Mari Adams and Mason Sheron have been the dynamic duo of Davidson’s potent football offense the past couple of seasons.
The pair had an accomplice in the Wildcats’ latest win.
Andrew Frazier, making his first career at quarterback, turned the two-headed monster into a triple threat, helping Davidson beat Presbyterian 48-37 on Sunday evening.
In a game that featured more than 1,000 yards of offense, Frazier rushed for touchdowns on runs of 16 and 8 yards, while also completing a 60-yard TD pass to Aaron Maione.
—> READ MORE: All-State Texas High School RB Picks Davidson
Adams and Sheron, meanwhile, were up to their usual tricks. Adams rushed for 128 yards, including a 63-yard touchdown jaunt. Sheron ripped off a 65-yard gain, finished with 93 total rushing yards and scored two short-yardage touchdowns.
Davidson improved to 3-1 with the victory, 1-0 against Pioneer Football league foes. The Wildcats gave head coach Scott Abell his 44th victory with the program, tying him with William Younger (who coached in the 1920s and 30s) for most football wins in Davidson history.
To boot, the ‘Cats get to keep the 1919 Cup, retained by the winner of this North Carolina-South Carolina border rivalry. Davidson has won four straight over Presbyterian (2-3, 0-1).
Despite their offensive successes — Davidson rushed for 355 yards and passed for another 159 — the Wildcats never could completely shake the Blue Hose.
Davidson had leads of 21-0, 28-6 and 35-6 in the opening half. But Presbyterian rallied behind the arm of quarterback Collin Hurst (25-of-37 for 358 yards, 3 TDs).
A 15-yard scoring strike from Hurst to Nathan Levicki with 5:45 left in the third quarter made the score uncomfortably close, 35-25. Davidson had a quick response, though, and Adams was off to the races less than two minutes later for a 63-yard score.
Quante Jennings scored for Presbyterian 55 seconds later to make it 42-31, and that score held until Frazier found the end zone late in the fourth quarter for an insurance touchdown. The Blue Hose tacked on their final score with 53 ticks left.
Davidson thwarted one Presbyterian drive in the second quarter that reached its 3-yard line. TJ Magee stepped in front of a Hurst pass and raced 98 yards for a touchdown — the longest defensive scoring play in a North Carolina college game this season. That put the Wildcats ahead 21-0 instead of potentially 14-7.
Frazier finished with 51 rushing yards on eight attempts. Kellyn West (5 carries, 30 rushing yards), Sam Valor (3-29) and Will Jones (5-28) added to the Davidson positive rushing tally.
Julian Rawlins and Daniel Carter helped spearhead the defensive effort. Both made 10 tackles. Rawlins had a pair of sacks, forced a fumble and finished with 2.5 tackles-for-loss. Magee added nine tackles. Kristian Ozane had eight.
Kicker Adam Zouagui stayed busy. He hit six extra points and punted twice for a 43.5 yards-per-punt average.
The two teams originally were scheduled to play at Presbyterian (Clinton, SC) on Saturday. But the game was moved to Sunday at Davidson due to the effects of Hurricane Helene.
The remainder of Davidson’s schedule will feature conference games, starting with a home game against Marist (0-4, 0-1) on Saturday at 1 p.m.
PFL Scoreboard | Sept. 28-29
- Dayton 47, Marist 14
- Drake 30, San Diego 28
- Morehead State 17, Valparaiso 5
- Butler 63, Virginia-Lynchburg 0
- Davidson 48, Presbyterian 37
PFL Standings
| Schools | Conf | Overall |
|---|---|---|
 Davidson | 1-0 | 3-1 |
 Dayton | 1-0 | 3-1 |
 Drake | 1-0 | 2-1 |
 Morehead State | 1-0 | 3-2 |
 Butler | 0-0 | 4-0 |
 Stetson | 0-0 | 2-2 |
 St. Thomas | 0-0 | 1-3 |
 San Diego | 0-1 | 2-2 |
 Presbyterian | 0-1 | 2-3 |
 Valparaiso | 0-1 | 2-3 |
 Marist | 0-1 | 0-4 |
