Nov. 17, 2007

Box Score

CHARLESTON, Ill. - The Samford football team dropped a 33-17 decision, in its season finale at Eastern Illinois Saturday afternoon.

Samford finishes the season with a record of 4-7 overall and 2-6 in Ohio Valley Conference play. EIU is now 8-3 overall and 7-1 in league play.

"I am extremely proud of the way our guys fought against a good team today," Samford head coach Pat Sullivan said. "There were a couple of plays that really changed the game."

For Samford, Chris Evans rushed 19 times for 106 yards and a touchdown in the game. Evans finished the season with 1,033 yards rushing, becoming the first Samford player to rush for 1,000 yards since 1999. Jefferson Adcock completed 15-of-31 passes for 149 yards in the game. Adcock finishes his Samford career with over 6,000 yards of total offense.

Samford jumped on top first when Mark Prevost kicked a 36-yard field goal to give Samford a 3-0 lead with 9:55 to go in the first quarter. Eastern Illinois answered on its first play from scrimmage when Ademola Adeniji ran for a 65-yard touchdown. Tyler Wilke's PAT gave the Panthers a 7-3 lead with 9:45 to play in the first quarter.

EIU pushed its lead to 10-3 when Wilke kicked a 42-yard field goal with 4:00 to go in the opening period. Adeniji scored his second touchdown of the day on a three-yard run with 10:04 to go in the second quarter. Wilke's extra point made the score 17-3.

Samford closed to within a touchdown when Adcock scored on a one-yard run with 4:08 to go in the second quarter. Prevost's PAT cut the EIU lead to 17-10. EIU's Rashad Haynes returned a blocked field goal 60 yards for a touchdown with 14 seconds to go in the second quarter. Wilke's PAT was good to send EIU into halftime with a 24-10 lead over Samford.

EIU scored on the opening drive of the second half when Adeniji scored on a 21-yard run with 11:10 to go in the third quarter. Wilke's PAT gave EIU a 31-10 lead. EIU recorded a safety with 7:39 to go in the third quarter to make the score 33-10.

Evans scored on a 22-yard run with 14:33 to go in the fourth quarter, and the PAT by Prevost made the final score 33-17.