After the first four drives of the game, West Chester fans had to be feeling pretty good. And why not? The Golden Ram offense went on a six minute, 55-yard drive to open the scoring. The offense was evenly divided: 30 yards on the ground including 22 by Brandon Monk, and 25 through the air including a critical four-yard Sean McCartney to Eddie Elliott completion on fourth down to extend the drive. The possession was capped off by a McCartney two-yard naked bootleg to the end zone. West Chester’s second drive was the complete opposite. Erick Brundidge took a little swing pass and used a Mike Doty block to dash down the left sideline for a 74-yard touchdown reception.
Meanwhile, the West Chester defense was doing its part, forcing a three-and-out on Mercyhurst’s first possession and then a Drew Formica pick six from 39 yards out on their second possession. After four exchanges, the Golden Rams had 21 points and the Lakers had only 11 yards.
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But then Mercyhurst started to move the ball a little with their passing game and the Golden Rams had three straight three-and-outs. And just when the West Chester offense gained a first down midway through the second quarter, Elliot fumbled which resulted in a Mercyhurst scoop and score. Suddenly it was 21-7 and the Golden Ram offense had been absent for a while.
Perhaps the Mercyhurst score was a wakeup call. After a McCartney to Doty 18-yard completion and a roughing the passer penalty, Tim Brown hauled in a 16-yard touchdown pass to reignite the offense. Mercyhurst failed to convert a fourth down at midfield with under a minute left in the half. Although the Golden Rams managed to move the ball down to the 25, a 42-yard Rich Bruno field goal attempt was blocked and the teams went to the locker room.
Under a steady rain, West Chester maintained control of the game in the third quarter. Mercyhurst had drives of just 2, 5, -2 and 14 yards. However, the West Chester offense, despite moving the ball, was thwarted by a slippery snap on a field goal attempt and later by an interception. Enter Jarel Elder. The redshirt freshman had rushes of six, eight and six yards before a Shawn Driggins holding call stopped the momentum. But McCartney hit Doty for a 25-yard pickup and then Brown for a 31-yard touchdown.
The two teams traded scores – Mercyhurst a 34-yard touchdown pass and West Chester a 22-yard field goal – to close the scoring. Then everyone got to play as Anthony Brown carried the ball five straight times to run out the clock.
Notes – The West Chester defense held Mercyhurst to 255 total yards – 43 rushing, 212 passing – with 99 of those yards coming in the fourth quarter after the outcome had been determined...There were 22 Golden Rams who registered at least one tackle in the game, led by Andrew Cohen who had seven stops including West Chester’s lone sack...Al-Hajj Shabazz had three pass breakups while Mike Labor, Ronell Williams, Ralph Reeves, Shaquil Ryder, and John Dubyk each registered a quarterback hurry...Adam Dempsey had six catches for 43 yards and Dion Shaw made his first two West Chester receptions.
West Chester Athletic Site - No. 9 West Chester Stymies Mercyhurst, 38-14
Mercyhurst Athletic Site - Football Drops To 0-2 After 38-14 Loss At #9 West Chester
Daily Local News - Wet but happy home opener for West Chester
FootballStories.com - West Chester Scores Big Win Over Mercyhurst
GoErie.com - Mercyhurst falls to West Chester 38-14
ESPN3 - Game Replay
D2football - PSAC Columnist - Recapping Week 2 in the PSAC
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