Thursday, September 1
Macon, Ga.
7 PM
Mercer University
0-1 , 0-1
23
vs
24
The Citadel
1-0 , 1-0
1st quarter1st
2nd quarter2nd
3rd quarter3rd
4th quarter4th
FinalF
The Citadel
21
0
0
3
24
Mercer
10
10
3
0
23
Team Stats
CIT
MER
Total Yards
341
392
Pass Yards
79
172
Rushing Yards
262
220
Penalty Yards
17
103
1st Downs
17
18
3rd Downs
7
3
4th Downs
0
0
TOP
28:40
31:20
1st Quarter
CIT 7, MER 0
CIT - Tyler Renew 70 yd run (Cody Clark kick), 2 plays, 75 yards, TOP 0:39
CIT 14, MER 0
CIT - Cam Jackson 8 yd run (Cody Clark kick), 4 plays, 21 yards, TOP 1:11
CIT 14, MER 3
MER - Cole Fisher 26 yd field goal 12 plays, 67 yards, TOP 5:07
CIT 21, MER 3
CIT - Reggie Williams 29 yd run (Cody Clark kick), 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:58
CIT 21, MER 10
MER - John Russ 38 yd run (Cole Fisher kick), 5 plays, 62 yards, TOP 2:30
2nd Quarter
CIT 21, MER 13
MER - Cole Fisher 31 yd field goal 10 plays, 62 yards, TOP 4:06
CIT 21, MER 20
MER - John Russ 1 yd run (Cole Fisher kick), 4 plays, 59 yards, TOP 1:54
3rd Quarter
CIT 21, MER 23
MER - Cole Fisher 47 yd field goal 11 plays, 46 yards, TOP 4:50
4th Quarter
CIT 24, MER 23
CIT - Cody Clark 35 yd field goal 15 plays, 65 yards, TOP 7:09
Players Mentioned
LB
/ Football
K
/ Football
WR
/ Football
DB
/ Football
OL
/ Football
RB
/ Football
LB
/ FootballMercer Drops 24-23 Decision to No. 15 The Citadel
9/1/2016 11:04:00 PM | Football
MACON, Ga. – Mercer rallied back from a 21-3 deficit to take a two-point lead early in the third quarter but the 15th-ranked Bulldogs kicked a game-winning 35-yard field goal with 2:20 left in the game as the Bears dropped the season opener, 24-23, to No. 15 The Citadel.
HEAD COACH BOBBY LAMB'S TAKE
"I'm certainly disappointed in the outcome of tonight's game. I'm proud of our team for fighting back. You're down 14-0 only three minutes into the game, you've given up a long play, you [committed] a turnover and things aren't looking good. We rebounded with a great effort, but we made way too many mistakes, penalty-wise. We had 10 penalties to their one and that's not Mercer football."
TURNING POINT
The Citadel's Cody Clark hit a 35-yard field goal with 2:16 remaining in the game to give the Bulldogs a one-point advantage. Despite Mercer's defense holding The Citadel on its next drive with a missed field goal, John Russ' pass was intercepted with 17 seconds left on the clock to seal the outcome.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Bears and Bulldogs played to a near deadlock in the first half, as The Citadel took a 21-20 lead into the halftime break. Despite the close score, the game was highlighted by two periods of dominance. Mercer got off to a sluggish start and the Bulldogs wasted no time capitalizing, as the visitors jumped out to a 21-3 start on rushing touchdowns from Tyler Renew (70 yards), Cam Jackson (eight yards) and Reggie Williams (29 yards).
The Bears settled into the game toward the end of the opening quarter, putting together a five-play, 62-yard drive for their first touchdown to make the score 21-10. The drive was capped by a 38-yard touchdown scamper from senior quarterback John Russ. After a defensive stop forced a Bulldog punt, the Bears made it a one-possession game at 21-13, thanks to a 31-yard field goal from Cole Fisher. Russ then found the end zone again, scoring on a quarterback sneak from the 1-yard line to draw the Bears within one at 21-20. The touchdown was set up by a huge 47-yard completion from Russ to Marquise Irvin that put Mercer on the doorstep.
The Bears had all of the momentum coming out of the intermission and completed the impressive comeback with a career-best 47-yard field goal from Fisher on the opening drive, putting Mercer on top for the first time at 23-21. After all of the opening offensive fireworks, both team's defenses stepped up in the third and recorded four consecutive defensive stops to move the game to the final 15 minutes of regulation.
The Citadel fought back and regained the lead at 24-23 with 2:20 left in the fourth quarter off a 35-yard field goal from Cody Clark. The three points came at the end of a methodical 15-play, 65-yard drive that took 7:09 off the clock. The drive turned out to be the deciding factor in the opener, as Mercer turned the ball over on downs with 1:22 left in the game to give The Citadel the victory.
OFFENSIVE STAR
Russ' fingerprints were all over the game for the Bears, as the senior signal-caller's experience was evident throughout the 60 minutes of play. The Buford, Georgia native finished 15-for-25 through the air for 172 yards and was second on the team in rushing with 74 yards on 10 attempts, including two rushing touchdowns.
DEFENSIVE STANDOUT
Senior linebacker Tyler Ward led the Mercer defense, posting nine tackles, five of the solo variety, to lead the team in the category. Ward also recorded a team-best two tackles for loss.
RECORDS UPDATE
Mercer starts off the season with a record of 0-1 on the season and in the SoCon, while No. 15 The Citadel begins 1-0 on the year and in conference play.
TEAM NOTES
- The Bears are now 21-22 all-time in season openers, including a 3-1 mark since reinstating the program in 2013. Furthermore, Mercer is 3-1 in home openers since bringing football back to Macon.
- Mercer is 4-9-1 against The Citadel in the all-time series, including a mark of 0-3 when playing in Macon.
- The last three losses to the Citadel have come by a combined five points.
- The Orange and Black is 1-3 all-time against ranked opponents.
- QB John Russ and C Kirby Southard made their 36th consecutive starts for the Bears.
- After leading the nation with the fewest penalties last year, Mercer committed a whopping 10 penalties for 103 yards in the game. The Bears averaged only 28.5 yards penalized last season.
- Mercer scored 20 unanswered points between the first and third quarters over a span of 22:18 on the game clock.
- Russ scored Mercer's first touchdown of the season on a 38-yard run in the first quarter and added a score on a QB sneak in the second. The senior now has 26 rushing touchdowns in his career.
- Payton Usher's 89 rushing yards are the most the senior has recorded in a game since running for 115 yards against Carnegie Mellon (10/19/13) during his freshman season.
- Marquise Irvin was Mercer's standout receiver, posting career highs in receptions (eight) and receiving yards (81).
- Tyler Ward led the Bears with nine tackles, including a team-high two tackles for loss.
- In addition to Ward, Jeremy James and LeMarkus Bailey each tallied a tackle for a loss.
- Cole Fisher had a career evening. The sophomore went a personal-best 3-for-3 on field goal attempts, recording makes from 47, 31 and 26 yards. Fisher is now 4-for-4 in his Mercer career.
- Fisher's 47-yard field goal is the longest make of the sophomore's career.
Mercer heads to Atlanta on Saturday, Sept. 10 to play at Georgia Tech. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. at Bobby Dodd Stadium. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN3.
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How to Follow the Bears:
For complete coverage of Mercer Football, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerFootball (Twitter), /MercerFootball (Facebook) and @MercerFootball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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