BIRMINGHAM, Ala. –The Samford football team used big plays on both sides of the ball to earn an impressive 55-35 win over the seventh-ranked Mercer Bears Saturday afternoon at Seibert Stadium.
 
"It's always good to win," Samford head coach Chris Hatcher said. "When you beat a top 10 ranked opponent, it's especially nice. I'm very proud of our football team. There were a lot of momentum shifts, especially there in the third quarter, and we buckled down, especially on the defensive side of the ball. We forced a lot of turnovers and scored a lot of points on that side of the ball, and if you play defense like that, you'll always have a chance."
 
With the win, Samford improved to 3-3 overall and 2-1 in Southern Conference play. Mercer fell to 6-1 overall and 3-1 in SoCon play. The game marked the first time Samford has scored 50 points against a Southern Conference team since a 50-44 overtime win over Mercer in 2022. Prior to Saturday's game, Mercer had only allowed 46 points in the previous six games combined.
 
For the game for Samford, Quincy Crittendon completed 23-of-37 passes for a career-high 378 yards and four touchdowns. The four touchdown passes all came in the first quarter, which set a Southern Conference record for touchdown passes in one quarter.
 
D.J. Rias caught eight passes for 61 yards and two touchdowns. E. Jai Mason and Iaan Cousin also caught touchdown passes for the Bulldogs. Damonta Witherspoon rushed for 47 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries.
 
Defensively for Samford, Noah Martin led the team with 10 tackles, to along with one fumble recovery and one interception he returned 26 yards for a touchdown. Gavin Morris recovered a fumble and returned it 55 yards for a score. Jaden Mosley also had an interception, to go along with his six tackles.
 
For Mercer, D.J. Smith completed 17-of-28 passes for 263 yards and one touchdown. Kelin Parsons caught 11 passes for 106 yards to lead all receivers. Dwayne McGee rushed for a pair of touchdowns for the Bears. Myles Redding led the Mercer defense with eight tackles and two interceptions.
 
On Samford's first drive of the game, Crittendon hit Rias for a 15-yard touchdown pass and Wilson Beaverstock added the extra point to give Samford a 7-0 lead with 12:15 left in the first quarter. On Mercer's ensuing possession, Samford's Dontae Pollard recovered a Mercer fumble at the Bears' 15-yard line. On the next play, Crittendon hit Rias for another 15-yard score and Beaverstock kicked the PAT for a 14-0 Bulldogs' lead with 11:32 left in the first period.
 
On Mercer's next drive, Samford's Mosley intercepted a Mercer pass, and Samford took over at the Mercer 26-yard line. Three plays later, Crittendon hit Mason for a 24-yard touchdown and Beaverstock's PAT gave Samford a 21-0 lead with 10:59 to play in the first quarter. On the first play of Samford's next drive, Crittendon hit Cousin for a 77-yard touchdown pass and Beaverstock added the PAT for a 28-0 Samford lead with 8:25 left in the first quarter.
 
Mercer put its first points on the scoreboard when quarterback Smith scored on a one yard run and Reice Griffith added the extra point to cut the lead to 28-7 with 18 seconds left in the first period. With 4:22 left in the second quarter, Witherspoon scored on a two-yard run and Beaverstock added the PAT for a 35-7 Samford advantage. Samford added one more first-half score when Witherspoon scored on a one-yard run and Beaverstock's PAT made it 42-7 heading into the locker room at halftime.
 
Mercer scored on its first third-quarter drive when McGee scored on a one-yard run and Griffith added the PAT to cut the Samford lead to 42-14 with 11:38 left in the third period. Late in the third quarter, Mercer's Redding intercepted a Samford pass at the 50-yard line and returned it to the Samford two-yard line. On the next play, McGee scored on a two-yard run and Griffith added the PAT to make the score 42-21 with 5:38 to go in the third quarter.
 
With 2:25 left in the third quarter, Mercer's Smith hit Samuel Albee for a five-yard touchdown and Griffith kicked the PAT to cut the Samford lead to 42-28.
 
With 11:43 left in the fourth quarter, Samford's Morris returned a Mercer fumble 55 yards for a touchdown, but the PAT was no good as Samford pushed its lead to 48-28. Samford's Martin picked off a Mercer pass and returned it 26 yards for a touchdown and Beaverstock added the PAT to push the Samford lead to 55-28 with 6:33 to go in the game. Mercer added one final score when Whitt Newbauer hit Brayden Smith for a five-yard touchdown with 1:42 to go and Griffith added the PAT to make the final score 55-35.
 
Next week, Samford will travel to Charleston, S.C., to take on The Citadel Bulldogs. The game is set for a 1 p.m. (CT) start from Johnson Hagood Stadium.




 
FOLLOW THE BULLDOGS:
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).