Oct. 4, 2008

JEFFERSON CITY - Saturday was a day for offensive fireworks at Burke-Tarr Stadium as No. 23 Carson-Newman and Mars Hill combined for 1076 total yards.

The Eagles had six touchdown plays that were 43 yards or longer as they held off Mars Hill in the second half for a 61-49 victory in South Atlantic Conference action.

Quarterback Alex Good (Greensboro, N.C.) and the Carson-Newman offense, which struggled to take advantage of scoring opportunities in a 27-21 loss to Newberry the week before, totaled 529 yards. Good was 6-of-8 through the air for 238 yards and four touchdowns. Back-up Joel Statham (Chatsworth, Ga.) was 2-of-5 for 59 yards.

Reggie Hubbard (McCalla, Ala.) had two catches for 107 yards, while fellow receiver Otis Miller (Miami, Fla.) hauled in two for 63 yards. All four of those completions went for scores. Buck Wakefield (Drummonds, Tenn.) led the Carson-Newman ground game with 154 yards and three touchdowns on just nine carries.

The Mars Hill offense was equally impressive, piling up 547 yards. The Lions did so on 81 plays from scrimmage, while Carson-Newman ran just 49 offensive plays.

Mars Hill quarterback Ricky Spradling was 15-of-31 through the air for 247 yards and four touchdowns. He also ran for a score. John Brown and Tyrea Allen each had four catches, for 104 and 83 yards, respectively. Brown and Elroy Harris recorded two touchdown receptions apiece.

George Washington contributed 138 rushing yards and one touchdown for the Lions. Allen added 83 yards on four rushes.

Carson-Newman jumped out to a 14-0 advantage in the first quarter. Good got the Eagles on the board first with a 20-yard scoring strike to Miller. Wakefield then added a 14-yard touchdown run at the 4:13 mark.

After a three-yard run by Spradling cut the deficit to 14-7, Carson-Newman scored on its next three possessions.

Good started the outburst as he once again found Miller, the time from 43-yards out as Miller went up over two Mars Hill defenders to make the grab.  Good then shared the wealth to Hubbard on a 59-yard pass. Dewayne Mims (Detroit, Mich.) capped the first-half scoring for the Eagles when he took a screen pass from Statham and darted 45 yards to paydirt.

Mars Hill managed to cut the halftime margin to 35-21 thanks to a pair of late touchdowns. Spradling hit Brown on a 49-yard touchdown completion with 58 seconds left in the half.  After a Carson-Newman fumble on the ensuing kickoff, Elroy Harris scored from two-yards out.

The scoring went back-and-forth in the second half, though Carson-Newman scored two quick touchdowns out of the locker room to maintain a comfortable cushion.  Hubbard accounted for both the scores - the first coming on a 48-yard pass from Good, and the second on a 70-yard punt return.

Harris and Wakefield exchanged touchdown runs to end the first quarter - Harris' was for one-yard and Wakefield's covered 61 yards, make the score 55-28.

Mars Hill outscored the Eagles 21-6 in the final quarter to make the final score respectable. Spradling hooked up with Brown and Harris for touchdowns, while Washington ran one in from 46-yards out.

Wakefield capped Carson-Newman's scoring with a 17-yard run at the 9:12 mark.

The Eagles will be back in action next Saturday (October 11) with a road trip to rival Catawba. Mars Hill will be at home to host Newberry.