passes 167 yards and Brandon Marshall finished the day by rushing for a career-best 74 yards and two touchdowns. The Bears gained 373 yards and two touchdowns. The Bears gained 373 yards of total offense, with 206 yards coming on the ground. 

On the defensive side of the football, Mercer was led by defensive end Solomon Zubairu led the Mercer with a career-high seven tackles and 1.5 sacks. Lance was among a trio of Bears players that recorded five tackles.