Sixteen-ranked Charleston Southern nips No. 3 Coastal Carolina
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Christian Reyes ran for two touchdowns and more than 100 yards Saturday as Charleston Southern held off Coastal Carolina for a 31-26 victory in front of a record crowd at Buccaneer Field.
Reyes ran for 22 carries and 109 yards, pushing the Buccaneers into their fourth 300-yard rushing game of the season. Charleston Southern's victory set a program record for wins and puts the Buccaneers in a position to win their first outright conference championship.
The Chanticleers (9-1, 3-1 Big South Conference) trailed 24-6 at the half, but De'Angelo Henderson ran 42 yards for a TD to pull Coastal Carolina within two TDs. A TD pass from Alex Ross to Thomas Pauciello made it a five-point game.
Charleston Southern (10-1, 3-0) held possession for 40:34 with 62 percent third down efficiency, while the Chanticleers finished with a 19:26 time of possession and 33 percent efficiency.
No. 1 North Dakota State beats Illinois State 28-10
FARGO, N.D. -- Brock Jensen threw three touchdown passes Saturday as North Dakota State maintained an undefeated record with a 28-10 victory against Illinois State.
Jensen pushed the Bison to an early lead with two touchdown passes of 27 yards to Zach Vraa and three yards to Kevin Vaadeland, as he completed 198 yards passing. The final TD pass for NDSU (9-0, 6-0 Missouri Valley Conference) also went to Vraa, who ended the night with 109 yards receiving.
Marshaun Coprich capped a 10-play, 61 yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown for the Redbirds (5-5, 4-3) in the second quarter to briefly cut the deficit to seven. The Bison defense held Illinois State's Blake Winkler to 72 yards passing.
John Crockett ran for a game-high 104 yards on 20 carries, scoring the final touchdown for NDSU with 1:03 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Bison are on an 18-game winning streak.
No. 2 Eastern Illinois handles Murray State 37-17
MURRAY, Ky. -- Erik Lora passed Jerry Rice on the career receptions list and finished the game third all-time on the FCS list with 305 as Eastern Illinois cruised past Murray State 37-17.
Lora had 10 catches for 94 yards and his touchdown reception in the second quarter gave him the career OVC record with 33.
The Panthers (9-1, 6-0 Ohio Valley) mostly passed the ball to build a commanding lead. They then turned to Shepard Little who finished with 173 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Little's 61-yard run with 6:50 left in the fourth-quarter ended a 17-point run by Murray State (5-5, 3-3).
Jimmy Garoppolo finished with 299 yards passing, his first game of the season throwing for less than 300.
Eastern Illinois remains in the driver's seat for the OVC title.
Parks Frazier finished with 255 yards passing and two touchdowns to lead Murray State.
No. 4 Eastern Washington beats Montana State
CHENEY, Wash. -- Vernon Adams threw four touchdown passes and ran for another score as Eastern Washington defeated Montana State 54-29 on Saturday to take a major step toward the Big Sky Conference championship.
The Eagles (8-2, 6-0) notched the program's 500th victory in defeating the Bobcats (7-3, 5-1) in a clash of top-five FCS teams.
Adams now has 38 touchdown passes to break the school record and ranks second in Big Sky history. He was an efficient 16 of 18, including a scoring throws of 76, 68 and 17 yards to Shaquille Hill. Hill finished with a career-high 172 receiving yards.
Quincy Forte's 25-yard scoring run with 1:28 left in the first half gave EWU the lead for good at 26-21. Forte rushed for a career-high 125 yards and two scores.
MSU closed to 40-29 early in the fourth quarter on DeNarius McGhee's 2-yard run. Adams responded with his 76-yard TD throw.
No. 6 Fordham edges Bucknell 23-21
NEW YORK CITY -- The defense blocked a field goal late in the game and Carlton Koonce ran for 84 yards and caught a TD pass to give Fordham a 23-21 win against Bucknell on Saturday.
Koonce caught a 22-yard pass from Michael Nebrich to give Fordham an early lead, but Buckell came back on a 2-yard run by Brandon Wesley. Michael Marando added a field goal and the Rams (11-0, 1-0 Patriot League) led 10-7 at the half.
Fordham extended their lead to 17-7 on a 63-yard pass from Peter Maetzold to Sam Ajala, but Bucknell's Josh Brake replied with a 63-yard strike to CJ Williams, then caught a 5-yarder from Brandon Wesley to give the Bison a 21-17 edge.
Marando added two field goals in the fourth. Bucknell had a chance to win on its final drive, but Derek Maurer's 37-yard field goal attempt was blocked with 55 seconds to play.
No. 7 Sam Houston State defeats Nicholls State
HUNTSVILLE, Texas -- Keshawn Hill and Brian Bell accounted for four touchdowns as Sam Houston State ran past Nicholls State 49-24 Saturday.
Hill had TD runs of 16 and 1 as the Bearkats (8-2, 4-1 Southland Conference) scored seven unanswered touchdowns. Bell, the Bearkats' quarterback, added a 45-yard touchdown run, and also threw a 56-yard TD pass to Torrance Williams.
Richard Sincere had a 32-yard touchdown run, and a 48-yard interception return for a touchdown by Michael Wade rounded out the scoring for the Bearkats.
The Bearkats have scored 44 points of more in seven of their eight wins.
Nicholls State (4-6, 1-4) scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Michael Henry rushed for a 2-yard score. Beaux Hebert then added TD passes of 46 and 7 yards. The Colonels have a four-game losing streak, and have given up 49 points or more in their six losses this season.
Late FG lifts N. Iowa past No. 8 Youngstown State
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- Tyler Sievertsen kicked a 34-yard field goal as time expired to lift Northern Iowa past No. 8 Youngstown State and cap a 16-point fourth-quarter comeback, 22-20.
The Panthers (5-5, 1-5 Missouri Valley) trailed 14-3 at intermission and 14-6 after three quarters, but Brion Carnes brought the team back with a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown passes to Chad Owens three minutes apart that put UNI ahead 19-14 with under 10 minutes left to play.
Kurt Hess engineered a 13-play, 78-yard drive that put the Penguins (8-1, 5-1 Missouri Valley) back in the lead, 20-19, with 4:41 left, but a two-point conversion attempt fell incomplete.
Carnes matched Hess, spearheading a 56-yard, 15-play drive that reached the Youngstown State 17.
Carnes was 18-for-30 for 219 yards to go with his two touchdowns.
Hess was 15 of 22 for 207 yards and a touchdown, and carried seven times for 20 yards and two touchdowns.
No. 9 Maine edges Albany 33-27
ALBANY, N.Y. -- Marcus Wasilewski threw for 231 yards and three touchdowns to guide Maine to a 33-27 win against Albany on Saturday.
It gave the Black Bears (9-1, 6-0 Colonial Athletic Association) its best start in program history and extends its win streak to six. John Ebeling hauled in two TD catches, including a short 4-yard toss from Wasilewski in the fourth quarter that gave Maine the lead that would hold for the win.
Nigel Jones rushed for just 42 yards on 12 carries, but two were for touchdowns. Derrick Johnson caught four passes for 54 yards, including a 23-yard TD.
Albany (1-9, 0-6) tied the game at the half with a 44-yard touchdown pass from Will Fiacchi to Kevin Chillis, then closed the gap on Maine early in the fourth quarter on a 4-yard rushing TD by Omar Osbourne but couldn't reach the end zone again.
Norfolk State narrowly beats No. 10 Bethune-Cookman
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Lynden Trail scored a touchdown and forced a fumble as Norfolk State fought off a fourth quarter run by Bethune-Cookman and held on to a 27-24 victory on Saturday.
Trail caught a 2-yard pass from Tyler Clark with 11 minutes left to play in the second quarter for the Spartans (3-7, 3-3 Mid-Eastern Conference), giving them a 17-7 lead.
Bethune-Cookman (8-2, 5-1) began to move down the field. On the third play Trail forced a fumble and Natturner Harris returned it 31 yards for a Norfolk State touchdown.
The Wildcats trailed 27-7 at the start of the fourth quarter, but Nick Addison returned a Norfolk State fumble for a touchdown and sparked a 17-point scoring spree. Isidore Jackson's 11-yard TD run and a two-point conversion brought Bethune-Cookman within three.
The loss knocked the Wildcats out of sole possession of first place in the MEAC.
