ALLENDALE, Mich. — The 10th-ranked Carson-Newman football
team trailed No. 3 Grand Valley State by 13 points at halftime and
was unable to mount a second-half comeback, as the Eagles fell to
the Lakers, 41-27, on Saturday in the semifinals of the Division II
Playoffs at Lubbers Stadium.
With the win, Grand Valley State (13-1) will make its sixth
national championship game appearance, where they will face the
winner of California (Pa.) and Northwest Missouri State on Dec. 12
at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Ala. The Lakers have won
four national titles this decade.
The Eagles (11-3) fall short of what would have been their fourth
Division II title game appearance. The loss also snapped an 11-game
C-N winning streak.
“This was a great year,” C-N head coach Ken Sparks
said. “We had a lot of great things happen. I was probably
late in establishing some things with this football team that
needed to be established a little bit earlier, but they hung in
there and matured. We started off 0-2 and ended up playing in the
semifinals, and this team did a beautiful job with it.”
The Lakers piled up 408 yards of offense on the day, including 290
on the ground. The Grand Valley State defense held the Eagles to
278 yards of offense, which was C-N’s second lowest total of
the season.
“They did a better job blocking and tackling than we
did,” Sparks offered. “They whipped us pretty good up
front on offense and defense.”
Running back P.T. Gates carried the Lakers’ offense with 183
yards rushing and two scores, while Harlon Hill Trophy finalist
Brad Iciek completed 8-of-19 passes for 118 yards and two
touchdowns.
C-N senior running back Buck Wakefield (Drummonds, Tenn.) wrapped
up his stellar career with 119 yards rushing and three touchdowns
to lead the Eagles. Wakefield also had an 89-yard kickoff return
for a touchdown.
“Buck is a special player,” Sparks said. “He made
a lot of things happen. At times, we didn’t give him the help
that we needed to give him.”
Senior quarterback Alex Good (Greensboro, N.C.) completed just
6-of-17 passes for 101 yards and two interceptions. He also rushed
for 42 yards. Senior Reggie Hubbard (Chattanooga, Tenn.) led the
Eagles in receiving with two receptions for 74 yards.
Senior linebackers D.J. Taylor (Homewood, Ala.) and Elliette
Jackson (Fairfield, Ala.) turned in solid performances in their
final game as Eagles, finishing with 11 tackles apiece.
Justin Victor recorded 10 tackles and a forced fumble to lead the
Lakers.
The Lakers struck first on their opening possession. Gates broke
free for a 59-yard run down to the C-N 9-yard line. But the Eagles
defense held strong from there, as Grand Valley State had to settle
for a 26-yard field goal by Justin Trumble to take a 3-0 lead at
the 10:18 mark of the first quarter.
Grand Valley State pushed its lead to 10-0 less than four minutes
later behind a big play from its defense. Senior linebacker Jacob
McGuckin stepped in front of a Good pass and returned the
interception 25 yards for a touchdown.
“We just threw the ball where we shouldn’t have,”
Sparks said of the interception. “But considering how (Good)
had to modify because there was somebody in his face most of the
time, he did an unbelievable job.”
C-N answered on the ensuing kickoff, as Wakefield fielded the kick
at the C-N 11 and raced 89 yards to pay dirt. Carlos Lopez
(Seymour, Tenn.) added the extra point to trim the Lakers’
lead to 10-7 with 6:29 left in the first quarter.
Grand Valley State fired right back, going on a five-play, 63-yard
scoring drive. Gates capped off the drive with a 3-yard touchdown
run, giving the Lakers a 17-7 advantage.
The Lakers grabbed a 24-7 lead on their next possession. Justin
Sherrod opened the 10-play drive with a 22-yard run into C-N
territory, and Iciek finished it off nine plays later by connecting
with Ryan Bass for a 7-yard touchdown strike at the 9:19 mark of
the second quarter.
Good and Hubbard set the Eagles up deep inside Lakers territory on
the very next possession with a 58-yard pass play. Wakefield
punched the ball in from a yard out three plays later to cut Grand
Valley State’s lead to 24-14.
Trumble added a 30-yard field goal with 1:26 left in the second
quarter to give the Lakers a 27-14 lead heading into the locker
room.
Grand Valley State took a 20-point lead early second half. After
stopping the Eagles on the C-N 3-yard line to force a 26-yard punt
by Chris Jones (Rome, Ga.), the Lakers needed just one play to find
the end zone, as Iciek threw a 29-yard touchdown strike to Blake
Smolen. Trumble’s extra point gave the Lakers a 34-14 cushion
with 9:37 left in the second quarter.
The Eagles kept the game within reach on the next possession, as
Wakefield finished off an eight-play, 48-yard drive with a 5-yard
touchdown run up the middle. C-N failed to convert the extra point,
making it a 34-20 ballgame late in the third quarter.
C-N drove down to the Grand Valley State 23 on its next series and
looked to pull within a score. However, the Eagles turned the ball
over via a fumble. The Lakers then put the game away late in the
fourth quarter on a 27-yard touchdown run by Gates.
“I’d like to have seen what would have happened if we
got it down to one score just to see if we could have kept
something rolling,” Sparks said. “But we didn’t,
and that was it. We are just grateful for this group of
kids.”
Wakefield came through with a 21-yard touchdown run with less than
three minutes remaining, but the score was too little too late for
the Eagles.
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March 3, 2010
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March 2, 2010
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February 8, 2010
Eagles Add Two to 2010 Signing Class
December 14, 2009
Eagles Ranked Fourth in Final AFCA Poll
December 4, 2009
Carson-Newman Game Notes vs. Grand Valley State
November 30, 2009
Scouting Report: No. 10 Carson-Newman vs. No. 3 Grand Valley State
November 28, 2009
Semifinal Bound: Eagles Drop UNA in Florence, 24-21
November 27, 2009
Gameday Central: Carson-Newman/Grand Valley State
November 25, 2009
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November 24, 2009
Scouting Report: Carson-Newman vs. North Alabama
November 23, 2009
Kickoff Time Set for Eagles' Quarterfinal at UNA
November 20, 2009
Gameday Central: Carson-Newman vs. West Alabama
November 19, 2009
Carson-Newman Game Notes vs. West Alabama
November 18, 2009
Eagles Postseason Begins with West Alabama on Saturday
November 18, 2009
C-Ns Needs Named D-II Assistant Coach of the Year
November 17, 2009
Scouting Report: Carson-Newman vs. West Alabama
November 9, 2009
Carson-Newman Climbs to 10th in AFCA Poll
November 9, 2009
Carson-Newman Leads Way On SAC 2009 All-Conference Football Team
November 8, 2009
No. 14 Carson-Newman Receives First-Round Bye in NCAA Playoffs
November 7, 2009
No. 14 Carson-Newman Defeats Tusculum, 70-35, on Record-Setting Day
November 6, 2009
Eagles Good Named Candidate for Harlon Hill Trophy
November 6, 2009
Gameday Central for Carson-Newman/Tusculum on Saturday
November 5, 2009
Eagles Host Tusculum in Regular-Season Finale Saturday
November 2, 2009
Eagles Jump to 14th in AFCA Poll, Remain No. 2 in Regional Rankings
November 2, 2009
Eagles' Wakefield Named SAC Offensive Player of the Week
October 31, 2009
No. 18 Carson-Newman Runs by Wingate, 45-7, to Win 21st SAC Title
October 28, 2009
Eagles Travel to Wingate on Saturday with SAC Title on the Line
October 26, 2009
Eagles Move to 18th in AFCA Poll, Second in Regional Rankings
October 24, 2009
No. 20 Carson-Newman Cruises Past Brevard, 77-7
October 19, 2009
Eagles Jump to 20th in AFCA Poll
October 15, 2009
Eagles Travel to Lenoir-Rhyne on Saturday
October 10, 2009
Carson-Newman Battles Back to Down Catawba, 41-31, on Homecoming
October 8, 2009
Carson-Newman Hosts Catawba for Homecoming on Saturday
October 5, 2009
Eagles Third in First Regional Rankings
October 3, 2009
Carson-Newman Storms Past Mars Hill, 55-28
October 2, 2009
Carson-Newman Visits Mars Hill on Saturday Afternoon
September 28, 2009
Eagles' Good, Lopez Named SAC Players of the Week
September 26, 2009
Carson-Newman Takes Down Newberry in SAC Opener, 23-20
September 24, 2009
Eagles Welcome Newberry in SAC Opener Saturday
September 21, 2009
C-N's Jones Named SAC Special Teams Player of the Week
September 19, 2009
Carson-Newman Upends UNC Pembroke, 35-22
September 16, 2009
Eagles Set to Host Unbeaten UNC Pembroke Saturday
September 10, 2009
Eagles Roll Past Campbellsville, 38-10, in Home Opener
September 8, 2009
Eagles Set For Thursday's Home Opener Against Campbellsville
September 5, 2009
No. 22 Carson-Newman Falls at No. 4 North Alabama, 31-14
September 4, 2009
Eagles Set for Top 25 Showdown at No. 4 North Alabama
August 27, 2009
Carson-Newman Drops 2009 Season Opener, 17-12, At Winona State
August 25, 2009
Sparks Begins 30th Season at Mossy Creek on Thursday Night
August 21, 2009
Eagles Begin Game Week Preparations for Season Opener
August 19, 2009
Eagles Hold Final Scrimmage of Fall Camp
August 17, 2009
Eagles Ranked Ninth in AFCA Preseason Poll
August 15, 2009
Good, Hubbard On Same Page During Saturday's Scrimmage
August 14, 2009
Eagles Hold Media Day, First Full Scrimmage
August 8, 2009
Eagles Continue to Grind Through Camp
July 30, 2009
Eagles Picked to Win South Atlantic Conference
July 13, 2009
Eagles Ranked Ninth in Lindy's Sports Preseason Poll
March 23, 2009
Carson-Newman Releases 2009 Football Schedule