BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Junior kicker Charlie Viorel drilled a 48-yard field goal as time expired, leading the Gardner-Webb (3-2, 1-0) to a thrilling 30-27 win over visiting Charleston Southern (1-5, 0-2) on Saturday afternoon inside Spangler Stadium. The Runnin' Bulldogs retain the BBQ Bowl Trophy with the win.
Graduate quarterback Nate Hampton finished the game completing 19-of-31 passes for 247 yards and a pair of scores while adding 60 yards on the ground. Redshirt junior Carson Gresock led the running attack for the Dawgs, chewing up 105 yards and one score. As a team, GWU ran for 243 yards.
Graduate receiver Caleb Borders anchored the receiving corps with a team-high five catches for 92 yards and a touchdown. Redshirt freshman Kory Jones made only one reception, but it went for 38 yards and a score.
Senior defensive lineman Robert Holtz concluded the game with seven tackles, including three tackles for loss and one sack. Redshirt junior Darius Johnson Jr. added a team-high eight tackles.
Gardner-Webb wasted no time putting points on the board in the first quarter. After holding the Bucs to a three-and-out on their first drive, GWU put together a 14-play, 57-yard drive, capped by a 38-yard field goal by Viorel.
Scoring was at a premium over the next 20-plus minutes of game action before Charleston Southern put their first points on the scoreboard following an 8-play drive that covered 50 yards with just over a minute to play in the half.
The Buccaneers looked poised to take that lead into halftime, but Gardner-Webb had other plans, taking the ensuing kickoff and setting up shop at its own 17-yard line. Hampton got the drive started with a quick 15-yard completion to graduate receiver Jack Reynolds. After methodically moving the ball over midfield, Hampton heaved a ball into the end zone as time ran out, and it was hauled in by Jones for the improbable touchdown.
Once again, the two defenses played the bend but don't break method as neither could post any points in the third period of action.
However, that all changed to start the fourth quarter with scoring coming in bunches as the two squads combined for 40 points in the final stanza.
In the first possession of the fourth for GWU, Gresock capped off a 5-play, 50-yard drive with a 22-yard burst to paydirt, putting the Dawgs ahead by two scores with 13:08 on the clock.
That advantage did not last long after Charleston Southern marched down the field on its next drive, punching the ball over the goal line following a 1-yard plunge by Isaiah Gordon. The drive was aided by a clutch 38-yard reception by Rashawn Cunningham that placed the ball inside the 1-yard line.
Gardner-Webb regained the two-score spread on the following drive as Hampton found Borders for a pair of catches and 39 yards, including a 13-yard touchdown, his third score of the year.
The back-and forth affair continued after CSU received an 89-yard touchdown run on the first play of the drive by K'Marion Baldwin, but the extra point was pulled left, leaving the score at 24-20 in favor of Gardner-Webb.
Viorel added his second field goal of the game, a 43-yarder to push the Dawgs back to a 27-20 lead, but Charleston Southern knotted the score at 27-all after Baldwin carried the ball 14 yards for the tying score.
The game-winning drive for GWU began with a heavy dose of Gresock as the back ripped off 24 yards on the first three carries. However, the Runnin' Bulldogs were faced with a fourth down with five seconds left. Graduate receiver Anthony Lowe hauled in a 13-yard out to the sideline while setting up Viorel for his 48-yard winning kick.
Gardner-Webb will return to action on Saturday, October 11, traveling to Charleston, Ill. to take on Eastern Illinois in an OVC-Big South battle. Kick is slated for 3 p.m. EST. Live stats and video links can be found at www.gwusports.com.
