Box Score Oct. 9, 2004
Final Stats
Cullowhee, N.C. -
Western Carolina forced a turnover on the first play of the game and scored one play later, but the third-ranked Georgia Southern Eagles (5-1, 4-0 SoCon) would score 28 unanswered points to hand the Catamounts (2-4, 0-2 SoCon) a 38-16 setback Saturday evening at E.J. Whitmire Stadium/Bob Waters Field.
On the Eagles first play from scrimmage, GSU quarterback Chaz Williams fumbled the ball, which WCU defensive end Rico Reese recovered. On Western's first play from scrimmage, redshirt freshman quarterback Russell Hemby found a streaking Michael Reeder down the right sideline for 46-yard touchdown and, after the point after failed, giving the Catamounts an early 6-0 lead.
However, Georgia Southern responded with a 15-play, 47-yard scoring drive, capped by a 22-yard Jonathan Dudley field goal. As the first quarter came to a close, the Eagles put together a six-play, 79-yard scoring drive. The drive was highlighted by a 51-yard Williams-to-Teddy Craft pass. After the big gain, Lynon Jefferson carried the ball 18 yards to the WCU four, setting up a Brandon Andrews four-yard TD on the next play. The extra point was wide, making the score 9-6.
With 7:43 left before halftime, the Eagles took advantage of a WCU penalty and a 17-yard Marquice Maynard to get in scoring position. Dudley would push the GSU lead to six (12-6) after making a 30-yard field goal. After forcing the Cats to punt with just over two minutes left before the break, Georgia Southern's Williams connected on 4-of-6 passes on a seven-play, 72-yard drive. Craft was Williams' top target, catching passes for nine, 14 and 23 yards, the last of which was good for a touchdown. The two-point attempt failed and the Eagles took an 18-6 lead into the locker room.
To start the second half, Dudley nailed his third field goal of the contest, connecting from 41 yards and giving the Eagles a 21-6 cushion. On the ensuing possession, the Catamount drive stalled and GSU's Craft returned the punt 53 yards for a 28-6 Eagle advantage.
The Cats answered with an 11-play, 62-yard scoring drive of their own. Sophomore quarterback Justin Clark completed 13 yard passes to both Andre Hemphill and Xavier Godard. Later, he found Godard for a 16 yarder, setting up a 20-yard Tim Mayse field goal and making the score 28-9.
Georgia Southern regained the momentum on the next drive. The reigning SoCon Offensive Player of the Year, Jermaine Austin, had a 37-yard run and a five-yard run. However, the WCU defense kept the Eagles out of the endzone, forcing a 21-yard Dudley field goal to make the score 31-9 on the second play of the fourth quarter.
The Eagles would then go up 38-9 midway through the fourth quarter. On fourth and three, Williams found DeShawn Jude for a 28-yard pass. Two plays later, Austin scored from 23 yards out to cap the GSU scoring.
Western kept battling and put together a nine-play, 46-yard scoring drive. Hemby converted on third and 10 with a 13-yard pass to J.C. Brown. Later in the drive, facing fourth and three, Hemby completed a pass to Michael Hines. One play later, Hemby completed a 10-yard TD pass to Calvin Guinyard to provide the final 38-16 score.
For the Eagles, Austin had 129 rushing yards on 17 attempts and one TD. Williams, who completed 7-of-14 passes for 155 yards and one TD, added 43 rushes on 17 attempts as well. Craft led the GSU receiving corps with five catches for 108 yards.
Western was led by Nicholas Wishart, who came off the bench to run for 48 yards on seven attempts. Darius Fudge had 35 yards on 10 rushing attempts. Hemby finished the game by completing 15-of-24 passes for 143 yards and two TDs. Clark was 5-of-12 for 62 yards.
The WCU defense, led by eight tackles from Albert Reid and Primus Glover, held Georgia Southern to just 38 points and 276 rushing yards. The Eagles came into the game as the national leader in both categories, scoring 50.8 points per game and rushing for 383.2 yards per game.
Western Carolina will hit the road to face its third consecutive top 10 team next week, facing the eighth-ranked Wofford Terriers in Spartanburg, S.C., at 1:30 pm.
