This was quite a great day. Before the game, I was privileged to be asked to help with and be a part of the Ferrum Alumni tailgate, and it was quite a nice affair. A very solid number of Ferrum alums and fans in general stopped by and were treated to food, drinks, cornhole, and some really nice Ferrum swag. Bart Smith, Director of Development for Ferrum College put together a great event, and it turned out to be a pre cursor for things to come that day.
As the tailgating was starting to wind down, The Ferrum faithful started making their way to the visitors bleachers at Towne Bank Stadium. It was a nice crowd, and a beautiful evening as the 6:00 p.m. kickoff neared.
CNU elected to receive the kick, and the first quarter belonged to the Captains. On their first series, they drove to the Ferrum one yard line before being stopped by the Ferrum defense. On their next possession, the Captains scored on a six play 40 yard drive to lead 7-0. This could have easily been a 14-0 lead. Their final drive of the first quarter was a 9 play 55 yard drive that resulted in a missed field goal. By the end of the quarter, CNU had run 27 plays for a total of 169 yards, but only had one touchdown to show for it. Conversely, Ferrum ran just 8 plays for 21 yards in the first quarter, and no points.
The second quarter started much better for Ferrum as their first drive resulted in a 7 play 80 yard drive ending with a Titus Jones pass to Tmahdae Penn for a 38 yard touchdown. After the teams traded field goals, the half ended 10-10.
Ferrum received the kickoff in the second half, but had to punt after a 5 play 11yard drive. The defense for Ferrum would prove just as tough as CNU was forced to punt after their next possession after a three and out. After the CNU punt, Ferrum put together a 9 play 72 yard drive culminating in a 33 yard touchdown run by Titus Jones. Ferrum led for the first time, 17-10. It was a lead they would never give up.
CNU would answer that drive with a 14 play 79 yard drive resulting in a made field goal, making the score 17-13 Ferrum. The Panthers next possession resulted in a 3 and out and it looked like the momentum was about to shift back to CNU as the fourth quarter began. It was then that the defense stepped up in a big way for Ferrum as they forced CNU into a 3 and out for the second time in the game. After CNU punted, Ferrum again took the ball and put together a scoring drive of 5 plays for 81 yards, ending with a 5 yard touchdown pass from Jones to Tmahdae Penn to extend their lead to 23-13. (The extra point was missed) The Captains would try to mount a comeback on the next drive, but again, the Ferrum defense held and they were forced to punt. Ferrum was also stopped and forced to punt on that next possession, and that left CNU behind by 10 with time definitely becoming a factor. With 6:36 left in the game, CNU ran a 4 play drive, gaining only 8 yards, and was forced to turn the ball over on downs, It was that series that I think took the wind out of the Captains sails.....pun intended!
Ferrum added one last field goal and the Captains added another touchdown, but this night would belong to Ferrum. Final Score:
Ferrum 26
CNU 19
While this was a huge win for Ferrum there were elements of their game that did concern me.
Penalties- Ferrum had 10 penalties for 112 yards. This will not be helpful in the least going forward, and some of the penalties were inexcusable. (Guys you cannot rip the helmet off of your opponents head and throw it to the sidelines and not expect to get a penalty called) That was ridiculous, and I would anticipate a pretty strict response from Coach Adams.
Kickoff Return Yards- These numbers are way too high. Ferrum is giving up an average of 153 kickoff return yards to their opponent. This must be fixed.
Titus Jones had a great game. Threw for 2 touchdowns, and ran for 1, and he was also the leading ground gainer for Ferrum. Tmahdae Penn had 5 receptions for 81 yards and two touchdowns.
Lastly I want to ask.....Where did Zac Smiley come from? No. 12 for the Panthers had resided in obscurity in my mind, but he definitely caught my attention last night. The Freshman from Riverheads High School just went about his business, being used situationally and proceeded to run for 70 yards on 13 carries. He has potential to be a main cog in the Panthers offense. I will be watching him for sure.
So Ferrum ended the CNU win streak last night, and moved to 2-0 with the Newport News Apprentice School being next on the schedule. That game, next Saturday at Ferrum, will bring a little better Apprentice School team to Ferrum than one might expect. The Builders went on the road to Brevard N.C. and came away with an overtime win over the Tornados. Brevard was picked to finish 2nd in the USA South. So do not look ahead to RM-C....the game to think about is against NNAS. Stay Focused!
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