By Jim Johnson
SouthernPigskin.com

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Wofford put together a solid second half on its way to topping North Greenville on Saturday.

VMI 52, Davidson 24

VMI won a high scoring game against Davidson on Saturday night. Freshman quarterback Al Cobb led the Keydets with 338 yards and a touchdown, while earning himself SoCon Offensive Player of the Week honors. Cobb’s favorite target, Aaron Sanders, had 10 catches for an astounding 215 yards, including an explosive 60-yard grab. The VMI secondary continued to struggle this week, allowing 317 yards in the air. The offense looked good, but there are still issues to shore up defensively as they approach their conference opener at Samford.

Western Carolina 35, Catawba 17

Catawba made it interesting for awhile, but it could only manage to hang in there for so long at Western Carolina. The Catamounts wore the Indians down with their balanced attack, led by dual-threat quarterback Troy Mitchell. Mitchell wasn’t as efficient as he was last week, but he continued to put up numbers, throwing for 223 yards and two touchdowns, as well as adding another 17 yards on the ground and a rushing touchdown. Daniel Riddle led the Western Carolina defense with a team-high 18 tackles and a sack. The Catamounts head to Furman next week for their first conference matchup.

Chattanooga 42, Austin Peay 6

Chattanooga traveled to Austin Peay this week and delivered a decisive 42-6 victory over the Governors. Most of the Mocs’ success came through the air, behind a strong performance by their field general Jacob Huesman (224 yards, two touchdowns). The Mocs scored three touchdowns in the running game, but take that with a grain of salt as they ran the ball 42 times for only 119 yards. Chattanooga’s front seven played very well, allowing a remarkable 42 yards on 36 attempts. Chattanooga has a bye next week before Samford comes to town in week five.

Mercer 49, Stetson 0

Mercer moved to 2-1 this week, following a great showing against Stetson. The Bears shut the Hatters out 49-0. Star freshman Alex Lakes ran for 151 yards and three touchdowns on only 13 carries. Lee Bennett led the Bears with seven tackles and grabbed his first career interception. Mercer’s passing game benefitted from the strong performance on the ground. The extra time in the pocket allowed John Russ to throw for a solid 199 yards and a touchdown on 21 attempts. Mercer will look to carry this momentum into its game against Ave Maria next week.

Furman 7, Presbyterian 10

Furman was upset 10-7 this week as the Paladins traveled to Bailey Memorial Stadium. It was a hard fought battle that the Paladins led most of the way, but they failed to hold on in the fourth quarter. Presbyterian was aided by a few costly turnovers, but nonetheless had a great defensive showing against a usually potent Paladin offense. Furman was limited to only 114 passing yards and 100 yards rushing. Bruce Fowler’s squad will look to bounce back next week on the road against South Carolina State.

Wofford 42, North Greenville 27

The final score does not do justice as far as how close this game was for the majority of the time. North Greenville took a 17-14 lead into the half, but third quarter weather delays neutralized any sort of momentum the Crusaders may have had. The Terriers were an entirely different team when play resumed, scoring 28 points in the second half. Evan Jacks was pretty efficient under center, throwing for 115 yards and a touchdown on just six completions. The majority of the offense came on the ground, particularly by Lorenzo Long, who ran for 138 yards and three touchdowns. Wofford will want to play like it did in the second half of this week’s game as the Terriers move on to Gardner-Webb next week.