Nov. 17, 2007

Final Stats |  Notes |   

Cullowhee, N.C. - In their final home game as Catamounts, two Western Carolina seniors etched their names in the program's record books as the curtain fell on the tenure of its head coach. Senior wide receiver Eddie Cohen just missed his seventh-straight, 100-yard receiving game, but did set the school-record for receiving in a single-season while classmate Mike Malone used a 71-yard kickoff return for a touchdown inside the closing seconds of the season to eclipse the school's single-season, all-purpose yards record in a 52-21 home loss to the Furman Paladins at E.J. Whitmire Stadium.

The loss relegated Western (1-10, 0-7 SoCon) to its 15-straight defeat in Southern Conference play while also sealing its second-consecutive winless season in league play. It was also the last game for WCU head coach Kent Briggs who will be relieved of his coaching responsibilities and reassigned within the University. Furman finished the year at 6-5 overall and 4-3 in league play, tied for third place.

"This was not the day that we wanted," said an emotional Briggs during post-game interviews after emerging from the team locker room. "Our guys played hard; we had a lot of guys who were banged up and hurt and some who hadn't played that much and were very competitive against a very good football team. You've got to give Furman credit - they finished the season very strong."

He added, "I thought early in the game we were competitive and had a lot of opportunities. If we could have taken advantage of those opportunities then maybe it would have been a different game. Furman is too good for us not to play one of our best games of the season and that did not happen today. As coaches we will take responsibility for that, but their players gave a great effort out there."

Cohen, who is a strong candidate for All-SoCon honors after ranking second in the league in receiving yards this season, finished with 93 yards on five catches to eclipse the previous WCU single-season record held by Gerald Harp (1977-80). The Hilton Head, S.C., native finishes his final season with 1,208 receiving yards, fifth-most in SoCon single-season history barring the finish of Elon's Terrell Hugdins this year.

He also concludes his career tied for 8th on Western's career receptions list with 142.

"I wanted to get out of it what I put in this season," said Cohen who met Harp on the field during pre-game warm-ups. "As a senior, I feel that I set a standard. Going into (this year), I never thought I would break the record. I just wanted to have the best year I could possibly have. It turned out that things started going my way and the ball started rolling. I am proud to be a part of Catamount elites."

Earlier this season, Mike Malone rewrote Western's single-season kickoff return record book. He added his name to the all-purpose yards section on Saturday, amassing a game-high 255 all-purpose yards, including 229 on kickoff returns to finish the year with 2,143 yards, the second-most in a single-season in conference history.

Malone added flair to surpassing the milestone, taking a pitch from up back, sophomore Marcus Brown, and rushing straight ahead. It appeared as though he would be swallowed up by the Paladin push, but the Gainesville, Ga., native bumped it to his left, rushing down his own sidelines 71 yards for his second career kickoff return for a touchdown to provide the afternoon's final margin, 52-21.

After Furman had scratched the scoreboard first with a 10-play, 70-yard drive for an early, 7-0, lead, the Catamount offense got on track. Senior signal caller Todd Spitzer orchestrated an eight-play, 59-yad drive culminating with a two-yard TD strike to freshman full back Andrew Rogers, which was only his fourth career catch but second touchdown. The drive was spurred by three L.J. Davis runs, a 10-yard scamper by Spitzer and a 33-yard hook-up from Spitzer to Cohen which nearly went six before he was corralled inside the 10-yard line.

Spitzer finished his career with a 7-of-15 showing for 90 yards and the TD in the starting role. Red-shirt freshman Adam Hearns was 4-of-7 for 30 yards, but led the team with 37 yards rushing on eight carries and one score.

The two teams remained deadlocked in a defensive slugfest until late in the second quarter when Furman scored 17-unanswered points to lead at intermission, 24-7.

Set up by a 33-yard punt return, the Paladins moved 37 yards in seven plays including three-straight rushes by Jerome Felton before quarterback Renaldo Gray plunged in from four yards out for the 14-7 lead. On the ensuing drive, the Catamount offense sputtered with a three-and-out while Furman went to the air for a 58-yard scoring strike from Gray to Patrick Sprague for two scores one minute apart. The half concluded with a WCU fumble resulting in a 59-yard Paladin drive and a 21-yard Scott Beckler field goal.

Out of the halftime locker room, the two squads traded punts before the first of Spitzer's two interceptions led to Furman seizing a 31-7 lead as Gray scampered 37 yards to pay dirt just four and a half minutes into the final half. The Paladins would score two more touchdowns to lead 45-7 before Western was able to light the board again.

On the second play of the final quarter, Hearns alluded several Paladin defenders, found a seam and danced into purple & gold end zone with a 38-yard scoring run.

Malone closed Western's scoring with his 71-yard kickoff return inside the final two minutes of the game.

All told, Furman scored 38-straight points before Western was able to break through for Hearns' fourth rushing score of the season.

Furman's Gray finished 12-of-18 passing for 170 yard and a touchdown, while also rushing for 122 yards and two scores. Felton, who blistered the Cats last season for a conference-record six touchdowns, was held to 72 yards on the ground and no scores. Tight end Larry Hedden led all Paladin receivers with 74 yards receiving on six catches.

Defensively for the Catamounts, junior Quinton Phillips led the way with a game-high 17 tackles marking his fifth game with double-digit stops. He finishes the year with 127 tackles, including 63 solo hits, to rank fifth on WCU's single-season chart. Joining Phillips in double-figures were sophomore safety Chris Collins and junior linebacker Michael Shaw with a dozen tackles apiece.

History may judge the six-year coaching career of Kent Briggs by the win-loss record. However, Briggs hopes his legacy will resound through his players and what he taught them.

"He is just a great guy and unfortunately everything did not pan out for him, but we still love him as a coach and as a friend," said Hearns. "He will always be a Catamount and we have all enjoyed going to battle for him every week. We will continue to fight for him and the new coach as well. We are going to play all out Catamount football next year."

Briggs concluded, "I really appreciate all the support that the Catamount family and our students have given the coaching staff and the players. They have supported us all year especially during the tough times. I would also like to extend a personal thank you towards Chancellor John Bardo and the (Athletic Director) Chip Smith, and the rest of the Catamount family for how they supported us when I was battling cancer a few years ago. I will always remember that."