EMORY, Va. – The Emory & Henry College Football Team (0-1, 0-0 ODAC) suffered a 39-38 loss to open the season last week at Ferrum College (1-0, 0-0 USA South) in the inaugural Crooked Road Classic. It was a back-and-forth game that saw three touchdowns scored in the final 90 seconds. The Wasps accumulated 346 yards of offense, but allowed 401 yards by the Panthers. E&H looks to pick up its first victory of the season on Saturday at home against Brevard College (0-1, 0-0 SAC).
Series History
This is the first-ever meeting against Brevard College in football.
Emory & Henry
Last week, quarterback Kevin Saxton (Monroe, N.C.) led the Wasps to five scoring drives. Saxton was masterful in the short passing game completing 82.7% of passes inside 10 yards. However, the junior only connected on 1-of-10 attempts which traveled 20 yards or more down the field. It was a coming out party for wide receiver Jesse Santiago (Yorktown, Va.) as the sophomore caught eight passes for 86 yards and a touchdown in his Emory & Henry debut. The William & Mary transfer also had a 56=yard punt return, but it was negated due to penalty. Sophomore Sam Wagner (Marion, Va.) led the Wasps in rushing with 46 yards and two touchdowns in the game versus Ferrum.
On defense, sophomore Davon Keith (Columbia, S.C.) was a mainstay in the Panthers' backfield. The 6-3, 245-pound defensive end tallied eight tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack in the game. Sophomore safety Justin Banks (Coeburn, Va.) paced the Wasps with 11 tackles while Rhasheen Williams (Charlotte, N.C.) tacked on 10 stops. From the other safety position, sophomore Zeke Vance (Pounding Mill, Va.) tallied E&H's only takeaway, as picked off a pass midway through the third quarter for his first career interception.
On special teams, freshman running back Kendrick Kube (Culpeper, Va.) scored on a 97-yard kickoff return with a minute to go in the game. The touchdown put the Wasps back ahead 38-31 after the Panthers tied the game on the preceding drive. The play was voted as the ODAC Play of the Week for Week One.
Brevard
The Tornados are in the midst of a transition period from NCAA Division II to Division III. Brevard has been accepted as a member of the USA South Athletic Conference and will begin play in the 2017 season. Last week, BC fell in its season opener to East Stroudsburg University, 49-14. Brevard employs a triple option offense in which the ground game is the main focus. Last Thursday, the Tornados gained 162 rushing yards but only threw for 15 yards. Quarterback Tyler Gregory attempted just five passes, but ran the ball 14 times. Brevard had four players rush for 40 yards in the opening week loss. The Emory & Henry defense will need to corral the Tornados' rushing attack to earn their first victory of the season.
Kickoff is set for 3:00 p.m. at Fred Selfe Stadium on the campus of Emory & Henry College this Saturday. Fans are reminded that with the different start time for Saturday's game, the tailgating areas will open at 11:00 a.m., four hours prior to kickoff.
---E&H---