Turnovers haunt Paladins against Mountaineers

The Furman Paladins lost a heartbreaker in the fourth quarter to the second-ranked Appalachian State Mountaineers last Saturday in Boone, N.C. Armanti Edwards threw two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to lead the Mountaineers to a 26-14 victory over the Paladins.Appalachian State struck first as Edwards scored on a 14-yard touchdown run early in the first quarter. However, kicker Jason Vitaris failed to convert the extra point.

Late in the first quarter the Paladins were poised to strike back when Sederrik Cunningham, after an 11-yard run, fumbled the ball on the Appalachian State four yard line. The ball was recovered by Mountaineer defender D.J. Smith on the one yard line.

The Appalachian State offense was quick to respond, scoring on a four-yard run by Josh Jackson, which was set up by an 84-yard run by Devin Radford.

Furman scored on its next possession as running back Tersoo Uhaa cut the Mountaineer lead to six with a four-yard touchdown run.

"We came out in the game kind of slow," said Uhaa. "We weren't executing our plays like we are capable of doing. But soon enough we got it rolling, and the offensive line did an excellent job of opening up holes so we could establish a solid running game, which opened up the passing game."

Late in the second quarter the Paladins gave up another scoring opportunity as Uhaa fumbled the ball on the Appalachian State 14 yard line, where it was recovered by Appalachian State defender Jaque Roman.

Having given up two scoring opportunities, the Paladins went into halftime trailing 13-7.

Furman started the second half with possession but quickly gave it away as a Jordan Sorrells pass was intercepted by Mark LeGree.

The Paladins received a gift of their own later in the third quarter, however, as senior linebacker Brandon Williams recovered an Appalachian State fumble on the Mountaineer 29 yard line.

Furman capitalized on the error and scored on another touchdown run by Uhaa.

"We ran the ball really well of tackle," said receiver David Hendrix. "The offensive line was blowing Appalachian State off the line and getting our backs a lot of yards per carry."

With less than a quarter remaining the Paladins held a one-point lead against the rival Mountaineers.

Appalachian state struck back quickly, only needing three plays, the last of which being a 17-yard touchdown pass from Edwards to Ben Jorden.

The Paladins marched down the field on their next possession until a Mountaineer sack forced a Sorrells fumble. Appalachian State defender D.J. Smith eventually recovered the ball, ruining the Paladin's chances at a comeback.

The Appalachian State offense then chewed up some clock on their way to scoring on a 10-play, 46-yard drive, capped off by a 15-yard pass from Edwards to T.J. Courmen.

In one last push the Paladin offense drove 74 yards in 12 plays, but needing two touchdowns to win, the offense tried to convert on fourth and four on the Mountaineer 12 yard line. Sorrells's pass was incomplete and Appalachian State regained control and milked the clock, ending the game.

The loss brings the Paladins down to 6-3 (3-2 in SoCon) while the Mountaineers improved to 6-2 (4-0 in SoCon).

The Paladin offense accounted for 354 yards while the defense only allowed 319 yards. The story of the game was turnovers. The Paladins turned the ball over five times, including three times inside the red zone, while the Mountaineers only gave the ball up twice.

"Appalachian State didn't stop us. We stopped ourselves," said Hendrix. "Turnovers can kill a team, and in this instance they did."

Uhaa led the Paladin offense with 99 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

The Furman defense held Edwards to 182 passing yards and only 16 rushing yards on 16 carries. Max Lerner had a team-high ten tackles, while William Middleton and Gaines Burnett each recorded a sack on the elusive Edwards.

"The defense managed the Appalachian State power offense," said Middleton. "But as a team we did not do what we needed to win the game."

The Paladins are on the road again this week as they face Samford, the newest member of the Southern Conference. The Bulldogs are led by their sophomore running back Chris Evans, who averages 128 rushing yards per game and has nine touchdowns in seven games this season.