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| ETSU quarterback Cade McNamara (photo courtesy of ETSU athletics) |
Mercer claims seventh-straight SoCon win; Bears win fourth-straight in series vs. Bucs
In what was easily the game of the day on the Southern Conference gridiron, and one of if not the game of the season in terms of one that both SoCon title and playoff implications, East Tennessee State's game against reigning SoCon champion and No. 23-ranked Mercer certainly didn't disappoint.
However, after having led for most of the night, it was the visiting Bears that would leave Johnson City without a seventh-straight SoCon win, as Mercer scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns to finish off a thrilling 38-34 win over ETSU at William B. Greene Stadium Saturday evening before an announced crowd of 10,567 in attendance.
The win sees Mercer improve to 3-1 overall on the young season, and remained a perfect 3-0 in Southern Conference play. ETSU fell to 2-3 overall and 0-1 in league action.
The loss by the Bucs overshadowed a big night passing by quarterback Cade McNamara, who finished the night with the second-most passing yards in a single game in ETSU history, connecting on 29-of-46 passes for 398 yards, with four TDs and a pair of INTs. McNamara's outstanding passing effort allowed ETSU to finish the night with a slight edge in total offense, finishing the contest with a 467-421 advantage in total yards.
His counterpart, Mercer true freshman quarterback Braden Atkinson, completed the contest by connecting on an efficient 18-of-26 passes for 187 yards, with three TDs and one INT.
Hakeem Meggett was McNamara's favorite target in the game, as he finished the evening by hauling in five passes for 119 yards and three scores
Trailing 34-24 entering the final 15-minute frame, the Bears got a 17-yard connection from freshman quarterback Braden Atkinson to wideout Brayden Smith to conclude 10-play, 46-yard drive, which got the Bears to within a field goal, at 34-31, with 11:26 remaining.
With Mercer's defense continuing to feed off the momentum of both Atkinson and a ground game fueled by junior running back CJ Miller, who finished the night with an impressive 172 yards and a pair of scores on 29 attempts, they would turn away the Bucs by forcing a punt on ETSU's ensuing possession following Smith's touchdown catch.
On what proved to be the game's decisive drive, the Bears needed eight plays to cover 65 yards, but it was the aforementioned Miller that did the most damage to the ETSU defense, as he rushed for 41 of the team's 65 yards on the eventual game-winning drive, as he punched it over the final yard, giving the Bears their first lead since a 3-0 advantage early in the opening quarter, as his one-yard scoring plunge gave Mercer a 38-34 lead with 5:40 remaining.
ETSU, which was led by one for the record books from quarterback Cade McNamara, had two drives to try and produce the game-winning points. However, ETSU would get one first down before a McNamara incompletion on 3rd-and-6 from the Bucs 45 forced a Nate Brackett punt back to the visitors with 3:34 remaining.
After the Bucs did its job by forcing the Bears to a three-and-out, however, had to burn two timeouts along the way, the Bucs offense would have one opportunity with the football to produce a game-winning drive.
However, ETSU would have had the ball at its own 30 following John McConnell's 53-yard punt and Xavier Galliardetz's two-yard loss on the return, however, a personal foul committed by junior defensive back CJ Gilmore proved costly, as it moved ETSU back to its own 15 to start the drive with just over two minutes remaining in the game.
Mercer's defense, which was the primary reason it brought home its first Southern Conference title since joining the league as an official member a decade prior in 2024, came to the rescue on Saturday night in Johnson City, and put the Bucs in a difficult position to begin their potential game-winning drive, sacking McNamara for a loss of six yards on first down. Fortunately for the Bucs, who were out of timeouts, they were saved by the two-minute timeout, saving time on the clock.
McNamara connected with Galliardetz for a gain of 25 yards and a first down up to the ETSU 34 on the ensuing play,and after an incompletion, found a little running room after a heavy Mercer rush on 2nd-and-10, gaining eight yards to the ETSU 42. A six-yard completion to tight end Cole Keller for six yards on 3rd-and-2 got the Bucs a first down and up to near midfield, at the 48.
Following a pair of McNamara incompletions and facing a crucial 3rd-and-10, and then ETSU got a big break after Mercer was flagged for pass interference, getting the ball to the Mercer 37.
However, on the next play, McNamara's pass into double coverage was intercepted by Bears junior defensive back Kaleb Hutchinson to thwart the opportunity and give the Bears the chance to run out the remaining time on the clock and escape with the win.
Much like the West Georgia game, the Bucs had seemingly been in comfortable control of the game from the outset until the fourth quarter that is.
In the opening half of play, the Bucs were solid on both sides of the football, taking what was a 27-17 lead into the locker room, and possessed much of the momentum in the game. It would be Mercer that would get on the board first in the game, as Reice Griffith connected on a 49-yard field goal to give the Bears a 3-0 lead with 10:09 left in the opening quarter of play.
The Bucs and McNamara would respond a little over a minute later when Hakeem Meggett hauled in a 14-yard strike from the high-profile transfer quarterback, putting the Bucs on to 7-3 with 8:59 left in the opening quarter of play. Ewan Johnson split the uprights with a 22-yard field goal to finish out a massive 15-play, 71-yard drive to give the Bucs a 10-3 lead.
The Bears would tie the game less than four minutes into the second quarter, however, as Adonis McDaniel hauled in a short 3-yard pass from Atkinson to level to game, 10-10, concluding an 11-play, 75-yard drive by Mercer with 11:10 left in the half.
Then it was ETSU's turn to answer and go back on top, when McNamara engineered an eight-play, 86-yard drive, which culminated with a 20-yard scoring strike from the Iowa transfer to UCF/Tennessee transfer tight end Charlie Browder, putting the Bucs back on top, 17-10, with just under eight minutes remaining in the half.
Mercer would once again tie the football game a little less than two minutes later, as it answered with a well-orchestrated, four-play, 75-yard drive that saw preseason All-SoCon wideout Adjatay Dabbs end up hauling in a 29-yard scoring strike from Atkinson to tie the game, 17-17, with 5:54 remaining in the opening half.
ETSU would seemingly head into the halftime locker room with all the momentum, however, as the Bucs would score. First, an 11-play, 75-yard drive to re-take the lead, as Meggett once again got into the act, as he caught his second of three scoring strikes from McNamara on a 35-yard go-route to give the Bucs the 24-17 lead with just 88 seconds left in the opening half.
On Mercer's next possession, ETSU defensive back Javon Oggs forced and recovered a fumble in Bears territory to set up the Bucs' final points of the half, as Johnson came on to connect on a 32-yard field goal as time expired in the first half, as the Bucs went to the half with a 27-17 lead.
The third quarter would see both teams trade touchdowns, keeping the margin at 10 heading into the final frame. Mercer came up with the first points of the second half, following a Bucs, as Grand Valley State transfer Khalil Eichelberger fumbled the ball after a short reception, and the ball was recovered by Mercer's Tommy Bliss at the MU 39.
That led to a nine-play, 61-yard drive by the Bears, as Mercer would get within three after CJ Miller rumbled in from a yard out to cut ETSU's lead to 27-24 with 7:52 left in the third.
ETSU closed the quarter with another McNamara-to-Meggett connection, as this time the distance covered just 22 yards to extend the Bucs' lead back to 10 with 5:29 remaining in the third, giving the Bucs their 10-point (34-24) lead back entering the final quarter.
Both teams will face key Southern Conference tests next Saturday, as ETSU heads to Greenville to face off against Furman (3-1,1-0 SoCon) for a 2 p.m. contest at Paladin Stadium. No. 23 Mercer, meanwhile, will return to Five Star Stadium to face off against Samford (0-5, 0-3 SoCon) in a 4 p.m. conference tilt next Saturday.
Chattanooga's Struggles Continue in SoCon Home Opening Loss to The Citadel
Things might have just reached a new low point for head coach Rusty Wright in his tenure as Chattanooga's head football coach, as the Mocs slipped to 1-4 overall and 0-1 in league play, dropping a 28-10 contest to The Citadel in the Mocs' league opener.
For the Bulldogs, the positive signs continued in their early start to SoCon play under the direction of third-year head coach Maurice Drayton, as The Citadel improved its mark to 2-3 overall and 2-1 in SoCon play with the triumph in the Scenic City.
It marked the Bulldogs' first win over the Mocs since the 2021 campaign, which also came in the Scenic City, as the Mocs came into Saturday's series dominant as of late when facing off against The Citadel, having won six of the past seven meetings in the series between the two.
The Citadel quarterback Quentin Hayes teamed with Cobey Thompkins to lead a Bulldogs offense that amassed 433 yards in the contest, including 336 on the ground, while the Bulldogs' defense limited the Mocs to just 10 points and 321 yards of total offense in the game. As a result of that big rushing night on the road by the Bulldogs, it led to a substantial 36:13-23:47 advantage in time of possession.
Hayes finished off his night by connecting on 7-of-8 passes for 63 yards, while rushing for 103 yards and a pair of scores on 16 attempts, as he led a balanced Bulldogs ground game. Thompkins finished the evening connecting on 4-of-6 passes for 34 yards and one TD, while also adding 67 rushing yards on just seven attempts.
Chattanooga's Camden Orth finished the night connecting on 15-of-24 throws for 201 yards, with one INT.
It would be the Mocs, who would get in the board first in the contest, however, as Justus Durant scampered in from five yards out to give UTC an early 7-0 lead on its first possession of the evening, as Chattanooga covered 57 yards in seven plays to take the early advantage with 10:32 left in the in the opening quarter.
The Citadel would answer to tie the game on its ensuing possession, as the Bulldogs put together an impressive 10-play, 78-yard drive, which would eventually be capped off by Whit Hobgood's 14-yard scoring reception from Cobey Thompkins to tie the game, 7-7, with 4:59 left in the opening quarter.
Following a stop by The Citadel's defense, the Bulldogs offense would put together its second-straight scoring drive to take control of the game for good. The Bulldogs this time engineered an 11-play, 64-yard scoring drive, which was directed by Quentin Hayes, and it would be fitting that the Air Force transfer would cap off the scoring drive, as he found the end zone on a 9-yard scoring scamper to give The Citadel a 14-7 lead. It would be a lead the Bulldogs would not relinquish for the remainder of the night.
Chattanooga's Jude Kelley connected on a 34-yard with 7:53 left in the opening half, drawing the Mocs to within 14-10, however, it would be Chattanooga's final points of the night.
The Citadel quickly snatched away any momentum the Mocs might have garnered from Kelley's field goal by answering with a six-play, 67-yard drive, which saw Garrison Johnson Sr. cap with a 26-yard scoring run to give the Bulldogs their first double-digit lead, at 21-10, with just over five minutes remaining in the half.
The Bulldogs effectively put the game away with the only score of the second half, as The Citadel's defense would do the job for the remainder of the night. With just over three minutes remaining in the third quarter, Hayes scored on his second scoring run of the night, galloping 20 yards through the middle of the UTC defense on a perfectly executed option-keeper to extend the Bulldogs' lead to 28-10.
Chattanooga returns to action next Saturday, traveling to Lexington, VA., to take on the VMI Keydets (1-3, 0-0 SoCon) in a kickoff set for 1:30 p.m. EST at Foster Stadium. The Citadel will have the week off before facing NCAA Division II power and Gulf South Conference member Valdosta State on Oct. 11 at Johnson-Hagood Stadium. Kickoff for that contest is slated for 2 p.m. EST.
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| Furman's offense threatens early in the third quarter vs. Samford (photo courtesy of Furman athletics) |
Furman Deals Samford its Sixth-Straight Loss Dating Back to 2024
The best way to describe Furman's 31-13 road win at Samford to open Southern Conference play would be extremely efficient on both sides of the ball.
Furman and Samford didn't play last season, due to Hurricane Helene, and when the two met on the gridiron on an unseasonably hot early fall Saturday in Homewood, it seemed like the game was almost an extension of the last time the two hooked up--a day which Furman nearly tied a school record with nine quarterback takedowns in what was a 27-21 back on Oct. of 2023 at Pete Hanna Stadium--as this time around the Furman defense sacked Samford quarterbacks seven times en route to the 18-point road win.
For Samford, the loss is reaching historic levels, as the six-straight setbacks ranks as the program's longest since 1985 and it's also the longest losing streak since that same season, as the Bulldogs opened the '85 campaign with seven-straight setbacks to open the campaign. The 0-3 start to Southern Conference play also marks the first time the Bulldogs have opened league play 0-3 since joining the SoCon in 2008.
Meanwhile, Furman's third win of the 2025 season has already matched its win total from 2024, as well as having notched its second SoCon road win in its last three SoCon road games.
In addition to its seven sacks, Furman's defense also forced three Samford turnovers, with one of those contributing directly to a score on a 47-yard pick-six by linebacker Raleigh Herbert just before the half.
Furman also blocked a field, which effectively negated two Samford scoring opportunities inside the final 90 seconds of the opening half, which effectively took the wind out of Samford's proverbial sails for the rest of the afternoon, though the Bulldogs would try to make things interesting early in the fourth quarter, the game was never really in doubt.
A good crowd was on-hand for a warm, late-September Saturday at Pete Hanna Stadium, as 7,749 fans were on-hand as a part of the Family Day festivities.
Similar to how it looked for much of the first half in Furman's lone loss against Presbyterian earlier this month, the Paladin offense had a rhythm, and it was both creative play-calling, as well as a cohesive unit that allowed the Paladins to take a 21-7 lead into the halftime locker room.
In fact, the Paladins were able to dominate the opening quarter of play, out-gaining the Bulldogs 157-43 in the opening 15 minutes of football. Despite that huge advantage, Samford would end up out-gaining the Paladins in total offense 389-377 in total offense in the contest, as the Paladins were outgained 140-35 in the final quarter of play, allowing the Bulldogs to make up the yardage disparity. For the first time all season, the Paladins were able to enjoy an advantage in rushing yards, out-rushing the Bulldogs, 105-70, on the day.
One of the reasons the Paladins were able to see Samford stay alive longer in the contest was directly due to careless penalties by Furman, which contributed as a direct result for the game staying closer on the scoreboard than it should have. Furman was charged with eight total penalties on the afternoon, with only six accepted for 65 yards, including 30 yards one of Samford's two scoring drives in the game.
While Furman's offense was the story for much of the opening half, the second half belonged to the Furman defense, which stopped the Bulldogs cold on seven of their eight total drives in the second half.
The Paladins were led offensively by quarterback Trey Hedden, who continued to shine through the early portion of the season, as he finished the afternoon, completing 28-of-41 passes for 272 yards for a couple of touchdowns and no INTs.
His counterpart, Quincy Crittendon, finished the contest by connecting on 28-of-42 throws for 252 yards a pair of touchdowns. The Furman defense sacked Crittendon six times in the game. Brady Stober finished 4-of-5 passing for 67 yards and one INT.
Furman true freshman wideout Evan James, who led the game late in the third quarter with an upper body injury and did not return, finished the game with another stellar game on the offensive side of the ball, affecting the game in multiple ways in Saturday's win.
Samford won the toss and deferred to the second half, giving the Furman offense the first crack at scratching out the game's first points.
It would take the Paladins just a little less than three minutes into the game before the Paladins got the first touchdown of the game, as Evan James found the end zone on an end-around on a 17-yard scamper to give the Paladins the early 7-0 lead. The 17-yard scamper by the true freshman wideout was the longest rush of the season-to-date by the Paladins.
Furman would increase its advantage to 14-0 late in the opening quarter, as quarterback Trey Hedden found tight end Joshua Burrell for a short 7-yard scoring strike with 1:21 left in the opening quarter. The reception marked Burrell's first scoring reception as a Paladin, however, he would be shaken up on the scoring play. That would remain the score as time expired in the opening 15 minutes.
The Paladins dominated the opening quarter of football, outgaining the Bulldogs 157-43 in total offense.
With just over nine minutes remaining in the second quarter, Samford, which was aided by two 15-yard infractions against Furman--a facemask and a roughing the passer penalty somehow after the play had not been ruled dead due to encroachment--CJ Evans ended the 83-yard scoring drive by finishing off the final 27 yards, following a short reception from Crittendon, in the end zone to slice Furman's lead to 14-7 with 9:08 remaining in the first half.
The Paladins drove into Bulldogs territory on the ensuing possession, however, Ian Williams missed a 54-yard field goal wide right, bringing an end to a streak of 12-consecutive made field goals--a streak, which dated back to the 2024 season.
With about a minute left in the half, Raleigh Herbert batted a Quincy Crittendon pass up in the air at the Samford 47 and plucked it clean returning it for a score, changing the momentum of the game just before the break and giving the Paladins a 21-7 lead with 48 seconds remaining in the half.
The Paladins committed a costly holding penalty late in the half, setting up a Samford field goal attempt from 32 yards out from Jake Garner, however, Joshua Stoneking broke through to block the kick, negating any perceived momentum that might have been gained following Samford's quick advancement down the field.
Samford looked to strike quick on its opening drive of the second half, however, on 4th-and-2 at midfield, Furman's defense stopped Crittendon for no gain, giving the Furman offense outstanding field position.
The Paladin offense made the most of the shorter distance and needed only five plays to cover the 50 yards, increasing their advantage to 21 points when Hedden found Ja'Keith Hamilton on a 4-yard scoring strike with 10:37 remaining in the third quarter, increasing Furman's advantage to 28-7.
Ian Williams, who uncharacteristically missed a pair of field goals and his streak of 12-straight field goals come to an end, connected on Furman's final points of the afternoon, connecting on a 40-yard attempt to make it a 31-7 Furman lead with 1:15 left in the third quarter.
Samford attempted to make it interesting early in the fourth quarter when Crittendon found Preston Bird on a short pass, and he did the rest breaking free off a Furman tackler, before out-maneuvering another en route to scampering 70 yards for the score, bringing the crowd, which hadn't much to cheer about all afternoon, thanks to Furman's excellent defensive work, to its collective feet for one of the few times in the game.
The Bulldogs failed to convert a two-point conversion after the touchdown, as Herbert provided the big hit on Gibson to stop him stone-cold just short of the goal line after hauling in a short pass from Crittendon. That left the score, at 31-13, with 11:52 remaining. Furman's defensive would do enough to make that result hold.
Furman returns to action next Saturday, Oct. 4, when it welcomes East Tennessee State (2-3, 0-1 SoCon) to Paladin Stadium for a 2 p.m. EST contest. Samford will be on the road next Saturday, as it goes in search of its first win of the season against a suddenly hot Mercer (3-1, 3-0 SoCon) team at Five Star Stadium. Kickoff for that contest is slated for 4 p.m. EST.
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| Dickens does it again for Catamounts (photo courtesy of WCU athletics) |
Dickens Shines Again as Western Carolina Holds Off Furious Campbell Rally
Western Carolina stepped out of conference for the final time this past Saturday, holding off Campbell for a 42-35 win Saturday afternoon inside Barker-Lane Stadium before just over 4.000 fans in attendance.
With the win, the Catamounts improved to 2-3 overall, while Campbell fell to 1-4 this season, which includes a pair of setbacks against Southern Conference competition. Saturday's seven-point win over the Camels helped Western Carolina avenge what was a somewhat shocking 24-16 scoreline in last season's home opener at EJ Whitmire Stadium.
It could be the loss that most pointed to as the one that kept the 7-5 Catamounts out of the playoffs in 2024 as being a second representative from the SoCon in the FCS playoffs. It was also just the fourth meeting between the two programs in a series that got its start in 1939, and Saturday's win by WCU was also the Catamounts' first-ever win in the series against the Camels.
In just his second game back under center after serving a three-game suspension to open the season, Western Carolina redshirt sophomore quarterback Taron Dickens is making up for lost time. After throwing for the second-most yards in a single game SoCon history in last week's 50-35 win over Samford--a game which saw Dickens connect on 36-of-45 throws for 582 yards and six TDs--Dickens followed that performance connecting on 26-of-40 throws for 427 yards and four TDs without an INT in the seven-point road win over the Camels.
All told in his first two games of the season, the league's preseason Offensive Player of the Year has connected on 62-of-85 passes for 1,009 yards and 10 TDs without an INT! An incredible start for the redshirt sophomore in just two games in the 2025 season.
By comparison, Cole Gonzales, who was WCU's starting signal-caller last season and the SoCon's preseason Offensive Player of the Year in 2024, set the SoCon record by completing 35-of-55 passes for 620 yards and five TDs without an INT in a 52-20 win over Furman last season, and then followed that up by posting a 395 yards and two touchdowns on 25-of-47 passing in a 44-34 loss at Mercer before leaving the game with what turned out to be a season-ending injury last October.
In his final two games for the Catamounts before entering the transfer portal and eventually finding his way to the University of Pittsburgh, Gonzales posted similar numbers to that of Dickens in his first two starts in 2025. In his final two games in a Catamount uniform in road games at Furman and Mercer, Gonzales connected on 60-of-81 throw for 1,015 yards, eight touchdowns and no INTs. Dickens had touchdown passes covering 17, 32, 9 and 10 yards, respectively, in the game, which included a pair of scoring tosses to Catamount tight ends Brayden Blackmon and David Hulbert.
Other than Dickens throwing the ball, it was also a solid outing for others on the Catamount offense as well, including a comprehensive effort from the Catamount offense, which would see the Catamounts amass a total of 564 yards of total offense, including 488 through the air. Western Carolina would hold a 564-437 advantage in total offense.
For the second-straight week, Western Carolina and its opponent rolled up over 1,000 yards of total offense in a game, as the Catamounts and Camels went for a combined 1,001 yards of total offense, as well as nearly matching the 85 points that Western Carolina and Samford generated in last week's clash, as the two teams combined for 77 points.
Western Carolina had 11 different receivers catch a pass in the win, with James Tyre leading the way by hauling in six passes for 101 yards, while also throwing a 61-yard scoring pass in the game. Dartmouth transfer wide receiver Painter Richards-Baker finished the game with five catches for 99 yards and a score, while Michael Rossin added three catches for 88 yards and Malik Knight hauled in four passes for 76 yards.
Camury Reid led the Catamount rushing efforts in the win, as he finished the day with 43 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries, while Dickens added 35 yards on 10 carries to finish his afternoon with 437 yards of total offense.
Campbell was led by quarterback Kamden Sixkiller, who finished the game connecting on 18-of-45 passes for 205 yards, with one TD and one INT, while also rushing for 55 yards and a pair of scores on 10 attempts.
Sixkiller's favorite target in the passing game for the Trayjen Llanas-Wilcox, who finished the game with five catches for 124 yards.
When Taron Dickens found wideout David Huber for a 9-yard scoring pass with 3:45 remaining in the opening half of football, the Catamounts assumed what was a 28-3 lead at a similar point in the game in which it had jumped to a similar 35-7 lead in the season and home opener against Gardner-Webb, as the Catamounts raced out to a 28-point lead in that contest only to see the Bulldogs come all the way back and steal what was a 52-45 win in that game.
This game would eventually get that same eerie feeling for Catamount fans. The Camels would inch a little closer just before the half, as the Camels trimmed the WCU lead to 18 points when Sixkiller found the end zone on a 12-yard run with 17 seconds remaining, concluding what was a 12-play, 83-yard drive in the process. Alex Crabb's PAT would get the Camels to within 28-10 at the half.
The Catamounts threatened to put the game out of reach once again early in the second half when Patrick Boyd Jr. hauled in a 10-yard scoring pass out of the backfield for a 35-10 Catamount lead with 11:11 remaining in the third quarter.
However, three-straight scoring drives by the Camels would make things interesting, getting the Camels to within a touchdown with just under five minutes remaining in the game.
The first of those scores came win wildcat quarterback Mike Chandler II scored on a 10-yard run midway through the third quarter to get the Camels to within 35-18 after a successful two-point conversion. Alex Crabb then added a 21-yard field goal earl in the fourth quarter and then with just under five minutes left, Stevie Keener hauled in a 26-yard scoring pass from Sixkiller to draw the Camels to within 35-28 and putting even more pressure on the Catamounts.
However, it would take only 39 seconds for the Purple and Gold to restore at least a little comfort, restoring a two-score lead when Kerwin Bell decided to go to his back of trips, calling for a wide receiver pass on an end-around, finding a wide open Painter Richards-Baker behind the Camels secondary for a 61-yard touchdown to give the Catamounts a little breathing room, at 42-28, with 4:19 remaining.
The Camels wouldn't go quietly, however, as Sixkiller's 5-yard scoring run with 2:11 remaining got Campbell back to within a touchdown, at 42-35.
However, Western Carolina's Richards-Baker recovered the ensuing onsides kick and then essentially help produce the game-winning play for the Catamounts when he was able to haul in a 15-yard pass from Dickens on a 4th-and-1 play at the Campbell 38, as that reception allowed the Catamounts run off the remaining time on the clock and escape Buies Creek with its second win in succession with Dickens under center.
While it probably wasn't the way Kerwin Bell and the Catamounts would have drawn up for the first month of the season, it's where the Catamounts find themselves after the first month of the season, which sees the Catamounts with all of their preseason goals still intact, however, from here on out, there's little margin for error.
The Catamounts will now see only Southern Conference for the remainder of the season, heading out on the road for a SoCon test at Wofford to open the month of October. Kickoff is slated for 1:30 p.m. EST at Gibbs Stadium, which commences a crucial stretch of three games that sees the Catamounts play two out of their next three league games on the road.
Campbell, which is now 0-2 against SoCon teams in 2025, (dropped a 28-24 game vs. Furman a couple of weeks back) will play its second FBS game of the 2025 season next Saturday when the Camels head to Raleigh to take on North Carolina State at Carter-Finley Stadium. Kickoff for that contest is slated for 2 p.m. EST.
September to Forget!
It wasn't the type of start to the 2025 season the SoCon would have hoped to have, and the league finished just 6-14 in cross-conference games. The league is also 0-4 against teams currently ranked in the FCS Top 25 in non-conference foes, as the league suffered a pair of losses to current No. 23 Presbyterian and No. 16 West Georgia in the opening month of the season.
Nationally Speaking
Furman sophomore defensive end Joshua Stoneking, who picked up his second SoCon Defensive Player of the Week honor in three weeks, currently leads the nation in total sacks (6.5) and tackles-for-loss (10.5), while also ranking second in the league.
Stoneking, a native of Raleigh, N.C., headlined another strong defensive effort for the Paladins in their 31-13 win at Samford in their SoCon opener this past Saturday, as he posted six tackles, two tackles-for-loss and blocked a field goal in the Paladins' 18-point win. Stoneking's two sacks were a part of seven quarterback takedowns by the Paladins in the win over the Bulldogs.
Stoneking was named SoCon Defensive Player of the Week a couple of weeks back, as his sack against Campbell helped seal a 28-24 Paladin win with the Camels driving late in the game for a potential game-winning score. He finished his afternoon against the Camels with 4.5 tackles-for-loss, 2.5 sacks and forced a fumble.
In case you have missed it, running the football hasn't been a big success of most of the teams in the SoCon this season, outside of The Citadel and maybe Chattanooga. The league has struggled to generate strong ground attacks over the past few seasons; however, it has also seen the passing numbers throughout the league.
Samford's Quincy Crittendon currently ranks eighth nationally in passing yards, as we close out the opening month of the college football season. Though Samford has struggled and is off to its worst start since 1985 and have started SoCon play 0-3 for the first time ever, it's been no fault of Crittendon's, as he has connected on 132-of-193 pass attempts for 1,245 yards, with six touchdowns and five INTs.
ETSU quarterback Cade McNamara, who finished off the second-best passing performance in ETSU history in the loss to Mercer last week, passing for 398 yards and four scores in the 38-34, currently ranks 27th nationally in passing yardage after one month of football. Saturday's individual performance in a loss to the Bears was topped only by one other Bucs quarterback, as Austin Herink's 434-yard passing performance in a 56-35 loss at Furman in 2017 rank as a higher single-game passing total in program history.
McNamara is one of four SoCon signal-callers ranking inside the Top 30 nationally in passing yards at the end of the opening month of the season, as he has connected on 91-of-139 passes for 973 yards, with six TDs and six INTs so far this season.
Joining Crittendon and McNamara ranking in the top 30 nationally in passing yards nationally are both Furman's Trey Hedden (21st/1,028 yards) and VMI's Collin Shannon (25th/988 yds). Furman's Hedden also ranks sixth nationally in completion percentage (.717) and 26th in total offense (247.2 YPG).
In terms of impact freshmen, the league has several of the top offensive performers, including Mercer quarterback Braden Atkinson, who has made three starts and currently ranks 16th in total offense (264. 3 YPG) and is second nationally in completion percentage (.753). He has announced himself as an early Jerry Rice Award candidate (Awarded to the top freshmen player in FCS football) at the end of the opening month, as he has re-energized the Mercer offense in three starts.
Two freshmen receiving threats that have also put their respective names on the early Jerry Rice Award ballot are both Furman 's Evan James and VMI's Owen Sweeney. James currently ranks eighth nationally in receiving yards per game (94.8 YPG), while Sweeney is tied for 12th (91.8 YPG) in that same category.
Western Carolina's Taron Dickens would be on the list, however, apparently hasn't played enough games to qualify. He has thrown for a whopping 1,009 yards and 10 scores in his first two starts of the season.
Dickens served a three-game suspension due to eligibility issues before playing his first game last week against Samford. His 10 passing scores are ranked tie for seventh nationally. Dickens also ranks tied for 24th nationally in points responsible for in his first two starts of the season (62 pts/10 passing TDs/1 rushing TD)
A Catamount Concern
The italicized portion below is what I wrote as a part of the "SoCon 2025 Season Primer" back on Aug. 21, 2025, and unfortunately, it's a prophecy that is seemingly once again coming to fruition.
"The real question then, isn’t the offense at all. They have been a proven model of consistency under Bell. As much as four-straight seasons under Bell amassing new offensive records is great with more than 5,000 yards of total offense is to be praised, turning around and then surrendering more than 5,000 yards on defense (2021 and ’24) is something to be rebuked.So the real question as to whether the Catamounts can break through and win a first Southern Conference title this fall will be whether or not defensive coordinator Jerry Odom can push the right buttons to take a defensive unit that was better last season to being one that is elite this fall. After all, that’s been the primary issue holding the Catamount football program back through the years.
Since joining the SoCon in 1976, the Catamounts have only led the league in total defense twice (1998 and 2005), and it’s been two decades since the last time the Catamounts were a statistical champion there. The Catamounts have only led the SoCon in scoring defense once at the end of a season (1984) and haven’t led the SoCon in rushing defense at a season’s end since 2003, while the last time the Purple and Gold topped the league defending the pass was 2008. There is good news and a glimmer of hope moving forward, however, as WCU topped the league in red zone defense for the first time ever in 2024." (SoCon Football 2025 Preseason Primer/August 21, 2025)
2025 SoCon Football Primer
It's crazy how much this is actually becoming a concern again. All the Catamounts have had to do for literally the past three seasons is field an adequate defense and the demons of not having made the postseason since 1983 would have been exorcised at the very minimum, and the Catamounts would have also likely had at least a share of their first SoCon title since joining the league in 1976, however, they don't and here we are once again.
Through the first month of the season, the Catamounts rank 126th out of 126 teams in FCS football in total defense (527.2 YPG) and 111th out of 126 teams in FCS in scoring defense (40.2 PPG).
Perhaps making Catamounts even more angry, and with good reason, is the fact that the Purple and Gold are an elite offensive team, as once again they are on pace to have a record-setting season in terms of points scored and yards gained. WCU currently ranks seventh nationally in total offense (482.8 YPG), second in passing offense (350.6 YPG) and 15th in scoring offense (35.6 PPG) through the first five games of the season, however, the Catamounts are 2-3.
It is true that not having Taron Dickens affected the offense and maybe even more than we could have imagine because he doesn't play defense. What's alarming is that his absence was probably more noted because he wasn't present to outscore his own defense's inability to stop the opposition.
Power Rankings:
1. Mercer 3-1, 3-0 SoCon
2. Furman 3-1, 1-0 SoCon
3. Western Carolina 2-3, 1-0 SoCon
4. East Tennessee State 2-3, 0-1 SoCon
5. The Citadel 2-3, 2-1 SoCon
6. Wofford 0-4, 0-1 SoCon
7. Chattanooga 1-4, 0-1 SoCon
8. VMI 1-3, 0-0 SoCon
9. Samford 0-5, 0-3 SoCon
Schedule for Oct. 4, 2025
*Chattanooga (1-4, 0-1 SoCon) at VMI (1-3, 0-0 SoCon), 1:30 p.m. EST
*Western Carolina (2-3, 1-0 SoCon) at Wofford (0-4, 0-1 SoCon), 1:30 p.m. EST
*East Tennessee State (2-3, 0-1 SoCon) at Furman (3-1, 1-0 SoCon), 2 p.m. EST
*Samford (0-5, 0-3 SoCon) at RV/No. 22 Mercer (3-1, 3-0 SoCon), 4 p.m. EST
(STATS Perform/AFCA Coaches Poll)
*-denotes Southern Conference game
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