Saturday, September 28, 2013
by Cody Bush, PFL Media Relations

The first full week of Pioneer Football League play was a wild one with two come-from-behind wins, an overtime decision, more than 5,000 yards of offense and 380 total points. Butler, Marist and San Diego won road contests while Mercer, Morehead State and Valparaiso successfully defended their home fields.

PFL SCORES FOR SEPT. 28 (WEEK 5)
Butler def. Jacksonville, 45-27
San Diego def. Stetson, 59-0
Marist def. Butler, 31-20
Mercer def. Drake, 31-17
Morehead State def. Davidson, 45-14
Valparaiso def. Campbell, 49-42 (OT)

LEAGUE RECAPS

BUTLER def. JACKSONVILLE, 45-27
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Running back Trae Heeter rushed for a PFL season-best 222 yards and two touchdowns as Butler rallied from a 13-7 halftime deficit to post a 45-27 PFL victory at Jacksonville, Saturday, at Milne Field.

Heeter gained 178 of his yards and scored both of his touchdowns after intermission.  His 222 total rushing yards were the most by a player in the PFL this season and marked the second-highest single game total of his Butler career.

Jacksonville quarterback Steven Hughes finished with a school record and Football Championship Series season-high 509 yards passing, but it wasn't enough to slow the Bulldogs who scored 31 unanswered points in the second half.

MORE>> Butler Recap | Jacksonville Recap | Box Score

SAN DIEGO def. STETSON, 59-0
DeLAND, Fla. - San Diego posted 624 offensive yards, including a 146-yard performance by running back Kenn James, in a 59-0 road win against league newcomer Stetson, Saturday, at Spec Martin Stadium.

On the strength of 400 yards of total offense in the first half the Toreros jumped out to a 35-0 intermission lead and never looked back. USD would go on to finish with 624 yards of offense and its 59 points was the team's most since earning a 62-23 win over Jacksonville in 2007. Kenn James and Joe Ferguson carried the bulk of the load on the ground. James finished with 146 yards on 13 carries and found the endzone twice (24 & 34 yards), while Ferguson chipped in with 91 yards on just 6 carries with two scores (37 & 40 yards).

Statistically for the Hatters, there were few bright spots. Fullback Cole Mazza and backup quarterback Jonathan Jerozal led the team in rushing with 20 yards each. Jerozal, who saw significant playing time in the game, completed 6-of-10 passes for 51 yards with one interception. Starting QB Ryan Tentler completed 6-of-15 throws for 33 yards and was also intercepted once.

MORE>> San Diego Recap | Jacksonville Recap | Box Score

MARIST def. DAYTON, 31-20
DAYTON, Ohio - Marist scored 31 unanswered points to post a 31-20 PFL victory against Dayton, Saturday, at Welcome Stadium.

In the fourth quarter, Marist took a 21-13 lead when senior quarterback Chuckie Looney dropped back to pass, stepped up into the pocket, and then took off for a 48-yard touchdown run with 9:34 to play. Just 26 seconds later, sophomore cornerback Zachary Quarles intercepted a tipped pass, and returned it 30 yards for a touchdown to put the Red Foxes up 28-13. Senior kicker Jesse Signa closed out the Marist scoring with a 26-yard field goal with 3:07 to play.

Looney accounted for 354 total yards, with 233 passing yards and 121 rushing yards. Senior running back Atiq Lucas ran for 91 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns. Defensively, senior cornerback Jack Marston and senior free safety Nick Kaszei each had eight tackles. Marston added three pass break-ups.

Quarterback Will Bardo was 15 of 31 passes for 136 yards, with a touchdown and two interceptions. He was also UD's leading ground gainer with 45 yards on eight carries. Connor Kacsor added 42 yards on the ground in nine carries, while Robert Washington had 39 yards and a touchdown in 11 rushes. Branden Johnson caught seven passes for 74 yards and two TD's. Ross Smith had five for 65. Backup quarterback Luke Johnson completed six of nine attempts for 73 yards and a score on UD's final drive of the game.

MORE>> Marist Recap | Dayton Recap | Box Score | Dayton Photo Gallery

MERCER def. DRAKE, 31-17
MACON, Ga. - Playing in its first Pioneer Football League game in program history, the Mercer football team forced seven turnovers to post a 31-17 victory over Drake, Saturday, at Mercer University Stadium.

Turnovers proved to be the difference maker as the Mercer defense, which entered the game as the top ranked defense in the country, picked off four passes and forced three fumbles to keep the Bulldogs off balance all afternoon. Mercer scored 17 points off Drake turnovers on the day.

After taking a knee to run out the clock, quarterback John Russ ended the game 9-for-23 through the air for 172 yards, one touchdown and one interception. The redshirt freshman also added 55 yards on the ground and two rushing touchdowns.

Junior quarterback Andy Rice was 21-of-34 passing for 273 yards with two touchdowns, but also had four interceptions in the loss. Grahm Butler was his favorite target on the day with seven catches for 72 yards and a touchdown while Nick Rosa had four catches for 90 yards with a 67-yard touchdown reception.

MORE>> Mercer Recap | Drake Recap | Box Score | Mercer Photo Gallery

MOREHEAD STATE def. DAVIDSON, 45-14
MOREHEAD, Ky. - Morehead State rolled up a season-high 491 total yards en route to a 45-14 PFL victory against Davidson, Saturday afternoon, at Jayne Stadium.

Morehead State's defense limited Davidson to no points, eight first downs, 1-of-8 on third-down conversions and 112 total yards after halftime. It was the first time MSU has held a Division I opponent scoreless in a half since a win over Valparaiso on Nov. 13, 2010.

Gahafer completed 25-of-36 attempts for a career-best 238 yards and one touchdown. Freshman Jake Raymond was Morehead State's top receiver with five catches for 74 yards, while junior Brandon Bornhauser rushed nine times for 61 yards and two scores. The win was Rob Tenyer's first as a collegiate head coach. He was elevated to the head coaching position in December after serving as an assistant coach at Morehead State the past 12 seasons.

A career-long 63-yard touchdown was one of the highlights for wide receiver William Morris, who led the receivers with 122 receiving yards – his second consecutive game of 100 yards or more. Wideout Jeff McDaniels had three catches for 45 yards, including 22-yard reception, while Garrett Diehl caught four passes for 12 yards. Quarterback Jonathan Carkhuff was 17-of-33 for 192 yards and a touchdown on the day while being sacked four times.

MORE>> Morehead State Recap | Davidson Recap | Box Score

VALPARAISO def. CAMPBELL, 49-42
VALPARAISO, IND. – After both teams combined for over 1,000 yards of total offense in a 42-all regulation, Valparaiso quarterback Eric Hoffman connected on his fourth touchdown pass and the Crusader defense stalled Campbell at the one-yard line to preserve a 49-42 win in the Pioneer Football League opener for both teams, Saturday, at Brown Field.

The Camels amassed 567 yards of total offense in regulation, including 292 on the ground, knotting the game at 42-all on Kurt Odom's 14 yard run with 2:42 to play. Valparaiso drove inside Campbell territory, but with under a minute on the clock, Campbell's Matt Farris stopped Denzell Conway to give the Camels the ball with 30 seconds remaining.

With possession to begin the overtime period, Valparaiso running back Denzell Conway rushed for 14 yards on first down, then Hoffman found Andrew Cassara in the right back corner of the end zone to go ahead 49-42 after the extra point.

Campbell used four plays to get to the Crusaders one-yard line, but three straight rushes up the middle were stalled, giving the Crusaders the 49-42 overtime win.

Valparaiso's Hoffman threw for 407 yards and four touchdowns, including the overtime go-ahead score, connecting on 33-of-47 tries. Fred Gladney was targeting 10 times, hauling in 156 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Crusaders.

MORE>> Valparaiso Recap | Campbell Recap | Box Score