GAME NOTES: Gardner-Webb Travels South For Halloween Bout At Presbyterian (BSN)
October 29, 2015 | Football
Game Notes (PDF) | @GWUFootball | @BigSouthFB
THE GAME
Gardner-Webb travels 71 miles south on Saturday to face a familiar old foe at Presbyterian. Kickoff is set for 2:00 pm at Bailey Memorial Stadium, with the game streaming live on The Big South Network (bigsouthsports.com). Eric Thacker and John Orck will provide the video call. Fabian Fuentes and Alex Guest will call the action as well on wgwg.org – the audio home of Gardner-Webb athletics.
SERIES NOTES
Gardner-Webb and Presbyterian have the longest football rivalry in the Big South Conference, dating back to 1970 and taking place 37 times ... GWU holds a 19-18 edge in the all-time series, but dropped last season's contest by a 14-7 score in Boiling Springs ... The margin of victory over the past three meetings is a scant 6.6 ppg ... GWU won the last meeting in Clinton, S.C., 20-13 in the 2013 finale ... GWU has won nine of its last 11 visits to Clinton, S.C., dating back to 1986 ... The two teams were members of the original SAC-8 football conference as NAIA members, and transitioned to NCAA Division II with that league in 1993 ... The teams did not play from 2000-2008.
THE HEAD COACHES
Gardner-Webb head coach Carroll McCray (Class of '83) returned to his alma mater in 2013 and has forged an 13-18 record so far in his time in Boiling Springs. He also has head coaching experience at Austin Peay and North Greenville. Former Presbyterian quarterback Harold Nichols (Class of '90) has gone 16-55 during his time in charge of his alma mater and is coming off a well-earned 6-5 campaign in 2014.
RED ZONE RAIDERS
Gardner-Webb continues to perform at a high level defensively with its backs against the wall, leading the Big South Conference and ranking No. 3 nationally in red zone defense through seven games. GWU has limited its opponents to a 57.1 percent conversion rate in the red zone overall in 21 trips. Even more impressive, Gardner-Webb leads the nation in red zone TD defense, allowing only four touchdowns in those 21 trips (19.0 percent). Only two of those four touchdowns came on the ground. Eight drives have ended in field goals and eight more have ended with no points at all.
PREVIOUS GAME RECAP: #20 CHARLESTON SOUTHERN 34, GARDNER-WEBB 0
No. 20 Charleston Southern raced to a 21-0 halftime lead and buckled down on defense throughout, shutting out Gardner-Webb Saturday afternoon in Ernest W. Spangler Stadium. It was the Bucs' first win in Boiling Springs since 2005. The Runnin' Bulldogs managed just seven first downs and a season-low 110 yards of total offense. Charleston Southern scored three of its touchdowns through the air and got a 28-yard interception return for a score from Solomon Brown in the third quarter for the final margin. GWU got 13 tackles from Tanner Burch and 10 each from Azziz Higgins and Chad Geter. Higgins also broke up two passes and linebacker Aaron Cook blocked a PAT attempt.
MAU WOW
Gardner-Webb nose guard OJ Mau (6-2, 319, Sr.) has continued to provide headaches for opposing offenses in 2015, ranking third among Big South defensive linemen tackles with 34 hits. Mau has recorded 8.0 tackles for loss in seven games, despite consistent double teams in the middle. The Masefau, American Samoa, standout blocked the second field goal of his career in the win over #15 Liberty (10/10) and has managed 28.5 tackles for loss in his 41 games played – with 27.0 coming over the last 31 games. Mau was named to the STATS FCS All-America Team in July and is also a member of the STATS FCS Defensive Player of the Year Watch List. The preseason Big South Conference Defensive Player of the Year has twice earned postseason All-America honors (2013, 2014).
THE GETER METER
FCS All-America candidate Chad Geter (6-2, 242, R-Jr.) is in the midst of a career-best season at the SPUR outside linebacker spot. The Irmo, S.C., native leads the team and ranks third in the Big South Conference with 66 total hits (40 solo) and also paces the team with 8.0 tackles for loss (minus-33 yards). Geter is on track to finish the season with 104 tackles (63 solo) and 12.5 tackles for loss – which would both be career highs. Geter has been active all over the field since missing the final nine games of the 2014 season with an injury. He earned second-team All-Big South honors in 2013 after collecting 82 tackles, 9.0 tackles for loss and six pass break ups. Geter has been active in the backfield of late, registering 19.5 tackles for loss in his last 20 starts.
THIRD DOWN DEFENSE
Gardner-Webb has fared well on third down defensively for much of the 2015 season, limiting opponents to a 29.1 percent success rate on third down through seven games. That 30-for-103 effort ranks No. 9 nationally among 123 FCS programs and ranks second in the Big South Conference. That third down effectiveness has also helped Gardner-Webb rank 17th nationally in first downs allowed – 111 through seven games.
FOUR ACES
Gardner-Webb's starting foursome at linebacker – Tanner Burch (6-3, 248, R-Sr.), Aaron Cook (6-1, 233, Jr.), Chad Geter (6-2, 242, R-Jr.) and Azziz Higgins (6-2, 230, Sr.) – were projected to be a strength for a veteran defensive unit and have lived up to those expectations. Through seven games, each of the quartet has at least 55 tackles, with Geter (66 hits) and Higgins (66 hits) leading the way. All four men rank in the top-6 in the Big South in tackles per game through seven contests and each of the four have multiple games this season with double figures tackles. Burch, Geter and Higgins each topped that mark last week vs. #20 Charleston Southern. Burch, a redshirt senior, needs only two more tackles this season to reach the 300-tackle mark for his career. The 2012 FCS All-America selection topped the 100-tackle mark in both 2012 and 2013. His 12.7 tackles per game in 2012 set a new Big South standard. The quartet has combined for 862 career tackles so far, with Burch (298) and Geter (201) each over 200. Higgins needs nine more stops to reach 200 for his career.
BIG DAY JEBRAI
Former linebacker Jebrai Regan (6-2, 263, Sr.) has flourished at defensive end in 2015, his second full season at the position. Regan leads all Big South defensive linemen with 42 total tackles and ranks No. 6 in the league overall with 7.0 tackles for loss. The Woodstock, Ga., native entered his final campaign with 36 career tackles and 5.5 tackles for loss and has surpassed that production in just seven games. Regan's previous top season came in 2014 with 26 stops and 5.0 tackles for loss. He spent his first two seasons as a reserve linebacker.
YOUNG RUNS
Gardner-Webb has turned to its capable, but inexperienced, stable of freshmen running backs over the past few weeks and the group has started to respond well with an increased workload. A true freshman has scored a touchdown on the ground in each of the last two weeks, with Josh Bettistea (5-11, 175, Fr.) carrying eight times for 43 yards and a fourth-quarter score at Kennesaw State (10/17) and Jonathan Blackmon (6-0, 190, Fr.) going for 73 yards and a score on 13 carries in the win over No. 15 Liberty. Bettistea led the team with 45 yards on the ground at Wofford (9/26) as well. All told, the pair have accounted for 86 percent of the team's running back ground production over the past four games.
MAD MAX
Quarterback Tyrell Maxwell (6-2, 213, So.) enjoyed the best game of his career in Gardner-Webb's upset of No. 15 Liberty on October 10, dashing and darting for 173 yards and three touchdowns on 21 carries and completing 10-of-14 passes for 105 yards and another score. He had 100+ yards rushing and 100+ passing by halftime on just 17 snaps and finished the night by accounting for 75 percent of Gardner-Webb's offensive total and directly accounting for 16 of the team's 17 first downs. Maxwell's rushing total broke Gardner-Webb's single-game mark for a quarterback and ws the second-best performance in that category in Big South history. His three touchdowns tied the single-game rushing mark for Big South quarterbacks. Maxwell was properly awarded for his performance, earning Choice Hotels Big South Conference Offensive Player of the Week accolades in addition to being named honorable mention STATS FCS Offensive Player of the Week.
THIS WEEK AROUND THE BIG SOUTH CONFERENCE
Saturday, October 31
Monmouth at Kennesaw State, 1:00 pm (ESPN3)
Gardner-Webb at Presbyterian, 2:00 pm (Big South Network)
#1/2 Coastal Carolina at #19/24 Charleston Southern, 7:00 pm (ASN)
MIKE CHECK
Gardner-Webb tight end Mike Estes (6-4, 240, RJr.) is quickly moving up the charts at his position statistically. The Raleigh, N.C., native ranks second in Big South history for tight ends with 68 catches and needs 32 more to track down former teammate Seth Cranfill for the top spot in school and league history. Estes ranks third with 858 career receiving yards, just 53 behind former Coastal Carolina All-America David Duran for second. Estes has 16 catches for 172 yards and three touchdowns so far in 2015.
THE SHOE
Gardner-Webb kicker Paul Schumacher (5-10, 172, So.) has improved himself as a second-year starter, handling both kickoff and placekicking duties for the first time in 2015. Schumacher has connected on 4-of-5 field goal attempts so far this season (80%) to lead the Big South Conference in accuracy. His lone miss came from 48 yards and Schumacher has made four in a row – with two of those makes coming from 40 yards or longer. The West Palm Beach, Fla., native ranks third in the Big South with six touchbacks on kickoffs through seven games as well. GWU did not record a touchback last season.
THE SAN DIEGO KID
Safety Spencer Havird (6-2, 192, R-So.) continues to build on a strong season – his second as a starter – in the defensive backfield. The San Diego, Calif., native has collected 46 total tackles (25 solo), 4.5 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks through seven games and paces the Big South with eight passes defended (7 PBU) so far. Havird is nearing his career-high total for tackles – 60 –set last season as a redshirt freshman. Havird played at Valhalla (Calif.) High – in the same high school conference as former Gardner-Webb All-America defensive end and NFL Draft pick Brian Johnston (Madison HS) – as well as NFL players Reggie Bush (Helix) and Alex Smith (Helix).
UP NEXT
Gardner-Webb will remain on the road for a second week – its lone multi-game road swing of the season – to battle top-ranked Coastal Carolina in Conway, S.C. on November 7. The game will kick off at 3:30 pm and will be televised by the American Sports Network (ASN). GWU will play on one of the more unique surfaces, as Brooks Stadium is home to a new Teal Turf – installed this past summer. †
