Oct. 17, 2009

Final Stats |  Quotes |  Notes |   

Cullowhee, N.C. - Red-shirt Freshman Dion Wilson rushed for a pair of second half touchdowns as the Western Carolina Catamounts erased a 10-0 halftime deficit to rally past The Citadel, 14-10, on Homecoming at E.J. Whitmire Stadium / Bob Waters Field.

The season's first victory for the Catamounts also halted a seven-game slide which dates back to last season. The win also ended a three-game drought on Homecoming for WCU.

Despite the second half rally, it wasn't until junior Mitchell Bell batted down a fourth down pass in the end zone inside the closing seconds that the win was complete. Leading by four, the Catamount defense showed its teeth on both of The Citadel's final two possessions, forcing turnovers on downs as fourth down passes fell incomplete.

The Bulldogs drove 44 yards in 14 plays midway through the fourth quarter looking for the go-ahead score. On third and seven from the WCU 18 yard line, senior Gene Singletary sniffed out a rushing play by The Citadel's all-purpose receiver, Andre Roberts, and he and a host of teammates smothered Roberts for an 11-yard loss.

On the ensuing fourth down and 18 play, junior Angelo Brown broke up a would-be pass to receiver Kevin Hardy to halt the Bulldog drive.

The drama was far from over, though, as The Citadel forced the Catamount offense into a three-and-out on its next possession. The rugby-style punt by WCU ricocheted off one of the personal protector's back, giving the Bulldogs possession at the WCU 34 yard line with 1:12 showing on the game clock.

The Citadel managed one first down on a fourth-and-two from the WCU 26. Then, with seconds winding off the clock, Bell was able to bat down what would have been a game-winning TD strike on a pass intended for tight end Alex Sellars in the end zone, setting off a wild post-game celebration.

"I was holding my breath and saying prayers that we would get this opportunity. That's what I told the guys at halftime. I told them to put themselves into the position where it goes down to the last play of the game. It just so happened to work out that way," said second-year head coach Dennis Wagner following Saturday night's win. "These guys haven't quit all season. They have worked hard and they have done everything we have asked them to do. They have responded to us, but we haven't got the results we want. Hopefully, this will be the turning point for us now to head down the right track."

He added, "The defense has done enough to win ball games all year, but not the offense. I think the offense is what helped us today. The defensive guys were down there when we scored our first touchdown."

Wilson only tallied 20 total yards on the ground, but his five-yard scamper off the left side on a crucial fourth-down play midway through the final quarter proved to be the difference. The Black Mountain, N.C., native who missed the previous game due to injury, also hauled in a pair of passes on screen plays for 24 yards. True freshman Michael Johnson recorded a career-best 92 yards on the ground to help the Catamount rushing attack.

The Citadel (2-4, 0-3) broke the scoreless deadlock on the first play of the second quarter as Sam Keeler capped an 11-play, 50-yard drive with a 32-yard field goal for the 3-0 lead.

With all signs pointing to a 3-0 game at halftime, The Citadel capitalized on a Catamount special teams miscue. Punter Blake Cain mishandled the snap on the chilly October evening and was corralled in the backfield giving the Bulldogs possession at the WCU 25 yard line with under a minute to play before intermission.

Seizing momentum on the quick change, Bulldog quarterback Bart Blanchard, who split time under center with Miguel Starks after injuring a toe on his left foot on his first possession, connected with Van Dyke Jones for a 23-yard pass play to set up a three-yard scoring strike to all-purpose receiver, Andre Roberts, with 18 seconds remaining on the first half clock to give The Citadel the 10-0 advantage at halftime.

Roberts finished with 78 yards receiving on nine catches, adding 16 yards rushing. Blanchard completed 9-of-11 passes for 94 yards and the TD, while Starks was 12-of-19 for 71 yards, adding 13 yards rushing despite being sacked twice.

The Bulldogs could not capitalize on a pair of scoring opportunities in the second half as kicker Sam Keeler missed on a pair of field goals from 44 and 43 yards, respectively. It was after the first miss that the Catamount offense began to come alive.

Sparked first by a 10-yard run on reverse end around by freshman George Richardson, WCU and the crowd of 6,821 were ignited by a 39-yard fake reverse pass play from Jaynes to Pittman that set the Catamounts up with first and goal at the seven. Johnson surged ahead to the one-yard line before Wilson plunged ahead two plays later from a yard out to put Western Carolina (1-5, 1-3 SoCon) on the board, 10-7.

Pittman finished with 75 yards receiving on four catches while Jaynes finished 15-of-22 for 166 yards to lead the Catamounts in the win.

Jaynes and Pittman again hooked up for a long pitch-and-catch on what proved to be WCU's game-winning drive On the first play of the fourth quarter, and with the Catamounts facing a third and long from its own 46, Jaynes found Pittman for a 24-yard gain and a first down. Three plays later with WCU again facing a third and long, Jaynes found a streaking Chris Everett for a 20-yard pick-up to The Citadel 14.

Three rushes later, the Catamounts were knocking on the door, facing a fourth and short at the Bulldogs' five yard line. Wagner and staff initially sent Blake Bostic and the field goal unit onto the turf, but called a timeout to rethink the strategy as the play clock winding down.

Spurred on by the crowd and the players on the bench, Wagner and staff sent the offensive unit back onto the field following the brief stoppage to go for the first down. Behind a solid push from the offensive line, Wilson rushed off left tackle and pranced untouched into the purple end zone for the go-ahead score.

The Catamounts will wrap-up their two-game home stand next Saturday, Oct. 24, hosting the Wofford Terriers at 4:00 pm on Family Weekend in Cullowhee.