FCS Recaps: Elon, Gardner-Webb win nailbiters; Davidson cruises 

Elon, Gardner-Webb, Campbell and Western Carolina each battled to the wire in Saturday FCS games involving Old North State teams. 

The Phoenix and Bulldogs sealed victories with big plays in the final seconds, while the Catamounts and Camels suffered heartbreaking defeats.

Davidson had a more comfortable time in its home finale, while North Carolina A&T struggled against nationally ranked Villanova. 

Here are scores, recaps and top performers from the day in the FCS:

FCS Scoreboard | Week 11

• Elon 40, William & Mary 36
• Davidson 31, Morehead State 14
• Gardner-Webb 31, Eastern Illinois 28
• East Tennessee State 24, Western Carolina 21
• Villanova 31, North Carolina A&T 3
• Richmond 27, Campbell 24

WCU yields Blue Ridge Border Battle trophy back to Bucs

Western Carolina seemed in great shape when Zayveon Wells picked off a pass with 9:32 left in the game Saturday, giving the Catamounts possession ahead 21-17. But the ensuing series proved disastrous for WCU, who committed multiple penalties, lost big yardage and then shanked a punt.

East Tennessee took over at the Catamounts’ 28, and Devontae Houston burst through the middle for a 14-yard touchdown to put the Buccaneers ahead for good.

Western Carolina quarterback Taron Dickens, last weekend’s National Freshman of the Week, rushed for a pair of scores and threw for another touchdown. But he also fumbled twice and was intercepted once. 

WCU (5-5, 4-2)  got the ball back one more time after East Tennessee’s final touchdown but had to punt with 3:19 to go. The Bucs (6-4, 4-2) ran out the clock from there.

Elon hex over ranked William & Mary teams continues

The Phoenix beat a ranked William & Mary team for the third year in a row. In all three games, Elon trailed at some point in the fourth quarter.

On Saturday, Matthew Downing pushed the Phoenix over the top, capping a 13-play, 72-yard march with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Onuma Dieke with five seconds to play. William & Mary had just scored a go-ahead TD with 1:31 remaining.

Elon (4-6, 3-3 CAA) won for the third time in four games and beat a ranked opponent for the ninth time in Tony Trisciani’s coaching tenure. William & Mary dropped to 6-4, 3-3. The Tribe came into the contest No. 20 in the latest FCS media poll and 21st in the coaches poll. 

Elon enjoyed season bests in first downs (28), total offense (493 yards) and red zone efficiency (5-of-5, 4 touchdowns).

Sack mastery: Gardner-Webb stuffs Eastern Illinois

The Gardner-Webb defense came up with 11 sacks and held off a furious Eastern Illinois rally in the fourth quarter.

The Bulldogs had led 31-14 before EIU scored twice to pull within a field goal. Miles Richardson picked off an Eastern Illinois pass in the end zone to clinch GWU’s second conference win in as many weeks.

Antonio O’Berry eclipsed a career best with four sacks. Trevor Moffitt recorded two sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss. Jeff Bowens added eight total tackles. 

Carson Gresock scored touchdowns on runs of 11 and 3 yards. Quasean Holmes found the end zone on a 10-yard carry, while Caleb Borders caught a 17-yard TD pass from Tyler Ridell.

Jay Billingsley hit a 54-yard field goal in the first quarter and booted all four extra points. 

Spiders bite Campbell with last-second FG

Brandon Peskin booted a 36-yard field goal with one tick remaining to lift Richmond past Campbell at Lane Barker Stadium in Buies Creek. The Camels had never trailed until that play, building a 17-7 lead in the first half.

A Sincere Brown 14-yard TD reception from Mike Chandler II put the Camels ahead 24-17 with 9:59 to go. Richmond tied the game 24-24 but the Camels got the ball back late on an interception in Spiders’ territory by Brandon Guzman. The drive stalled and Richmond moved from its 35 to the Campbell 20 in the final 1:56 to set up the game-winning kick.

Randall King had a 90-yard kickoff return in the first half for the Camels. Mike Chandler ran for a 6-yard score, and Connor Lytton hit a 40-yard field goal.

Davidson snaps two-game losing skid

The Wildcats (6-4, 4-3 PFL) clinched their seventh-straight winning season using a familiar script. Mari Adams and Mason Sheron bullied Morehead State’s defense for 254 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

Adams started the scoring with a 55-yard run in the game’s first three minutes. Sheron put an exclamation mark on the victory with a 15-yard score with 56 seconds remaining. 

Luke Durkin threw a 28-yard TD pass to Brody Reina. Dixon Hunter recovered a Morehead State fumble in the end zone. Adam Zouagui kicked a 43-yard field goal.

Davidson rushed for 314 yards as a team on 68 attempts. The ‘Cats converted 11 of 19 third-down plays and 2-of-3 on fourth down.

Morehead State’s Matthew McClelland was around the ball a lot, recording 18 total tackles.

Villanova hands North Carolina A&T its ninth loss

A 34-yard field goal by Andrew Brown gave the Aggies their only points in another tough CAA defeat. Villanova outgained A&T 390-168. 

Quarterbacks Braxton Thomas and Justin Fomby combined for 7-of-19 passing for a mere 50 yards. Thomas led the Aggies in rushing with 49 yards. 

Steven Davis II (10 tackles) and Kade Moledor (9 tackles) paced the A&T defense. Henry Daniel made 2.5 tackles-for-loss. DJ Page boomed a 70-yard punt. 

Villanova came into the game ranked 11th and 12th in the major FCS polls. A&T is now 0-6 in conference play and has yet to win a league game since joining the CAA.

Top Performers

Matthew Downing (Elon): Threw for 315 yards (19-of-35) and four touchdowns, while also rushing for a score.

Rushawn Baker (Elon): After setting a career-high with 154 rushing yards last week, the senior running back went for 167 on 22 carries. He earned 118 yards after intermission.

Mike Chandler II (Campbell): Led the Camels in passing (128 yards, 1 TD) and rushing (121 yards, 1 TD) in a 27-24 loss to Richmond.

Mari Adams and Mason Sheron (Davidson): Rushed for 129 yards and 123 yards, respectively. Each played scored a touchdown and each only went backwards one yard for the game.

The Numbers Game

4 – Interceptions by Western Carolina defenders against East Tennessee State. But the Catamounts also turned the ball over three times (1 fumble, 2 INTs) and committed eight penalties for 67 yards.

4/40 – Sacks and negative yardage recorded by Gardner-Webb’s Antonio Miles in a 31-28 win over Eastern Illinois. The Bulldogs finished with 11 sacks and 14 tackles-for-loss.

291 – Receiving yards for Eastern Illinois’ Cooper Willman. He hauled in 11 catches against Gardner-Webb and scored three times.

54 – Field goal distance for Gardner-Webb’s Jay Billingsley in the first quarter against Eastern Illinois, a career-high. 

Minus-13: Rushing yards for Morehead State in a loss at Davidson. The Wildcats outgained the Eagles 408-192.