Sept. 27, 2008
Box Score
ELON, N.C. -
The Samford football team opened Southern Conference play with a hard-fought, 23-17 loss at No. 8 Elon Saturday at Rhodes Stadium.
"First of all, Elon is a good football team," Samford head coach Pat Sullivan said. "I'm proud of our guys. We had chances to make some plays, but we just made too many mistakes we can't afford to make."
For Samford (2-2, 0-1 SoCon), Chris Evans rushed 23 times for 118 yards and a touchdown. Dustin Taliaferro completed 18-of-29 passes for a career-high 183 yards and a touchdown. Riley Hawkins caught three passes for 48 yards, while Jonathan Lowery caught two passes for 31 yards and a touchdown.
Bryce Smith had 13 tackles and an interception to lead the Samford defense. Ty Levie and Quinton Smith had an interception each for the Bulldogs.
Elon (4-1, 2-0 SoCon) was led by Scott Riddle, who completed 18-of-33 passes for 291 yards and a two touchdowns. Terrell Hudgins caught five passes for 75 yards for the Phoenix.
Elon got on the scoreboard first Andrew Wilcox kicked a 27-yard field goal with 2:41 to go in the first quarter for a 3-0 Phoenix lead.
Samford came back to take the lead early in the second quarter. Taliaferro hit Lowery for a 16-yard touchdown with 12:27 to go in the second quarter, and John Paul Fraites added the extra point for a 7-3 Samford lead.
Elon answered on the next drive when Lance Camp caught a six-yard touchdown from Riddle, and Wilcox added the PAT to give Elon a 10-7 lead with 10:55 left in the second quarter. The Phoenix made the score 17-7 when A.J. Harris took a Riddle screen pass 91 yards for a touchdown and Wilcox added the PAT.
Samford cut the lead to 17-10 when Fraites kicked a 33-yard field goal with two seconds remaining before halftime.
Samford tied the score on the Bulldogs' first drive of the third quarter, which was set up by an interception by Quinton Smith at the 30-yard line. The score came on a two-yard run by Evans with 11:31 to go in the third quarter. Fraites' PAT made the score 17-17.
Elon took the lead back with 2:02 to go in the third quarter when Wilcox kicked a 35-yard field goal to give the Phoenix a 20-17 lead. Wilcox added a 45-yard field goal with 4:59 to go to make the final score 23-17.
Samford will return to action on Saturday, Oct. 4, when the Bulldogs play at Western Carolina. The game is scheduled for a 12 p.m. Central kickoff from Cullowhee, N.C.
