Sunday, September 25, 2011

Charleston Southern Falls 33-3 to NSU Spartans in Home Opener

NSU Spartans
(Photo Credit: Mark Sutton Digital Photograpy)
CHARLESTON, S.C. – After three weeks on the road, the CSU football team had a tough homecoming as they fell to the Norfolk State Spartans 33-3 on Saturday in the home opener at Buccaneer Field in Charleston, S.C.

The Buccaneers finished the day with 141 yards of total offense to NSU’s 519. They were also outgained on the ground 234-55 by the Spartans, and picked up 86 yards of through the air to NSU’s 285 passing yards. The Bucs were able to pick up 11 first downs on the afternoon, while NSU came away with 24. Both teams were 100 percent on fourth down conversions, while each converted on five third downs as well.

Quarterback Malcolm Dixon led the Bucs, going 7-of-19 with one interception for a total of 86 passing yards – season high for the sophomore. Teddy Allen led the run with 17 carries for a total of 29 yards, but it was BJ Hackworth who had the longest run of the day at 10 yards. He ended up with 15 yards on eight carries, while Dixon carried the ball 17 times himself. Kirby Broome led the receivers with 28 yards on two catches, while Nathan Perera and Kevin Glears had 19 and 13 receiving yards, respectively.

Once again, Andy Brown was one of the highlights of the day as he punted eight times for 339 yards, averaging a solid 42.4 yards per punt with two inside the 20 and one touchback. He was 1-for-2 on field goals. Chris Kuzdale’s career-high 16 tackles led the CSU defense, while Daniel Dieudonne and Matt Hardy each had solid efforts with 12 and 11 stops, respectively. Isaac Lowrance recorded the Bucs’ lone sack of the day for a loss of five yards, and totaled two tackles for loss. Zac Johnston, who ended the day with eight tackles, also recorded to stops for a loss of six yards.

NSU’s Chris Walley was 20-of-23 for 285 yards and two touchdowns. Xavier Boyce was the most targeted receiver with nine catches for 101 yards and a touchdown, while Victor Hairston’s 122 receiving yards led all players. Takeem Hedgeman added another 105 yards on the ground for the Spartans, while Nico Flores picked up 48 yards on 13 carries.

Box Score

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Spartans Improve to 3-1 with 33-3 Rout of Charleston Southern

CHARLESTON, S.C. – Chris Walley completed 20 of 23 passes for 285 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and the Spartans outgained host Charleston Southern 519-141 en route to a 33-3 non-conference win on Saturday afternoon at Buccaneer Field.

The win helped the Spartans improve to 3-1 overall, their best start since 2007. They did it in dominating fashion, rolling up a season-high 519 yards in total offense while their defense allowed a season-low 141 in their third straight win over a Big South opponent.

Running back Takeem Hedgeman ran for a career-high 105 yards on 15 carries, and receivers Victor Hairston and Xavier Boyce both topped the 100-yard receiving mark and caught a touchdown pass for NSU.

The defense got 12 tackles from linebacker Corwin Hammond and a season-high four sacks from four different players. Marcus Center accounted for the only turnover of the game with a fourth-quarter interception, the first of his career.

The Spartans jumped on the Buccaneers (0-4) early, outscoring them 17-0 in the first quarter. NSU took the opening kickoff and drove 85 yards in 12 plays, with Walley finding Boyce on a 13-yard TD pass for a 7-0 lead. After a three-and-out by CSU, the Spartans needed just one play to score their next TD. Walley hit Hairston across the middle. Hairston broke one tackle, made another man miss and sprinted 67 yards for his team-leading third touchdown of the season, giving NSU a 14-0 lead.

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