Sun Belt Week 1 Recap
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The college football season kicked off this weekend, and there were some big games for several Sun Belt teams. There were some tests against Power 4 schools, giving some of these Sun Belt teams a chance to measure themselves against the higher end talent.
Sun Belt Week 1 Recap
Coastal Carolina at West Virginia
The Chanticleers started out slow and fought their way back, but weren’t able to do enough to win the game. The Mountaineers won 31-24.
It was essentially a tale of two halves in this one. The Mountaineers dominated the first 30 minutes, as they entered halftime with a 24-0 lead.
The Chanticleers clawed their way back and cut it to 31-24 with 32 seconds left, but the Mountaineers recovered the onside kick to end the game.
The Mountaineers got off to a quick start with Cam Cook rushing for 72 yards on the first play from scrimmage. A play later Cook punched it in from three yards out 47 seconds into the game.
Later in the quarter, quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. connected with Armoni Weaver for a 49-yard touchdown, giving them a 14-0 lead.
The Mountaineers continued extending their lead in the second as a field goal and another touchdown run from Cook gave them a 24-0 lead before the half.
Coastal Carolina got on the board late in the third after Deuce Bailey connected with Clayton Coppock Jr. for a 34-yard touchdown. Early in the fourth, Bailey and Colton Hinton connected for a score, cutting the West Virginia lead to 24-14.
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Hawkins Jr. responded late in the fourth with an 11-yard run to push the lead back to 17. The Chanticleers scored two more times afterward, but still fell short.
Hawkins Jr. had an impressive debut for West Virginia, completing 11 of his 14 passes for 132 yards while also adding 103 yards on the ground.
The Mountaineers dominated this game on the ground, as they ran for 281 yards on the afternoon. The Chanticleers didn’t have that same success as they could only muster up 52 yards on 27 carries.
After an offseason of multiple quarterbacks competing for the starting role, Bailey was the one who got the nod to start. Bailey produced well in his first game as a Chanticleer, completing 21-for-37 passes with 373 yards and three touchdowns to zero interceptions. Two of his touchdowns went to Coppock Jr., who caught four passes for 83 yards.
Marshall at Penn State
Penn State opened up the Matt Campbell era in dominant fashion, blasting Marshall 45-0 at Beaver Stadium.
Penn State quarterback Rocco Becht played his first game after offseason labrum surgery. He completed 13-of-18 passes and threw four touchdowns.
Penn State jumped on them early with 17 points in the first quarter, with two of Becht’s touchdowns coming from passes to Koby Howard and Brett Eskildsen. The Nittany Lions recorded another touchdown with 1:18 left in the second quarter, as Benjamin Brahmer was on the receiving end of one of Becht’s touchdowns.
In the third quarter, the Nittany Lions shut the door on the Thundering Herd with a Zay Robinson touchdown grab and Quinton Martin Jr. rushing it in from 6 yards out, making the score 38-0.
Cam Wallace added to the onslaught, recording another touchdown for the Nittany Lions in the fourth to increase the lead to 45-0.
Marshall had a rough afternoon on both sides. Offensively, the Thundering Herd recorded 147 yards and went 1-for-11 on third down.
Quarterback Carlos Del Rio Wilson, who was the preseason Sun Belt Player of the Year, had a quiet game, only 102 yards passing and 30 yards rushing.
Defensively, they allowed 324 yards through the air and 163 on the ground.
Overall, the Penn State victory wasn’t a surprise as the Nittany Lions were a 23.5-point favorite. But a 45-0 beatdown will be a wake-up call for Marshall.
Liberty at James Madison
James Madison entered their Sun Belt title defense with a lot of questions, specifically at quarterback. Those questions will probably continue.
In the 20-13 victory over Liberty, the Dukes used both JC Evans and Camden Coleman throughout the contest. Both players threw nine passes, with Evans completing seven for 61 yards and Coleman completing five for 57 yards. Evans also showed his ability as a runner with nine carries for 69 yards.
George Pettaway recorded the first score for the Dukes in the first quarter after a touchdown pass for the 7-0 lead. After both teams traded field goals in the second, Evans connected with Charles Scott on the left side of the field, and he broke a tackle for a five-yard touchdown, giving the Dukes a 17-3 lead.
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Liberty would score a field goal right before the half, cutting the lead to 17-6.
James Madison scored a field goal early in the third for their last score of the game.
For Liberty, Deshawn Purdie found Makai Jackson early in the fourth for a touchdown, bringing it back to a one-score game.
The two-quarterback rotation looks like something they will continue to do, especially after head coach Billy Napier noted postgame that they are looking to create depth at all positions, including the quarterback spot so both Evans and Coleman will continue to play as the season progresses.
The Dukes were able to rely on their defense for the afternoon. The Flames weren’t able to gain any consistency running the football, recording just 91 yards on 2.4 yards per carry.
The defense also closed out the game for the Dukes, causing an incompletion on 4th-and-2 with 2:16 left in the game.
It’s only the first game of the season, but JMU’s defense replicated the performance from last season, while the offense will have to catch up.
Sun Belt Week 1 other scores
Georgia State 59, North Carolina A&T 10
Appalachian State 55, Maine 3
Southern Miss 49, Alcorn State 3
Old Dominion 31, Norfolk State 10
South Alabama 39, Southeastern Louisiana 14
Arkansas State 24, Memphis 42
Georgia Southern 31, Charleston Southern 0
Troy 24, Sam Houston 21
Louisiana Tech 80, Northwestern State 6
ULM 13, Mississippi State 62
Louisiana 28, Lamar 7
Main Image: Matthew O’Haren-Imagn Images
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