Sept. 16, 2006

Final Stats

Cullowhee, N.C. - Western Carolina only had 12 offensive plays and 19 total yards in the first half, while 19th-ranked Eastern Kentucky had 315 yards of total offense on 44 plays. In the second half, WCU senior tailback Darius Fudge had 21 rushes for 90 yards as the Catamounts out-gained the Colonels 219-77 in the final two quarters en route to a 20-17 victory Saturday night at Whitmire Stadium/Waters Field.

Fudge ended up with 26 carries for 104 yards, while senior quarterback Bennett Swygert completed 12-of-18 passes for 129 yards and a touchdown. Shelton Gaffney paced the WCU defense with seven tackles, including two for losses.

Despite Eastern Kentucky's effectiveness moving the ball, Western was able to stay in the game thanks to special teams and an interception. On the Colonels' first possession, which ended in a punt, Catamount junior linebacker Mordy Ornguze broke through to block a Benton Kuszmaul. Ornguze would scoop up the ball and end up with a 22-yard touchdown on the play, his first collegiate score.

Eastern Kentucky's offense got in full gear after that setback, scoring a touchdown, converting a field goal and scoring a touchdown on its next three possessions to take a 10-7 lead. EKU's scoring drives covered a combined 25 plays and 184 yards.

The Colonels' first score came facing a fourth-and-two on the Catamount 33. Josh Greco hit tight end Patrick Bugg for a touchdown strike down the left sideline. During the second scoring drive, Greco found an open Bugg for a 39-yard gain. EKU was forced to settle for a 36-yard Taylor Long field goal, thanks to an impressive open-field tackle by Western's Meko Watson on third down. On the third scoring drive, EKU took advantage of a Catamount penalty to get good field position. Four plays later, Greco once again hit an open Bugg on a post route for an 18-yard TD.

With EKU driving again later, Catamount junior Carlton Bailey picked off a pass, only to see Western's offense be forced into a three-and-out. The Colonels were driving once again as the first half came to a close, but Long's 36-yard field sailed left and Western was only down 17-7 at the break.

Western took the momentum of the end of the first half and carried it over to the second as the Cats took the opening drive of the third quarter and put three points on the board thanks to a Jonathan Parsons' 30-yard field goal. The big play of the drive was a 29-yard Swygert to Eddie Cohen pass, which marked Western's first first down of the game.

On the ensuing possession, Western's defense began putting more pressure on the EKU quarterback, which would eventually lead to Brandon Breeden's first career interception. Three plays later, Swygert lofted a ball to the left endzone to find a diving Chris Jefferson for a 20-yard score, tying the game at 17-17 after the Parsons PAT.

Western forced a Colonel punt on the following drive and nearly took a seven-point lead. As the Cats marched down the field, behind the running of Fudge, Western drove 70 yards over 11 plays. However, on first and goal from the four, Eastern Kentucky's defense rose to the occasion, keeping WCU out of the endzone on each of the four tries.

Backed up on its own one, Eastern Ketucky would give the ball back to Western three plays later. On third and five, Greco rolled right and tried to complete a pass in the middle of the field. Catamount senior Bruce Lee tipped the ball and freshman linebacker Kadeem Morgan made a diving interception just before the ball hit the turf.

Western was not successful moving the ball after that, but Parson drilled a 25-yard field goal to put the Cats up 20-17.

After the teams traded punts, Eastern Kentucky got back in scoring position on their final drive, which started with 5:20 left in the game. On the second play of the drive, Greco was given good time in the pocket and he eventually found Quinton Williams left all alone down the left sideline. The completion would go for 34 yards and move the Colonels from the EKU 33 to the WCU 33. Three plays later, on third and one, Western's Gaffney came through with a key tackle for loss. With 2:15 left in the game, EKU went for the tie, but the 43-yard field goal missed right.

Western was able to run out the clock to preserve the win as Fudge would get five straight carries, getting one first down in the series.

For the Colonels, Bobby Washington ended with 12 carries for 68 yards with Mark Dunn getting 17 carries for 57 yards. Greco would complete 18-of-30 passes for 240 yards with two TDs and three INTs. Bugg led the EKU receiving corps with five catches for 118 yards and two scores. Brandon Rosser led the Colonel defense with eight stops.

Western Carolina will play its second consecutive game versus a nationally-ranked team when the Catamounts hit the road to face third-ranked Furman Sept. 23. Kickoff is now at 7:00 pm as the game will be telecast on CSS.