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ELON, N.C. – Wofford College defeated Elon 55-20 on Saturday afternoon at Rhodes Stadium. Wofford scored touchdowns on four of their first five possessions to take a 34-13 lead at the half. Elon entered the game ranked third in the nation, while Wofford was fourth.
The Terriers are 6-1 on the season (4-0 SoCon) and Elon is 7-2 overall and 5-1 in the Southern Conference. Wofford was led on offense by Dane Romero with three touchdowns and 87 yards on 21 carries. Andy Strickland had 101 receiving yards on six catches. Four players on the defense had sacks for Wofford and James Mitchell led the team with ten tackles. Elon receiver Terrell Hudgins had 120 yards and a touchdown on eleven catches.
“Our offensive and defensive staffs did an excellent job of preparing our guys,” said head coach Mike Ayers. “We played hard and we played well. Elon is a quality football team. We can in here and came after them and did what we are capable of doing. This win adds confidence for our next step and that next step is in Boone on Friday night. Today was a challenge for us and the next game will be as well. I could not be happier with the win and now we have a quick turn-around.”
The Terriers had the opening kickoff for 8:08 as they drove 91 yards and scored on a one yard run by Dane Romero. A key play on the drive was a fourth-and-three that was converted by Jeremy Marshall. On the first possession by the Phoenix, Scott Riddle was intercepted by Tommy Irvin.
After the turnover, Wofford converted a fourth-and-one as they drove 42 yards in eight plays with Dane Romero scoring his second touchdown of the day on an eight yard run for a 14-0 lead at 3:11 in the first quarter.
With the ball back, Elon quarterback Scott Riddle was sacked by Mitch Clark on the first play and it was a three-and-out for the Phoenix. After the punt, Wofford went three-and-out and returned the punt.
The Phoenix were able to put together an eight play drive that was capped by a 13-yard touchdown pass from Riddle to Terrell Hudgins for a 14-7 game at 12:47 in the second quarter. Wofford answered with a touchdown drive as well, with Ben Widmyer scoring from ten yards out to cap a ten-play drive for a 21-7 lead at 9:48.
Elon was able to put together a drive that included two first down runs by Brandon Newsome, but the Phoenix stalled and had to settle for a 45-yard field goal by Andrew Wilcox with 7:19 left in the second quarter. The Terriers wasted little time in adding to the lead when Ben Widmyer found Andy Strickland for a 59-yard touchdown reception to take a 28-10 lead.
With another three-and-out forced by the Wofford defense, the Terriers got the ball back with 3:38 left in the first half. However Wofford did not gain a first down and was forced to punt. Elon turned the ball over again when Kendall Bratcher picked off Scott Riddle and returned the ball 30-yards to the Elon 35-yard line with 1:36 left in the half.
The Terriers took advantage of the turnover with a one-yard touchdown run by Ben Widmyer. Patrick Mugan hit the extra point off the right upright and Wofford led 34-10 with 24 seconds left in the half. The Phoenix returned the kickoff to the Wofford 42-yard line and were able to get a 42-yard field goal from Andrew Wilcox as time expired in the half for a 34-13 score at the half.
On the opening drive of the second half, Elon was helped by a pass interference call and a personal foul on Wofford as they scored on a touchdown from Scott Riddle to Bo Williamson for a five-yard strike. Elon pulled to 34-20 with 8:57 in the third quarter.
The Terriers then were able to put together a six play, 60-yard drive, which included a 15-yard roughing the passer call against Elon. Dan Romero capped the drive with a one-yard touchdown run to give Wofford a 41-20 lead with 6:26 left in the third quarter.
Elon put together a drive with four first downs, but a holding call and a fumble pushed the Phoenix back. On fourth-and-twelve, Elon had an incomplete pass and turned the ball over on downs. Back on offense, the Terriers scored on a three-yard run by Mitch Allen to take a 48-20 lead with 10:19 in the fourth quarter.
After an interception thrown by Scott Riddle and picked off by Hunter Hobson, Wofford was able to add to the lead with a two-yard run by Eric Breitenstein for a 55-20 score with 6:06 left in the game. Elon turned it over on downs on their next drive, but got the ball back when Wofford punted. The Terriers sealed the win when Brad Miller sacked Donny Kirby and caused a fumble that was recovered by Cody Van Der Linden.
Wofford had a 473 to 338 advantage in total yards and a 303 to 62 advantage in rushing yards. The Wofford defense had four sacks, while the Terriers offensive line did not allow a sack.
Up next, the Terriers will play at Appalachian State on Friday, October 31, which will be broadcast on ESPN2. Appalachian won 26-14 over Furman on Saturday.
Wofford vs. Elon
Post-Game Notes
Wofford’s opening drive of 18 plays was the longest of the season.
Andy Strickland recorded his first career 100-yard receiving game. It also was the first 100-yard receiving game for Wofford since Shiel Wood had 104 yard on November 19, 2005 against Gardner-Webb.
Landon Bennett saw his first action of his career at punter and had three punts for a 35.7 average.
Kendall Bratcher had his first career interception in the second quarter and returned it 30 yards, while Hunter Hobson had his first interception in the fourth quarter. Tommy Irvin had his first career interception in the first quarter.
Dan Romero scored three touchdowns in a game for the third time this season.
Wofford has scored 38 or more points in six of the seven games this season. The only game they were held to under 38 points was the 23-13 loss at South Carolina.
The Wofford offensive line did not allow a sack for the sixth time in seven games this season.
Attendance was 7,874 at Rhodes Stadium.
