CHARLESTON S.C. – On Saturday afternoon, the Wofford College football team defeated The Citadel 31-11 at Johnson Hagood Stadium. The Terriers scored the first three touchdowns of the game on the way to claiming the outright Southern Conference Championship.  
 
Wofford, ranked #14 in the nation, is 8-3 overall and 7-1 in the Southern Conference. The Citadel is 6-6 on the season and 4-4 in league play. The Terriers were led by Nathan Walker with ten carries for 94 yards and two touchdowns, while Joe Newman was 5-of-7 passing and had 35 rushing yards on four carries. Brandon Rainey led the Bulldogs with 75 rushing yards on 23 attempts and he was 10-of-29 passing for 124 yards.
 
"It was a great season and we are excited about the 8-3 mark and winning the conference title outright," said Wofford head coach Josh Conklin. "We have things we have to take care of and things to work on, but this is a good spot to be in at the end of the season for us. We are playing really good football right now. To do what we did to these guys is remarkable as they are a really good football team. The committee should really look at our body of work and how well we are playing at the end of the season. We have only lost one after the 0-2 start and we are excited about what we have been doing and continue to do that moving forward."
 
The Citadel had the ball first and failed to convert a fourth-and-two on their side of the field. Wofford took advantage of the short field and after a pair of first downs Nathan Walker scored from two-yards out. The Terriers had a 7-0 lead at 10:55 in the first quarter. The Bulldogs had one first down before punting on their next drive. Wofford then used an 11-play drive to cover 72 yards, with Nathan Walker scoring from eight yards to give the Terriers a 14-0 lead at 2:42 in the opening quarter.
 
On their next drive, the Bulldogs had three first downs and then converted a fourth-and-two. After another first down, they were faced with a fourth-and-two from the 12-yard line. They gained only one yard and Wofford took over on downs. The Terriers began the drive with a 22-yard completion to T.J. Luther from Joe Newman. A fumbled snap was recovered for a loss by Newman and the Terriers punted. On third down, Keyvaun Cobb intercepted Brandon Rainey at the 43-yard line. Wofford went three-and-out and punted. The Citadel had one first down before punting. With the ball back with 1:25 left in the half, Wofford gained one first down.
 
To begin the second half, Wofford had three first downs before Jacquez Allen found a hole and went 40-yards for a touchdown. The Terriers had a 21-0 lead with 11:53 on the clock in the second quarter. The Citadel converted a fourth-and-one and gained three more first downs before kicking a 34-yard field goal to make it a 21-3 game at 5:12 in the third quarter. T.J. Luther took the ensuing kickoff back 78-yards, giving Wofford first down at the ten. On the first play, Blake Morgan found the endzone and the Terriers had a 28-3 lead with 4:54 on the clock.
 
The Bulldogs converted a fourth-and-two and added two more first downs. On fourth-and-one, the run was stopped for no gain and Wofford took over at the 26-yard line. The Terriers had one first down before punting. The Citadel had a fourth-and-six, but a sack by Robbie Armstrong gave the Terriers the ball at the 30-yard line. Nathan Walker had a first down run and a penalty gave Wofford first-and-goal. Luke Carter hit a 19-yard field goal for a 31-3 lead with 7:11 left in the game. After the Bulldogs converted a fourth-and-three with a 27-yard pass, a 31-yard touchdown pass to Dante Smith and the two-point conversion made it 31-11 with 4:45 on the clock. The on-side kick attempt went out of bounds and Wofford had the ball at midfield. The Terriers went three-and-out and punted. On the next drive by the Bulldogs, they had six first downs before a fourth-and-goal from the eleven-yard line. An incomplete pass turned the ball back to Wofford with 52 seconds remaining. The Terriers took a knee twice to end the game.
 
Wofford had 258 total yards, with 205 rushing yards. The Citadel had 336 total yards, 212 of which were rushing. Wofford had 16 first downs, while The Citadel had 21. Wofford was 5-of-9 on third down. The Citadel was 3-of-17 on third down and 4-of-9 on fourth down. Wofford was called for six penalties to seven for the Bulldogs. The Citadel had a 34:28 to 25:32 time of possession advantage.
 
Wofford vs. The Citadel Post-Game Notes
The Citadel leads the series 42-30-1, but the Terriers have won 18 of the last 20 meetings.
 
With the outright Southern Conference Championship title, the Terriers have now won seven since joining the league in 1997. Wofford is the first team to win three in a row since Chattanooga (2013, 2014, 2015).
 
The interception by Keyvaun Cobb in the second quarter was his second this season and the second of his career.
 
Luke Carter had one field goal and moved to first in all-time field goals made at 33 (David Marvin, 32). He is also first all-time in kicking points with 237 and made all 138 extra points in his career.
 
Robbie Armstrong led the team with nine tackles, including a sack.
 
Game captains were Joe Newman, Justus Basinger, Mason Alstatt, Jireh Wilson and Blake Morgan.    
 
Attendance was 6,844 at Johnson Hagood Stadium.
 
The Terriers find out their next opponent on Sunday, November 24 during the NCAA FCS Playoff Selection Show on ESPNU. The team will gather at 12:30 PM to watch the show in the volleyball facility at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. The public is invited to attend.