Box Score
| |
Photo by Geoff
Anderson
Wide receiver
Chandler Williams stiff arms a would-be
Gardner-Webb tackler en route to 132
reception yards on six catches.
|
Gardner-Webb quarterback Nick Roberts hit
William Andrews with a 30-yard overtime touchdown
pass in the Bulldogs’ come-from-behind
22-19 win over FIU Saturday afternoon in Boiling
Springs, N.C.
The loss spoiled a school-record four field
goal performance by Golden Panthers kicker
Adam
Moss, in a game dominated by FIU (2-9)
over the first three quarters. FIU fell to
2-9 on the year with the season finale next
Saturday at home against South Florida rival
and No. 15-ranked Florida Atlantic.
With the scored tied, 16-16, at the end of
regulation, Moss put FIU up 19-16 with a 22-yarder
on the Golden Panthers first possession of
overtime.
Gardner-Webb took possession on the 25-yard
line and, after a five-yard illegal procedure
penalty and an incomplete pass, faced a second
down and 15 from the thirty. On the Bulldogs
next play, Andrews beat FIU defender Everett
Baker to the back of the end zone for
the game-winning score.
It was the first-ever overtime for the Golden
Panthers and the first overtime win for GWU
(8-3) who won its 15th-straight home game
raised its overall record to 21-4 over the
last 25 games.
Despite the FIU defense making four interceptions
on the day and stymieing the Gardner-Web offense
to just 229 yards of offense over the first
three quarters, turnovers doomed the Golden
Panthers in the final stanza.
Up 16-7 with 9:23 to play, a penalty helped
force FIU to give up the ball. Gardner-Webb
then went on a nine-play, 75-yard drive highlighted
by a pair of Roberts-to-Andrews passes that
chewed up 40 yards. Chris Foster, who finished
the day as the Bulldogs leading ball carrier
with 101 yards on 23 attempts, scored his
second touchdown of the game from the one-yard
line.
On a fake extra-point attempt, FIU held,
and the Golden Panthers led, 16-13, with 5:42
remaining.
The FIU offense failed to move the ball on
its next possession and Gardner-Webb was given
another life with the ball at its own 36 and
4:12 to play. But on their second play from
scrimmage, Nick
Turnbull picked off Roberts’ pass
attempt at the FIU 41. With only 3:31 remaining
and the ball, the Golden Panthers hopes of
winning their first-ever road game seemed
in reach.
The drive was short-lived, however, as on
the first snap, running back Adam
Gorman picked up five yards, then was
stripped of the ball, recovered by GWU’s
Jensen Turner. It was Gorman’s second
fumble of the afternoon, overshadowing a 118-yard
rushing effort on 24 attempts, and set up
the Bulldogs at the FIU 46-yard line for one
final drive with 3:21 to go.
After a holding penalty moved GWU back to
its own 42, Roberts found Darin Bradford for
a 33-yard gain to the FIU 33. Roberts picked
up 10 yards on a run and then used Foster
for gains of three, five and two for a first-and-goal
at the six with 48.7 seconds remaining.
With an eye toward a winning touchdown in
regulation, Roberts hit Andrews with a pass
in the end zone that was stripped away on
a second-down play by Turnbull. On third down,
Roberts again looked to the air but lineman
Pedro Farias batted the ball down at the line
of scrimmage.
The Bulldogs had to settle for the tie with
a 21-yard field goal with 21.7 seconds showing
on the scoreboard.
“This was disheartening. Instead of
finding a way to win, we found a way to lose,”
said FIU head coach Don Strock. “I said
turnovers would decide this game, and they
did. So now, it’s back to the drawing
board. They played hard, but once again, they
didn’t play real smart and that’s
about the way we’ve been playing all
year. Maybe our guys aren’t mature enough.
What I do know is we had opportunities but
we didn’t take advantage of them, again.
That’s how you lose football games.”
FIU controlled much of the early going. The
Golden Panthers took the opening kickoff and
then went 74 yards on five plays for the game’s
first touchdown. Josh
Padrick hit Cory
McKinney with a 15-yard scoring pass and
a Moss extra point gave FIU a 7-0 lead just
2:30 into the game.
The Golden Panthers scored again on their
second possession, this time on a 25-yard
Moss field goal. On that drive, Padrick connected
with Harold
Leath for 15 yards that made Padrick the
first quarterback in FIU history to throw
for over 2,000.
The redshirt freshman finished the day completing
20-of-37 passing attempts for 324 yards, now
giving him 2,256 in only his tenth game at
quarterback.
A one-yard Foster touchdown run brought GWU
to within 10-7, with 12:59 to go in the second
quarter, before Moss hit his second field
goal, this time from 39 yards out, for a 13-7
FIU advantage.
FIU was given one more opportunity to score
in the first half after a Matt
Castillo interception in the closing minute
gave the Golden Panthers a first down at the
Gardner-Webb 24. Pass completions to Gorman
for six yards and McKinney for 14, gave FIU
a first-and-goal from the four. The drive
stalled and, on a fourth-and-goal from the
two, so Moss attempted his third field goal
with 1.7 seconds remaining. But a bad snap
foiled the attempt and FIU came away empty.
Moss closed out the FIU scoring at 4:23 to
play in the third quarter with a 43-yard field
goal, before the GWU comeback.
“We got to find way to win. Right now,
we’re still finding ways to lose,”
Strock said. “We’ll take a look
at the film. I’m sure some guys played
well and some guys need to step up to the
plate. It’s very disappointing, but
it’s another game on that learning curve
and hopefully we’ll learn from it.”
The Golden Panthers close out the 2003 campaign
at FIU Stadium next Saturday, Nov. 22 against
No. 15 Florida Atlantic. Call the FIU Ticket
Office at (305) FIU-GAME in Miami-Dade, toll
free at (866) 348-4263 or on the Internet
at fiusports.com.
