Mercer Earns First Win in Drew Cronic Era

Saturday, February 27

Macon, Ga.

3:30 p.m.

Mercer University

1-4 , 1-1

The Citadel

0-5 , 0-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

The Citadel

Mercer

Photo by: Will Hanley

2/27/2021 10:33:00 PM | Football

Box Score

Mercer downs The Citadel, 42-28

By: Travis Rae

MACON, Ga. – The Mercer Football team earned its first win in the Coach Drew Cronic era on Saturday after taking down The Citadel Bulldogs, 42-28, in Southern Conference action at Five Star Stadium.

Making his first collegiate start, Carter Peevy made a splash early as he threw a touchdown pass on his first play of the game. He ended with a career-high 208 passing yards and three touchdowns. Lance Wise led the Bears defense with 14 tackles, bringing his total number of stops at Five Star Stadium to 34 in two games.

Mercer received the opening kickoff and did not waste much time scoring. On the first play of the game, Peevy found Drake Starks for a 75-yard touchdown putting Mercer ahead 7-0. The Orange & Black stretched the lead to 14-0 late in the first quarter. This time the defense came up with a huge play as Yahsyn McKee recovered a fumble and went 27-yards for a touchdown.

The Mercer defense had a huge first quarter and held the opposition without any points in the opening period for the first time since Sept. 7, 2019 at Presbyterian. The defense for the Bears held the Bulldogs to 55 yards in the first quarter and 0-for-4 on third down conversions.

Mercer ended the first driving down the field and carried its offensive success into the second quarter. Peevy hit Starks with a quick pass before the Ringgold, Ga., native weaved his way for a 24-yard gain. Julian Beris capped the drive with a 38-yard touchdown run to put the Bears ahead, 21-0.

After the Bears defense forced a three-and-out, Mercer had a six-play, 70-yard drive to grow its lead. On the drive, Peevy had a 40-yard completion to Ty James and also used his legs to pick up a 22-yard gain. Peevy ended the drive with an eight yard touchdown pass to Ethan Dirrim.

Again, the Bears defense had a strong quarter as they limited The Citadel to six minutes of offense in the quarter and 26 yards of total offense. This was the first time since Sept. 7, 2019 that Mercer shut out a team in the first half of a ballgame.

Opening the second half, the Bulldogs offense started to click. They went 72-yards on 12 plays to score their first touchdown of the game. Following a three and out, the Bulldogs were at it again. This time it took two plays for The Citadel to score its second touchdown. On the second play of the drive, Cooper Wallace went 73-yards for a touchdown.

The Citadel continued to cut into the Bears' lead in the second half. Starting the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs went 56-yards on seven plays capped by Nkem Njku touchdown trimming Mercer's lead to eight, 28-20.

The very next drive, Mercer answered back. After six straight runs, Peevy dropped back and found James for a 33-yard touchdown growing Mercer's lead to 15, 35-20.

The game would remain a 15 point over the next few possessions as both defenses stood tall. The Citadel was the first to get the offense going again as they went 80-yards on 10 plays. Jaylan Adams rushed for a one-yard touchdown. The Bulldogs went for two and got it put the Bears lead to seven, 35-28.

Mercer locked up the win on the next kickoff. The Citadel went for an on-side kick and Ethan Dirrim picked up the kick and went 45-yards to the house for a touchdown, growing Mercers lead back 42-28. The Bulldogs tried to get a drive going and Adams thought he had a receiver open but Michael Campbell picked off the pass and the Bears earned the win.

Post Game Show

Mercer Athletics · Mercer Football Postgame Show Vs The Citadel

Offensive Star
Freshman Carter Peevy collected his first collegiate start and led the Bears to a 42-28 victory. Peevy opened the game with a 75-yard touchdown pass to Drake Starks. Peevy had a career day with 208 passing yards and three touchdowns. Besides throwing for touchdowns, Peevy rushed for 37 yards.

Defensive Star
Sophomore Lance Wise continued to shine this season. The Marietta, Ga. native tallied a team-high 14 tackles on the day. He also had two tackles for a loss in the game. Wise lead the team with 52 tackles from his safety position.

Stats That Matter
It's not every day that you see a team score in all three phases of the contest. The Mercer Bears accomplished that feat against The Citadel by scoring an offensive, defensive and special team's touchdown. Mercer scored an offensive and defensive touchdown in the first quarter before returning a kickoff for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Notables

Lance Wise led the Bears in tackles on the night. He had a team-high 14. Over his last two games at Five Star Stadium, Wise has tallied 34 tackles.
The Bears struck early as they scored on the first offensive play of the game. Freshman quarterback, Carter Peevy threw a 75 yard touchdown to Drake Starks.
Mercer scored a touchdown in every facet of the game. They had an offensive, defensive and special team's touchdown against The Citadel.
Peevy had a career-day throwing the ball has he 208 yards and three touchdowns. Both are career-highs.
The Bears tallied three sacks against the Citadel. With the three sacks, Mercer now has tallied more sack during the 2020-21 season than during the 2019.
Mercer scored on four of its six drives during the first half of the contest.
For the first time since the 2017 season, the Bears defeated the Bulldogs. The win for Mercer snapped a two game losing streak to The Citadel.

Next Up
The Bears return to action on Saturday, March 13 when they travel to Lexington, Va. to face VMI in Southern Conference action. The matchup will take place at Alumni Memorial Field at Foster Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m.

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.