When Phil Poquie mishandled the opening kickoff, there was concern of foreboding events. But then he recovered the ball and zipped up the left sideline for a touchdown, so it looked like a bright start for West Chester after all. But then the play got brought back due to an illegal block called on D'Shaun Seals, and the foreboding feeling took hold after all.
Desman Johnson got the nod at starting quarterback. Sure there were some nerves that the redshirt freshman was getting his first collegiate action at the start of the first game of the season, but that was offset by experience on the offensive line as well as among the ball handlers. And the play calling was understandably conservative – a lot of runs and pass routes that were short. Unfortunately, the line did not provide the necessary support. West Chester’s first three possessions totaled 24 yards and ended in punts.
Late in the first quarter, Poquie had another good kickoff return and the Golden Rams started the possession inside Bentley territory. Seven straight running plays set up West Chester at second and goal at the Bentley 8. But Johnson telegraphed a pass to tight end Dan Neuhaus which was intercepted in the end zone. Growing pains. The ensuing Golden Ram possession was Johnson's best – he completed a couple of passes to Rasheem James and the ground game got the offense to the Bentley 4, but West Chester would have to settle for a field goal. Later in the half, Johnson, desperate to make something happen and churning for extra yards, lost a fumble. He did not return to the field after halftime.
Desman Johnson scrambles for yards (Photo Gina Chapman)The other part of the West Chester team that was supposed to offset a new quarterback was an experienced and deep defense. The bigger concern is that the defensive unit did not show itself in this game. The Falcons had touchdown drives of 80, 80 and 63 yards in the first half and scored touchdowns on 72- and 83-yard drives after intermission to stretch the score to 41-3 midway through the fourth quarter. While Bentley’s passing game was efficient (11 of 18 for 140 yards), it was 300 rushing yards on 39 carries (7.7 yards per carry) that was crushing. Bentley’s desire to pick up extra yards was often greater than West Chester’s desire to tackle. The Golden Ram defense did not register a sack or a turnover and Bentley converted on 55% of their third down plays.
Ja'Den McKenzie jacks a Bentley defender (Photo Gina Chapman)Zach Gilbert took over at quarterback in the third quarter and moved the offense well. A 17-play drive that lasted almost eight minutes consisted of quick passes and effective runs, but resulted in zero points. Yahmir Wilkerson ran the offense in the fourth, and Ja'Den McKenzie was the workhorse and scored West Chester’s first touchdown of 2021 with five minutes left. There was some excitement in the final minutes when Zach Liggitt blocked a Bentley punt and Michael Alexander returned it for a touchdown.
Going into the game, there were questions about the kickers as both were making their collegiate debuts, and ironically they performed very well. Sean Henry converted both his PAT attempts, was successful on a 22-yard field goal, and his kickoffs had plenty of length. Meanwhile, punter John George averaged almost 41 yards on his four punts and landed two inside the Bentley 20-yard line. And while the Falcons returned one punt for a touchdown, it was more due to poor tackling than punt placement.
Michael Alexander returns a blocked punt for touchdown (Photo Gina Chapman)Notes - True freshman Seals made his collegiate debut on special teams, but did not appear on offense...This was the largest deficit for West Chester since the 2017 playoff game at Indiana.
West Chester Athletic Site - West Chester Drops Gridiron Opener at Bentley, 41-17
Bentley Athletic Site - Dominating Performance for Bentley As Falcons Open with 41-17 Win over West Chester
WCU Football Family - Photo Album - Bentley
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