Willamette outlast Sewanee, 28-24
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Willamette (4-0) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| Sewanee (2-3) | 7 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 24 |
| Sewanee, Tenn. | Harris Stadium | |||||
| Willamette | Sewanee |
|---|---|
|
Pa:
Dean, Josh - 356
Ru: Jones, Dylan - 69 Rec: Turner, Jake - 87 |
Pa:
Curtis Johnson - 19
Ru: Sergio Acosta - 69 Rec: Stephen Jackson - 19 |
| TEAM STATISTICS | Willamette | Sewanee |
|---|---|---|
| Passing Yards | 356 | 33 |
| Rushing Yards | 58 | 297 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 1 |
| Time of Poss. | 22:22 | 37:38 |
SEWANEE, Tenn. (Sept. 29, 2012) – A late touchdown lifted Willamette to a 28-24 victory over the Sewanee football team, Saturday, at Harris Stadium.
With the loss, the Tigers dropped to 2-3 while the Bearcats improved to 4-0.
The game opened with a strong defense stand by Sewanee. After Willamette marched down to the Sewanee one-yard line, the Tigers stopped the Bearcats on three consecutive plays. After a failed rushing attempt and an incomplete pass by quarterback Josh Dean, Dean was then sacked by senior linebacker J.P. Boudreaux for a nine-yard loss.
On the ensuing 18-yard field goal attempt, Willamette placekicker Kyle Derby missed his attempt wide left.
Two drives later Sewanee would score first, when junior Curtis Johnson rushed through the Willamette defense for a 22-yard touchdown run.
After Dean tied the score with a 14-yard pass to Jake Knecht, freshman quarterback Cody Daniel put the Tigers back in front with a one-yard touchdown run with 10:25 left until halftime.
Willamette continued to throw the ball two possessions later, when Dean found Knecht again, this time on a 38-yard touchdown pass with 1:22 left.
With the score tied 14-14, Sewanee stayed aggressive. The Tigers marched 37 yards in 1:05, which set up a 46-yard field goal from senior Garrett Schlosser. In fact, Schlosser's kick was the second longest field goal in program history.
Early in the second half, Sewanee's offense continued to play well. Led by Daniel, the Tigers capped off their opening possession with a 17-play 78-yard touchdown drive that took 8:24 off the clock.
Unfortunately, that was when the tide started to turn in favor of Willamette. On a fourth and one play Willamette scored from 59-yards out, when Dean tossed an easy pass over the Tiger defense to Benny Weischadel.
Later in the half, Dean threw his fourth touchdown with 6:03 left.
Overall, the battle of two different offensive styles were on display. Willamette, who led the nation in passing coming into Saturday, finished with 356 yards through the air. Meanwhile, Sewanee, who ranked fifth nationally in rushing, finished with 297 yards on the ground.
Individually, Dean wrapped up a strong performance with 356 yards passing and four touchdowns. For Sewanee, senior fullback Sergio Acosta led a balanced rushing attack with 69 yards on 14 carries.
Defensively, senior safety J.D. Crabtree had a game-high 10 tackles while fellow defensive back De'Nard Ford had eight stops, one pass break-up, and one interception.
Sewanee will look to even its record to 3-3 when long-time conference rival Centre travels to The Mountain next Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m., at Harris Stadium.
For more information on Sewanee Athletics, please visit www.SewaneeTigers.com. You can also check the Tigers out on Twitter (Sewaneeathletic) and Facebook (SewaneeAthletics).
