SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Wofford College football team defeated Tennessee Tech 34-14 on Saturday night at Gibbs Stadium. The Terriers rushed for 444 yards on 72 carries as they totaled 560 yards of offense in the game and held the Golden Eagles to under 300 total yards.
 
The Terriers improve to 1-1, while Tennessee Tech is 0-2. Wofford was led by Lorenzo Long with 88 rushing yards and a touchdown, while Will Gay, Ray Smith, Brad Butler and Evan Jacks all had 69 or more rushing yards. Nick Ward led the defensive effort with a team-high eight tackles and an interception. The Golden Eagles were led by Ladari Vanlier with 80 rushing yards, while quarterback Jared Davis was 21-of-35 passing for 163 yards.
 
"I think both quarterbacks executed well tonight," said head coach Mike Ayers. "The offensive line created space and our backs did a nice job. Our coaches did a nice job adjusting during the game on how they were playing us defensively. Tennessee Tech is a solid football team and everything we did we had to earn. I was pleased with the pass protection and did a nice job in the passing game. Defensively our guys did great and a part of the two scores by them was we did not get the job done on offense. We played hard and had a lot of young guys out there since we had a few starters out with nagging injuries. It was good to see them get a lot of reps. The biggest concern is kickoff coverage. We are not good in the phase and need to improve."
 
The Terriers had the ball first but failed to convert on a fourth-and-five and turned it over on downs. Tennessee Tech took over at the 45-yard line and after gaining three first downs had fourth-and-goal from the one yard line. Quarterback Jared Davis scored on the keeper for a 7-0 lead with 8:05 on the clock in the first quarter. Wofford used first down runs by Lorenzo Long, Ray Smith and Will Gay to move inside the 10-yard line. Lorenzo Long scored from three-yards out to tie the game at 7-7 with 5:11 on the clock.
 
On the next drive by the Golden Eagles, they gained one first down before having to punt. Will Gay ran for a first down for Wofford and then Brad Butler converted a fourth-and-one. With Evan Jacks in at quarterback, the drive continued and Chase Nelson scored from one-yard out for a 14-7 lead at 11:57 in the second quarter. Tennessee Tech drove deep into Wofford territory, but Nick Ward intercepted a pass at the six-yard line to end the scoring threat.
 
Wofford took over with 9:48 on the clock in the second quarter. After gaining three first downs, the Terriers were faced with a fourth-and-two. The pitch was fumbled and recovered by Tennessee Tech at the 41-yard line. After a first down, back-to-back penalties forced the Golden Eagles to punt with 3:37 left in the first half. Wofford was able to use a 27-yard run by Ray Smith and a pass interference call to move into the red zone. As time expired in the first half, David Marvin hit a 27-yard field goal for a 17-7 lead at the break.
 
The Golden Eagles began the second half with the ball and were able to drive inside the five yard line. On third-and-goal, Steven Cornellier forced a fumble that was recovered by Tyler Vaughn. Wofford took over at the six yard line and after a first down, Brad Butler ran for 30-yards down the far sideline to move across midfield. Brad Butler found Hunter Windham across the middle for a 25-yard touchdown pass with 7:59 left in the third quarter and a 24-7 lead.
 
On the ensuing kickoff, a long return was called back due to a penalty and the Golden Eagles started at the 10-yard line. They gained one first down before having to punt back to the Terriers. Wofford was able to drive down the field and added a 21-yard field goal by David Marvin to make it a 27-7 game with 14:21 remaining in the fourth quarter. Tennessee Tech went three-and-out and punted back to the Terriers. A long pass from Evan Jacks to Will Irwin moved the ball across midfield and Will Gay ended the drive with a one-yard run as Wofford took a 34-7 lead with 7:00 left in the game.
 
The Golden Eagles were then able to put together a 12-play drive that covered 60 yards and was capped by a 2-yard touchdown run by Jared Davis. Wofford got the ball back with 2:17 left in the game and holding a 34-14 lead. On the second play of the drive, the Terriers fumbled and the ball was recovered by Tennessee Tech at the 18-yard line. A sack by Miles Brown and an incomplete pass on fourth down enabled the Terriers to take a knee on the final play of the game.
 
Wofford had 560 total yards, with 444 on the ground. Tennessee Tech had 274 total yards, 163 of which were passing. Wofford had a 31 to 17 advantage in first downs. Wofford was 9-of-12 on third downs and 1-of-3 on fourth down. Tennessee Tech was 3-of-13 on third down and 3-of-4 on fourth down. Both teams were called for four penalties. Wofford had a 37:05 to 22:55 time of possession advantage.   
 
Wofford vs. Tennessee Tech Post-Game Notes
 
Wofford opened the home slate with a win at Gibbs Stadium for the 15^th straight season.
 
The Terriers defense did not allow a 100-yard rusher for the 15^th straight game.
 
There were no injuries of note in the contest. Several players, including OL T.J. Chamberlin, DL E.J. Speller, and S Jaleel Green, were held out of the game.
 
Nick Ward recorded his first career interception in the second quarter. Miles Brown recorded his first career sack in the fourth quarter. Brad Butler started for the first time in his career and threw his first touchdown pass in the third quarter.
 
With 72 rushing yards in the contest, Ray Smith crossed the 1,000 career rushing yards mark. He now has 1,070 yards to become the 63^rd Terrier to reach the milestone.
 
Game captains were Drake Michaelson, Brion Anderson, Zach Muller, and Anton Wahrby.
 
Attendance was 6,834 at Gibbs Stadium.
 
Wofford will face Idaho on September 19 at 5:00 p.m. (ET) in the second game this season against an FBS opponent.