No. 7 Bears Trounce Princeton, Move To 6-0

Saturday, October 12

Macon, Ga.

3:30 p.m.

Mercer University

6-0 , 3-0

Princeton

1-3 , 0-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Princeton

Mercer

10/12/2024 4:14:00 PM | Football

Box Score

By: Todd Anderson, anderson_t02@mercer.edu

MACON – Home-standing and seventh-ranked Mercer limited visiting Princeton to just 196 yards of total offense and got scores from its offense, defense and special teams amid a 17-point first quarter as the Bears tacked up their school-record sixth-straight victory with a 34-7 win over the Tigers on Saturday afternoon at Five Star Stadium.

The triumph marked the fifth-straight home win for Mercer (6-0, 3-0 SoCon) who moved to 46-20 all-time at Five Star Stadium with the result as well. It was the second-straight loss for Princeton (1-3, 0-1 Ivy League) who mustered just 65 yards of total offense in the opening half. Mercer will travel to Princeton, N.J., to take on Princeton next season.

THE BASICS

SCORE: Mercer 34, Princeton 7
RECORDS: Mercer (6-0, 3-0 SoCon); Princeton (1-3, 0-1 Ivy League)
LOCATION: Macon, Ga.. (Five Star Stadium)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST QUARTER

The Bears turned their first possession of the day into points, driving 54 yards on nine plays before settling for a 27-yard field goal from Reice Griffith. Mercer keyed the scoring drive with 23 hard-earned rushing yards, but Hess Horne went 3-for-4 for 31 yards to set up the go-ahead score as well. MU 3, PU 0

Mercer's defense stuffed the Tigers on a key 3rd-and-4 situation, and then was rewarded for its efforts moments later. Brayden Smith hauled in a sky-high punt at the 49-yard line, made a pair of nifty moves, and raced down the near sideline for the first touchdown of the afternoon. MU 10, PU 0

Another high-octane defensive play created another scoring opportunity for the hosts. Mercer sniffed out an attempted flea flicker as Isaac Dowling brought down quarterback Blaine Hipa via sack, and an ensuing fumble careened into the end zone before being recovered by Brayden Dudley. MU 17, PU 0

And now the defense gets on the board!

What a play from @isaacd3_ who forces the fumble and @dudley_brayden recovers it in the end zone for the @Truist TD! 🤯

Q1 | 0:18
Mercer 17, Princeton 0 pic.twitter.com/SEtIN90S1D
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) October 12, 2024

2ND QUARTER

A turnover in Mercer territory led to Princeton's first points of the afternoon, but the Bears did not make it easy. The Tigers needed seven plays to drive 32 yards before Ethan Clark punched it in on 3rd down at the 1-yard line. MU 17, PU 7

Another takeaway for this defense as @TMoore1215 comes away with his 3rd interception of the season! 🤝 pic.twitter.com/GV7IaoMkn9
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) October 12, 2024

3RD QUARTER

Freshman Whitt Newbauer trotted into the game to engineer a 9-play, 75-yard scoring drive midway through the third period. A run-heavy drive, Newbauer completed all three of his pass attempts for 45 yards before the Bears ultimately settled for a 21-yard field goal from Reice Griffith. MU 20, PU 7

First career @Truist Touchdown for the freshman @whitt_newbauer 🙌

Q4 | 4:52
Mercer 34, Princeton 7 pic.twitter.com/SRva6fPAt6
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) October 12, 2024

4TH QUARTER

Whitt Newbauer and the Bears bridged the third and fourth quarters with an 8-play, 80-yard drive that culminated with a 1-yard touchdown dive by Dwayne McGee. Newbauer completed all three of his pass attempts for 48 yards on the possession, including a 21-yard gainer to Appolos Cook on a key 3rd-and-6 conversion that kept the drive alive. MU 27, PU 7

A 64-yard punt return by Brayden Smith midway through the final period set Mercer up in short field, and the Bears delivered the final points of the day just less than 2-1/2 minutes later. Whitt Newbauer found Parker Wroble on a 32-yard pass on 4th down at the Princeton 33-yard line, and then dove in over center for his first collegiate touchdown. MU 34, PU 7

Another interception! This time it's @MylesTooNice who gets the pick in the end zone!

Our 5th takeaway today! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/0TGbMHOjhb
— Mercer Football (@MercerFootball) October 12, 2024

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Senior Dwayne McGee turned in his second 100-yard rushing game (Bethune-Cookman) of the season, this time finishing with 115 yards and a fourth-quarter touchdown on 19 carries. He also caught two passes for 15 yards.
+ Sophomore Brayden Smith logged a career-best 196 all-purpose yards on Saturday, 134 of which came on punt returns. Smith scored on a 49-yard punt return in the opening period, and had a key 64-yard return in the final quarter. He also caught two passes for 42 yards.
+ Freshman Whitt Newbauer entered the game on MU's second possession of the third quarter, but still threw for 125 yards and a touchdown on 7-for-11 passing in his collegiate debut. He also added a rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter.
+ Senior TJ Moore registered a school-record three interceptions against Princeton, while also logging an assist on a tackle. Senior Isaac Dowling and junior Chris Joines led the Bears with eight tackles.

NOTABLES

+ The Bears surpassed both the 2013 and 2022 squads with their sixth-straight win on Saturday, and nestled themselves beside the 1931 squad for the longest unbeaten streak in program lore.
+ Mercer moved to 46-20 (.697) all-time at Five Star Stadium with Saturday's victory, and have now collected a win in 13 of their last 15 contests inside Five Star Stadium. MU also stretched its regular season streak against FCS competition out to eight games as well.
+ MU has now won 12 of its last 14 outings in the month of October, and moved to 7-2 at home in October across that span as well.

UP NEXT

The Bears are back on the road again next week when they make the short trip to Birmingham, Ala., to take on Southern Conference nemesis Samford (2-3, 1-1 SoCon) at Pete Hanna Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET.

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