The Hawks’ football team fell victim of defeat by the hands of the Chanticleers of Coastal Carolina, the newly-crowned top team of FCS play in the country, by a score of 52-21. MU’s record is now even at 5-5, 0-4 in Big South play, while Coastal Carolina improves to 11-0.
“We knew coming into the game that we were going to have to play mistake free and execute at a high level,” said MU head coach Kevin Callahan. “Early on we had some breakdowns on the defensive side and spotted them a lead. That’s a situation that we knew we did not want to get in, playing from behind. I thought our kids played hard and battled to get back in it but in the end, they were able to make a lot more plays than we were.”
Coastal Carolina’s explosive offense was on display after the opening kickoff, as the Chanticleers jumped out to a comfortable 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. It wasn’t until early in the second quarter, after the Chanticleers added another score, that the Hawks showed any life. Fifth year senior Greg DePugh made his first collegiate start at quarterback since first string quarterback, senior Brandon Hill, was sidelined due to turf toe. DePugh tossed a deep strike to senior wide receiver Neal Sterling who outran a Coastal defender en route of a 73-yard touchdown. With that touchdown grab, Sterling surpassed Adam San Miguel as the all-time leader in receptions in the University’s football program’s history. Sterling, who finished the contest with eight receptions for 136-yards and two touchdowns, needs 302-yards to pass Miles Austin as the all-time leader in receiving yardage.
Facing a 28-7 deficit at halftime, the Hawks managed to march down the field on the opening second half possession when sophomore running back Lavon Chaney rumbled into the end zone for a two yard score. Chaney would finish the contest with 60-yards on 12-carries while adding 43-yards on 4-receptions. Despite throwing three interceptions, DePugh finished the day completing 22-of-38 pass attempts for 258-yards and 2-touchdowns, ending with a 7-yard throw to Sterling in the fourth quarter. The Hawks’ offense also received contributions from senior tight end Hakeem Valles (24-yards on 3-catches), sophomore wide receiver Darren Ambush (20-yards on 3-catches), sophomore running back Zach Welch (2-catches for 17-yards), sophomore wide receiver Romeo Harris (a catch for 11-yards), and fifth year wide receiver Thaddeus Richards (a catch for 7-yards).
“I thought Greg did a good job for his first full collegiate football game stepping in for Brandon,” Callahan said. “Coastal is a good defensive unit that comes with a lot of pressure and has a lot of speed. I thought he performed at a pretty good level, I was happy with his play but we weren’t able to do a lot of things around him, enough to help him out.”
Despite what the score may indicate, the Hawks’ defense held its own against Coastal’s balanced, high octane offense attack. Junior back Joe Johnson managed to pick off Alex Ross’s first half pass and Payton Minnich, who contributed with seven tackles, almost pulled down his fourth interception of the season. Freshman back Mike Basile led the way with 8-tackles, including a hellacious tackle on a screen play in the first quarter of the contest. Fifth year linebacker Dan Sullivan tallied four tackles and managed to accumulate two sacks while also adding three tackles-for-loss.
The Hawks will wrap up their inaugural Big South season on Saturday, Nov. 21, as they host the Runnin’ Bulldogs of Gardner-Webb (4-7, 0-4 in Big South play), who are coming off of 14-7 loss to Presbyterian. This will be the last home game for several Hawks and could be a chance to make history by winning their first Big South contest. Kickoff is set for 12 at Kessler Field.
