Oct. 29, 2011

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Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford football team rushed for 303 yards and had 463 yards of total offense on its way to a 52-24 Southern Conference and homecoming win over Western Carolina Saturday afternoon at Seibert Stadium.

With the win, Samford improves to 5-3 overall and 3-3 in the Southern Conference. The 52 points are the most Samford has scored in a SoCon game since joining the league in 2008. Western Carolina drops to 1-7 overall and 0-6 in league play.

"This was a good win," Samford head coach Pat Sullivan said. "I've been worried about this one all week. I thought Western was a dangerous team, and I know they have good athletes. I thought we were a little sloppy, but we made some plays when we had to make them."

Sophomore running back Fabian Truss rushed 12 times for 99 yards and a touchdown. Truss also had two kickoff returns for 88 yards, including an 82-yard return for a touchdown in the third quarter. Stanley Robinson rushed seven times for a career-high 68 yards and the first two touchdowns of his collegiate career.

Dustin Taliaferro completed 14-of-25 passes for 124 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Taliaferro also caught a touchdown pass on a reverse-pass from Kelsey Pope. Kelvin Clay led Samford's receivers with five catches for 44 yards and a touchdown.

Defensively for Samford, Omar Johnson had a career-high 12 tackles, including eight solo stops. Darion Sutton and Justin Shade had eight tackles each. Alvin Hines II had an interception, which he returned 33 yards for a touchdown. Punter Greg Peranich punted four times for an average of 44.2 yards per kick. Cameron Yaw made his lone field goal attempt of the game, and he was 7-for-7 in extra-point attempts.

For Western Carolina, Zac Brindise completed 16-of-32 passes for 196 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Gary Green had four catches for 74 yards and a touchdown. Michael Vaughn rushed 30 times for 83 yards for the Catamounts. Rock Williams led the WCU defense with seven tackles and an interception.

After the Samford defense held Western Carolina to a three-and-out on its first possession, the Samford offense struck quickly to put the first points on the scoreboard. On Samford's first offensive play, Truss ran 61 yards for a touchdown. Yaw added the extra point to give Samford a 7-0 lead with 13:38 to go in the first quarter.

After a Samford fumble gave Western Carolina the ball at the Bulldog 25-yard line, the Catamounts tied the score on the very next play when Brindise hit George Richardson for the score with 12:20 left in the first quarter. Clark Sechrest's extra point tied the score at 7-7.

Samford took the lead again when Robinson scored on a 20-yard run with 10:46 left in the first quarter. Yaw's PAT gave Samford a 14-7 lead. On Western Carolina's next possession, Samford's Hines picked off a Brindise pass and returned it 33 yards for a touchdown. It was Hines' third interception of the season and the first he has returned for a touchdown in his career. Yaw added the PAT to make the score 21-7 with 9:36 left in the first quarter.

Western Carolina's Sechrest kicked a 26-yard field goal to cut the Samford lead to 21-10 with 5:52 left in the first quarter.

Early in the second quarter, WCU's Williams intercepted a Taliaferro pass. During the return, Williams fumbled and Brandon Vaught recovered the fumble in the end zone for a Catamount touchdown. Sechrest added the PAT to make the score 21-17 with 14:03 left in the second quarter.

Samford's Truss took the ensuing kickoff back 82 yards for a touchdown. Yaw added the extra point to push Samford's lead to 28-17. The play marked the first time a Samford player has returned a kickoff for a touchdown since Sept. 22, 2007, when Alex Barnett took a kickoff back for 95 yards against Southeast Missouri.

The Bulldogs added one more score before halftime. Yaw kicked a 39-yard field goal as time expired to give Samford a 31-17 lead heading into halftime.

Robinson ran for his second touchdown of the game, this one from 21 yards out with 8:40 left in the third quarter. Yaw's PAT gave Samford a 38-17 lead. Taliaferro hit Clay for a six-yard touchdown with 4:07 remaining in the third quarter, and Yaw kicked the PAT to push Samford's lead to 45-17.

WCU's Brindise hit Green for a 29-yard score with 1:43 to go in the third quarter. Sechrest kicked the extra point to make the score 45-24.

Samford put the final points on the scoreboard on the first play of the fourth quarter. Pope hit Taliaferro on a reverse-pass for a 17-yard touchdown with 14:53 to go in the game. Yaw's PAT made the final score 52-24.

Highlights from the game will be available at samfordsports.com within 48 hours of the game.

Samford will return to action on Saturday, Nov. 5, when the Bulldogs play host to Chattanooga. The game is scheduled for an 11 a.m. kickoff from Seibert Stadium and will be televised live in the Birmingham area on ABC 33/40.