Nov 17, 2001

Box Score

CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Fred Boateng rushed for 190 yards on 22 carries (8.6 average) and two fourth-quarter touchdowns to lead Western Carolina to a 28-25 victory over The Citadel in the teams' 2001 regular-season finale Saturday afternoon at WCU's E.J. Whitmire Stadium.

The Catamounts jumped out to an early 7-0 lead as Boateng broke a tackle at the line of scrimmage and raced 73 yards for a touchdown. The run as the longest by a Catamount this season and a career-long for the sophomore.

From that point, The Citadel took control of the game, scoring on three of its final four possessions of the first half and taking a 17-7 advantage at the break. The Bulldog's first score was setup by a short Catamount punt out of the endzone, giving The Citadel the ball on Western's 34. Three plays and 44 seconds later, Mazzie Drummond scored on a one-yard quarterback keeper to tie the game. While Western began to move the ball midway through the second quarter, The Citadel defense stiffened and forced a WCU field goal, which was blocked by Kevin Corley. The Bulldogs put together an impressive eight-play, 81-yard drive and take a 14-7 lead. Maurice Murphy, who finished with 31 carries for 153 yards, had five rushes in the eight-play drive, including a 23-yard TD. On WCU's first play after the ensuing kickoff, The Citadel's Kevin Gause picked off a Brian Gaither pass, which led to a 10-play, 73-yard scoring drive. Nick Haas capped the drive by drilling a 34-yard field goal as time expired to give the Bulldogs the 10-point lead at the break.

Both teams had some success offensively in the third, but ultimately, The Citadel punted twice and the Catamounts once. With 2:02 left in the third period, Western started what would be the first of three unanswered touchdowns. WCU took advantage of a pass interference call and a 24-yard Gaither-to-Lamont Seward pass to get into scoring position. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Gaither once again found Seward for a 23-yard TD to cut the deficit to 17-14.

Western's defense, which held The Citadel to just 20 rushing yards in the second half, forced punts on the Bulldogs first five possessions of the second half. After that fifth punt, Western drove 59 yards in 2:07 to take a 21-17 lead. The drive started with a 13-yard Gaither-to-Brenden Roy reception. Boateng closed the drive with three consecutive rushes, including a key fourth down conversion and a two-yard touchdown run.

The Citadel had good field position after two WCU personal fouls after the extra point caused the Cats to kickoff from their own 10-yard line. The WCU defense once again stopped the Bulldogs as senior Jeff Chambers sacked Drummond on the first play. That sack plus a tackle for loss on The Citadel's first play of the game Chambers 27 career tackles for losses, which ranks 10th (tied) on the WCU all-time list. After the sack, WCU sophomore linebacker Rod Dunlap pressured Drummond, who would throw his second interception of the game to WCU senior Marquail Wells. Two plays later, Boateng sprinted down the left sideline for a 55-yard touchdown, giving WCU a 28-17 lead. With three TDs on the day, Boateng has 12 on the season to rank sixth (tied) on the WCU single-season list. He additionally moved to third on the school's single-season rushing list with 1,225 and moved to eight on the school's career rushing list with 2,159.

While Western looked to have the game in hand with an 11-point lead and only 2:07 left, The Citadel put a scare into the Catamount faithful. Backup quarterback Joe Call took the Bulldogs 49 yards in just four plays and 52-seconds. A WCU pass interference gave the Bulldogs the ball on the Western 34 and, after a nine-yard run by Call, Alvin Johnson pulled down a 43-yard pass from Call. A Drummond-to-Murphy pass on the two-point conversion cut the lead to three, 28-25, with 1:15 left.

The Citadel lined up for the on-side kick and recovered it. However, on the Bulldog's first play, WCU freshman Tyler Norman forced Call to fumble, which was recovered by senior Pablo Abraham. Western took a knee for the final two plays to run out the clock and escape with the victory.

Western Carolina ends the season 7-4, 5-3 in the Southern Conference, while The Citadel closes Ellis Johnson's first season at the helm with a 3-7 overall record and 2-6 in the SoCon. With the win, the Catamounts reach the seven-win mark for just the seventh time in 68 years of football, just the second time in the last 19 seasons and the first time since 1992.