Saturday, November 7
San Diego, Calif.
1:00 p.m. (PST)
Davidson College
34
at
27
San Diego
Photo by: Tim Cowie - DavidsonPhotos.com
Wildcats Down San Diego 34-27
11/7/2009 7:35:52 PM | Football
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Michael Blanchard gained 180 yards of total offense, and the Davidson defense forced four straight incompletions from its own 31-yard line inside the last minute as the Wildcats hung on for a 34-27 Pioneer Football League victory at San Diego Saturday afternoon.
Blanchard rushed for a career-high 102 yards for the Wildcats (3-6, 3-4 PFL) and completed five passes for 78 yards and a touchdown. Justin Williams rushed 15 times for 72 yards and a score, and Kenny Mantuo rushed for 58 yards and a touchdown.
Bo Stompro completed 10 passes for 217 yards and a TD for San Diego (3-6, 2-5 PFL), and J.T. Rogan ran for 46 yards and a pair of scores. Kyle Warren had three receptions for 92 yards and a TD.
The Wildcats rolled up a season-high 282 yards on the ground, while holding the Toreros to 115. Daniel Astrop led the defensive effort with eight stops, while John Behm and Tyler Lemons each had seven hits.
“San Diego is a big, athletic football team, and I thought we did a great job at the line of scrimmage on both sides of ball,” said Davidson coach Tripp Merritt. “This is a team that dominated the Pioneer Football League for four or five years, so for our team to come out here and get a win is special for our players.”
Trailing 34-27, San Diego got the ball back with 1:40 left in the game and Stompro found John McGough for a 34-yard pass to move the ball to the Davidson 46. A pass interference call against Davidson on the next play moved the ball to the 31, but the Toreros would get no closer. Davidson forced four straight incompletions as San Diego turned the ball over on downs. The Wildcats ran out the clock for the victory.
Leading 27-20 midway through the fourth quarter, the Wildcats got two fortunate bounces on one play. Facing 3rd-and-4 from the San Diego 35-yard line, Davidson set up the screen pass for Mantuo. Blanchard's pass was tipped up but Mantuo stayed with it, catching the pass and breaking six tackles to go 33 yards to the 5-yard line.
Just as he was getting ready to hit the end zone, Torero defensive back Derek Pilkington punched the ball out from behind. The ball went into the end zone, where Joe Tabler, Davidson's 325-pound offensive guard, fell on it for a Wildcat touchdown and a 34-20 cushion.
“I scored a touchdown in practice in high school but that's about it,” said Tabler, who did his postgame radio interview with the game ball in hand.
After the teams traded punts and San Diego used all their timeouts, Stompro used the hurry-up offense and a 39-yard pass to Kyle Warren to set up a Rogan 1-yard TD run, trimming the margin to 34-27 with four minutes to go.
The Toreros went for the onside kick to get the ball back, but wide receiver Andrew Aldrich gobbled it up, giving Davidson the ball at the San Diego 41-yard line. The 'Cats ran three consecutive running plays, getting the clock down to 1:47 before Wohler's punt trickled into the end zone, giving the Toreros the ball at their own 20.
After the teams traded punts to start the game, the Wildcat defense got Davidson on the scoreboard first when Peter Kidwell picked off a Stompro pass and returned it 30 yards for a touchdown.
San Diego came right back on its next possession and tied the game on a 5-yard run by Rogan. Matt Jelmini set up the score with a 36-yard gain on second down.
After forcing a punt, the Toreros took a 10-7 lead on their next offensive possession. A 45-yard pass from Stompro to Eric Fiege set up a 34-yard field goal by Matt Levine with four minutes left in the first quarter.
Davidson used a little trickery to retake the lead on its ensuing possession. Facing 4th-and-2 from his own 48-yard line, punter Andrew Wohler ran right and took off for a 35-yard gain. Mantuo capped the drive with a 12-yard touchdown run, giving the 'Cats a 14-10 lead.
The Toreros answered right back with a 42-yard touchdown pass from Stompro to Warren early in the second quarter as San Diego regained the cushion 17-14.
Blanchard broke free for a 16-yard run on third down and ran for another 21 yards on the next play to set up 1st-and-goal. The 'Cats couldn't punch it in from there and had to settle for a 25-yard field goal from Ben Behrendt, tying the score 17-17 with 7:49 left in the half.
After the Davidson defense got a three-and-out, Williams capped a clock-milking, 10-play, 80-yard drive with a 3-yard run to put the Wildcats back on top 24-17 with 1:12 remaining in the half. Blanchard was responsible for a bulk of the yardage on the drive, ripping off a 35-yard run and completing a 16-yard pass to Aldrich and a 9-yard pass to Mark Hanabury. Williams added 22 yards on the ground.
After the teams traded punts to start the second half, Blanchard led the Wildcats on a 90-yard scoring drive, capped by a Behrendt 19-yard field goal that made the score 27-17 midway through the third quarter. Blanchard had a 32-yard run during the drive, and Williams added 36 yards on the ground. A Stompro 18-yard pass to McGough set up a 35-yard field goal by Levine, making the score 27-20 early in the fourth.
The Wildcats close the 2009 season with a home contest next Saturday on Senior Day at Richardson Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
Game Notes: Davidson now has more wins in the 2000-09 decade than any other in school history… It was the 1,000th football game in Davidson history and the 50th game head coach Tripp Merritt has coached at Davidson… Heavner made his first career start at quarterback… Kidwell's interception return for touchdown was the first for the 'Cats since Matt Easton ran one back for 25 yards at Wingate in 2007… Davidson scored 20 points in the first half all season before today… Blanchard's 35-yard run the second quarter was the longest of his career… Wohler's fake punt and run for a first down was his second this season.
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