Opportunistic Eagles grit out 31-28 OT win over No. 24/23 Wingate
September 21, 2024

Opportunistic Eagles grit out 31-28 OT win over No. 24/23 Wingate

JEFFRESON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (3-0, 1-0 South Atlantic Conference) and its triple option attack only rushed for 57 yards against No. 24/23 Wingate’s (2-1, 0-1 SAC) vaunted defensive line. 

 

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JEFFRESON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (3-0, 1-0 South Atlantic Conference) and its triple option attack only rushed for 57 yards against No. 24/23 Wingate's (2-1, 0-1 SAC) vaunted defensive line. 

However, C-N found creative ways to score, took advantage of Wingate miscues and only committed one penalty after halftime to scoot away from Burke-Tarr Stadium Saturday afternoon with a 31-28 overtime win and its first 3-0 start in 11 years. 

The Eagles found three scores through the air, returned a botched PAT for a two-point defensive PAT, got an overtime forcing 69-yard punt from Grayson Campbell and saw Bennett Smith drill three field goals, including a 34-yard game winner in overtime. 

The intangibles made up for the fact that Carson-Newman was held to its lowest rushing output while running the triple option this century.  Since 2000 as a triple-option team, Carson-Newman had never won a game when it rushed for less than 100 yards until Saturday.  Even among the spread attack C-N used the last three years, only one contest with fewer than 100 yards rushing was a win (a 2022 triumph at Emry & Henry).   

"We just found a way," Carson-Newman head football coach Ashley Ingram said. "We played a really good football team. A really experienced football team. They're a lot of what we would like to emulate. Five of their front seven are graduate students and they were not going to let us run the ball. They were playing the run with all 11 and for us to go out." 

Compounding the Eagles run game issues were injuries at quarterback.  Starter Teddy Gleaton was held out from his foot injury that he sustained at West Virginia State. Tre Luttrell went down early in the second quarter after a blow to his knee.  Third-string QB Gavin Gosnell exited in overtime after a shot to his head that knocked off his helmet.  Fourth-string quarterback Zane Whitson was held out after not practicing all week after a death in his family. That led Army Prep transfer Justin Johnson to take the snaps in OT that set up Smith's eventual game-winner. 

"Our leaders came through," Ingram said. "I told the guys, we are what we are, talent-wise. We just kept preaching that if we could be the closest team in the country, if we would be the mentally toughest team in the country, we'd find a way to win games like this. It's a testament to their toughness and their buying in to what we're preaching. I give all the credit to our players and our coaches. We found a way to beat a team that's probably better than us right now. We found a way to win."

Wingate outgained C-N 347-235 in total offense – the largest disparity in favor of C-N's foe in an Eagle win since West Georgia outgained the Eagles 322-233 in a 14-10 squeaker for C-N in 2005 in Rome, Ga. 

Carson-Newman produced loads of special moments from intangibles that helped add up to the victory. 

C-N built a 10-0 first quarter lead.  C-N opened the scoring with a Smith 37-yard field goal on the Eagles opening drive. Wingate was driving to tie with Caleb Bonesteel attempting a 40-yarder.  Kendall Williams shot around the line to block the kick, which Champ Baker scooped up and returned out to the C-N 45.

With quality field position, the Eagles matched down the field in four plays and found the end zone when Luttrell dumped a ball to a wide open Jeremiah Carroll along the rear of the pain for six.  The four-yard score and subsequent field goal gave the Eagles a 10-0 lead.

The No. 23 Bulldogs answered.  After the teams traded punts, the Bulldogs got on track offensively with their longest scoring drive of the day.  Wingate QB Brooks Bentley got the drive started with a 40-yard post pattern to Evan McCray.  Two plays later, Ethan Wallace shimmied into the end zone for his first touchdown of the season. 

However, another one of those intangible moments happened for C-N on the ensuing PAT. Holder Brandon Teeter bobbled the snap and tried to run an impromptu two-point conversion in.  Major Williams slung him down, forced a fumble and scooped the ball up, returning it 85 yards the other way for a defensive PAT and two points for C-N. 

That made it 12-6 Eagles with 38 seconds left in the first quarter.  It was Carson-Newman's first defensive PAT in 3,983 days, since Jarrett East-Brown returned a blocked extra point against North Greenville in 2013.  Williams scored C-N's fifth all-time defensive PAT and its first that came as a result of a fumble.   

C-N's lead was only temporary.  Wingate counted with 8:50 to go in the second to hand C-N its first deficit of the season.  Wallace capped a four-play, 57-yard drive with a nine-yard sprint around left tackle to put the Bulldogs ahead 13-12. 

The third intangible moment that set C-N up for success in the first half came two drives later.  Major Williams snared a third-down jump ball for the only turnover of the day for either team, returning it 12 yards down to the Wingate 23 to set C-N up with a short field.  Two plays later, Gosnell threw a dart to Cade Meeks along the right side of the goal line for six.  C-N went for two to make it a more traditional seven-point game, but Cam Ferguson's rush attempt came up short, leaving C-N in front 18-13. 

"We had no turnovers, we had no fumbles, no balls on the ground, we didn't throw an interception," Ingram said. "We had a lot less penalties than they did. Grayson Campbell had almost a 70-yard punt to save the day and Bennett Smith hits two big field goals and hits one in overtime to win it. We just found a way.

"If one of them (the special teams plays) doesn't happen, we don't win the game. It doesn't get to overtime. You talk about a team effort. Our defense hung in there against a really good opponent. They kept clawing and scratching. The offense made some plays. And the special teams won the game for us. I couldn't be more happy for the guys. They've worked. They deserve this."

The Bulldogs grabbed the lead before the break, taking a 20-18 lead into the halftime locker room.  Bentley hit Austin Cain on a play action pass over the left hashes with 38 seconds left in the second quarter from 19 yards away. 

However, the third quarter belonged to C-N.  The Eagles forced Wingate into a trio of three-and-outs. 

C-N retook the lead on Smith's 38-yard field goal on C-N's first drive of the second half.  The possession covered 56 yards, 45 of which came from three Wingate penalties, a horse collar, pass interference and a facemask. 

After Wingate's second three-and-out, the Eagles converted on a pair of third-and-longs.  Gosnell hit Don Bradley for 18 yards against the Bulldogs' zone on a third-and-11 play to get C-N down to the Wingate 29.  Then, facing third-and-16, Gosnell shot a screen to Carroll along the right sideline.  A stiff-arm to a Wingate defender and 35 yards later, Carroll was in the end zone to give C-N a 28-20 lead with 2:02 left in the third. 

"I just want to say thank you to Coach Ingram and thank you to the most highest God for putting me in position to make those catches," Carroll said.  "We came into the game with two main things, (to be) the toughest team and the closest team. We just wanted to win. We fought to the end."

However, C-N's offensive fortunes turned south in the fourth.  The Eagles went three-and-out on their four remaining possessions of the game.  C-N ran 12 plays and gained six yards in the final 15 minutes.

Eventually, Wingate won the field position battle.  Carlos Estranza capped a three-play, 53-yard drive with 6:18 to go with a 15-yard out route for a score along the left-hand side of the end zone.  The subsequent two-point conversion leveled the Bulldogs with the Eagles at 28. 

Wingate's next possession stalled out at the C-N 25, instead of opting for a potential go-ahead field goal, the Bulldogs called for time with 109 seconds left on fourth down.  Wingate took a shot to the endzone, however, Bentley's pass to Evan McCray was broken up by Kendall Williams. 

C-N stalled out on its next possession, necessitating another punt with 73 seconds left.  Grayson Campbell uncorked a beauty – a 69-yard cannon shot that kicked at the 20 and bounced out of bounds at the two.  The 69-yard punt virtually assured overtime and registered as the fifth-long punt in school history. 

In the overtime session, C-N stiffened, with Brandon Dumezil and Martavis Mason sacking Bentley back to the 25 to set up a Mason Suber 42-yard field goal. He pushed his first career attempt wide right. 

With Johnson helming the offense in the overtime session, the Eagles ran down to the 17 to set up Smith's game-winner.  He stroked it dead center through the uprights from 34 yards out to set off a celebration with Smith getting lifted. 

"Going into it, we were sticking with what we do in practice," Smith said. "It was just another field goal. It was a huge win, a great team effort. We couldn't have done it without each other. It was just playing as the closest team."

Smith becomes the first Eagle kicker to walk-off a game with a game-winning field goal since Christian Erwin's 44-yard blast to beat UVA Wise in overtime in the 2021 spring CoVID season. 

Smith joins Carson Wise (2015) as Eagles who have used game-winning, OT kicks to beat Wingate. He's also the first kicker for C-N to make three or more field goals in a game since Erwin's four against the Highland Cavaliers.  

"We had a kicking competition this week to make a decision on our starting place kicker. He didn't bat an eye," Ingram said. "He kicked pretty good this week and we decided to stick with him. I think that was a good decision."

The overtime win is Carson-Newman's eighth all-time.  C-N is 8-4 all-time in games requiring bonus football.  Wingate is the Eagles' most-frequent overtime team, with this being the third game with the Bulldogs tied at the end of regulation.  C-N won in OT against Wingate in 2015 at Irwin Belk Stadium and lost in 2010, 38-35 at Burke-Tarr. 

Christian Hicks and Major Williams led C-N defensively, with both tallying 10 tackles. Hicks at two stops for loss and a sack.  Williams had half a sack and the pick. 

Carson-Newman registered seven sacks on the day, tied for the sixth-most in a single game in school history.  Cruz Temple had 1.5 of those sacks. 

Ryan Green had 17 tackles to guide Wingate's defense.  Marquise Fleming had eight stops, 1.5 sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss.

Jayden Sullins led C-N on the ground with 14 carries for 29 yards.  Carroll was C-N's top offensive producer, catching three passes for 88 yards and the two scores. He also ran the ball once for 12 yards. 

Luttrell was 3-for-3 through the air for 101 yards and a score before exiting. 

Bentley had a quality day through the air for Wingate offensively.  He completed 15-of-25 passes for 235 yards and two scores.  Evan McCray was his top target, catching five passes for 104 yards. 

Wallace ran the ball 13 times for 77 yards to lead Wingate on the ground. 

Carson-Newman hits the road to take on Catawba on Sept. 28 at 6 p.m.  Coverage from Shuford Stadium starts at 5 p.m. on the Eagle Sports Network with the AEC Tailgate Show on Joy 620 (WRJZ-AM, Knoxville), MIX 105.5 (WSEV-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live.    

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