Football 10.21.23

Bulldog Football Blanks VMI In Second Half For 27-14 Victory

Box Score LEXINGTON, Va. – On a blustery fall day for football, the Samford football held the VMI Keydets scoreless in the second half for a 27-14 win on Saturday afternoon.

With the win, Samford improves to 4-4 on the year and 3-3 in Southern Conference Play. VMI drops to a 3-4 record with a 2-2 mark in league action. The win also marks Samford's first win in Lexington since the 2017 season.

Just like in the previous road game against Wofford, the Samford offense employed a balanced attack with 216 yards on the ground and 222 yards through the air.

Running back Jay Stanton paced the Bulldogs on Saturday with his third 100+ yard rushing performance in his last four outings. The senior finished Saturday with 145 yards on 21 carries and a pair of touchdowns. After his performance against VMI, Stanton only needs 24 yards to pass Jerome Russell for the second-most career rushing yards by a Bulldog in program history.

To go along with Stanton in the backfield, Damonta Witherspoon had 11 carries for 42 yards and a touchdown to help the Bulldogs outrush the Keydets 223-154 on the afternoon.

Through the air, Michael Hires completed 35-of-46 passes for 220 yards but was held out of the end zone for just the third time in his Bulldog career.

In his first start since the Auburn game, D.J. Rias recorded a game-high 77 receiving yards on six catches. Chandler Smith added 63 more yards in the contest on nine receptions. On the day, a total of 11 different Bulldogs recorded a catch against the Keydet defense.

Jaden Mosley led all Bulldog defenders with 11 tackles and a tackle for loss. Noah Martin collected nine tackles, while the duo of Garrett Morris and Josiah Cotton each had eight stops. The trio of Xavier Nurse, Joseph Mera and Jamall Thompson each had a sack in the game along with Joshua Mathiasen and Makni Gilbert combing for a sack.

On the special teams front, Will Thorley had his best game as a Bulldog booting six punts for an average of 42.2 yards with four being downed inside the VMI 20-yard line. Not to be outdone, Wilson Beaverstock connected on a pair of field goals that book-ended the Bulldog scoring for the day.

After forcing a VMI punt on the opening drive of the game, the Samford offense marched down the field on 14 plays for 71 yards before Beaverstock split the uprights from 26 yards out to put Samford ahead 3-0 with 8:08 remaining in the first.

After field position was flipped in Samford's favor a few drives later, Jay Stanton put Bulldogs up 10-0 with a 32-yard sprint to the end zone with just over two minutes left in the opening stanza.

VMi took a 47-yard run to the end zone on the opening play of the second quarter to cut into the Bulldog lead at 10-7. The Bulldogs answered with a five-play quick strike scoring drive that culminated in a 36-yard touchdown scamper from Stanton to push the advantage to 17-7. Stanton's 36-yard score is Samford's longest rushing play on the season.

The final Keydet score of the day with 11:15 remaining in the first half when VMI's Collin Ironside found Aidan Twombly for a 30-yard score that got the home team back within three at 17-14.

Thanks to stellar second-half defense, Samford put the game away with a 14-play 78-yard drive in the second quarter that included a Mera fake punt that went 35 yards to shift momentum in favor of the Bulldogs and a three-yard touchdown plunge from Witherspoon.

The final points of the game were scored with 1:02 left in the first half when Beaverstock knocked through his second field goal of the game from 33 yards out to make it a 27-14 final.

Both offenses were held off the scoreboard in the second half which saw each team block a field goal.

Samford will welcome The Citadel to Birmingham on Oct. 28 for Homecoming 2023 and the first full game played at the recently renamed Pete Hanna Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. and tickets can be found at SamfordTickets.com.

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For the latest news and information on Samford football, visit the official website for Samford Athletics at SamfordSports.com. Fans can also follow the Bulldogs on social media at /SamfordFootball (Facebook), @SamfordFootball (Instagram) and @SamfordFootball (Twitter).

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Players Mentioned

#28 Josiah Cotton: LB; 5' 11"; Junior

#32 Noah Martin: LB; 6' 1"; Junior

#35 Joseph Mera: DE; 6' 2"; Senior

#0 Chandler Smith: WR; 5' 10"; Senior

#20 Jay Stanton: RB; 6' 0"; Senior

#81 Jamall Thompson: DE; 6' 3"; Freshman

#98 Joshua Mathiasen: DL; 6' 2"; Sophomore

#11 D.J. Rias: WR; 5' 8"; Sophomore

#17 Garrett Morris: S; 6' 0"; Graduate Student

#22 Xavier Nurse: LB; 6' 3"; Graduate Student

Players Mentioned

#28 Josiah Cotton
: 5' 11"; Junior
: LB

#32 Noah Martin
: 6' 1"; Junior
: LB

#35 Joseph Mera
: 6' 2"; Senior
: DE

#0 Chandler Smith
: 5' 10"; Senior
: WR

#20 Jay Stanton
: 6' 0"; Senior
: RB

#81 Jamall Thompson
: 6' 3"; Freshman
: DE

#98 Joshua Mathiasen
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: DL

#11 D.J. Rias
: 5' 8"; Sophomore
: WR

#17 Garrett Morris
: 6' 0"; Graduate Student
: S

#22 Xavier Nurse
: 6' 3"; Graduate Student
: LB

Samford University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Players Mentioned