Sept. 27, 2008

Recap |  Final Stats

Game Captains: Offensive: RB #24 Quan Warley; WR #80 Marquel Pittman Defensive: S #10 Chris Collins; LB #50 Quintin Phillips

The Citadel won the coin toss and elected to defer; Western Carolina received the opening kickoff; The Citadel received the opening kickoff of the second half.

* Western Carolina's loss to The Citadel represented the 16th-consecutive Southern Conference defeat over the past three seasons ... it also was WCU's fifth-straight to the Bulldogs, the longest losing skid all-time in series history.

* WCU dropped to 20-12 all-time in Southern Conference openers, including a 7-11 mark when the opener comes on the road.

Military Appreciation Day:
Playing at the only military school remaining in the Southern Conference, Saturday's game was "Military Appreciation Day" in Charleston. The pre-game coin flip took place with captains at midfield in Charleston with the flip on-board the USS Iwo Jima currently stationed in the Persian Gulf with Citadel graduates. Also, the U.S. Army Golden Knights parachute team jumped in with the game ball.

Chris Collins - Ball Hawk:
WCU safety Chris Collins caused his third fumble of the season, ripping it out of Bulldogs #34 Jordan midway through the first quarter ... Although only officially credited with three forced fumbles this season, Collins pressured the PC quarterback helping force a fumble that the Catamounts took away when Jeff Bradley fell on the loose football.

End Zone Interception Ends Streak:
Junior DB Antoine George's interception midway through the second quarter was WCU's first pick of the season, ending an opponent steak of 140 consecutive opponent passes without tossing an INT.

First Career Pick:
WCU sophomore Mitchell Bell hauled in his first career interception on a pass that was deflected at the line of scrimmage by senior Jeff Bradley ... it was just the second INT for the Catamounts this season.

More Firsts - Times Four:
Red-shirt sophomore Adam Hearns' eight-yard receiving touchdown from senior Andy Horn marked the first receiving score of Hearns' career as a wide out ... it also marked the first touchdown for the Catamount offense scored in the third quarter this season, previously only with three points in frame.

Also, red-shirt freshman quarterback Zack Jaynes' 10-yard touchdown pass to freshman Nate Harris also represented the first in both underclassmen's career. For Harris, it was his first career reception.

Additional Notes:
* Western Carolina wore white jerseys over gold pants marking the first time in at least seven years that the Catamounts had worn that combination in a football game ... WCU had worn a combination of white with purple trim or solid purple pants away from Cullowhee since 2001;

* Western Carolina was shutout at halftime for the second time this season - 24-0 at The Citadel and 28-0 at Florida State;

* Senior Donald James' 33-yard reception midway through the third quarter was a career-long.