VIDEO: Mike Clowney presser
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VIDEO: 2021 Tusculum Highlights
Tusculum Game Notes
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (2-3, 1-2 South Atlantic Conference) and Tusculum (4-1, 2-1 SAC) match wits for the 52nd time in the second-oldest rivalry game in the State of Tennessee Saturday at 1:30 p.m. at Pioneer Field.
"It's always cool because it's a short ride and right down the road, like, you know, we're so familiar with one another," Carson-Newman head football coach Mike Clowney said. "I think the thing that makes this one different than anyone else is we're close enough that we kind of get involved in all sports. I think last year our basketball game was a really fun event with a great crowd. We're looking forward to going over and having a great game."
The Pioneers and Eagles first met in 1904. (The Tennessee/Vanderbilt series is the oldest by eight years - 1896).
The Eagles won 10 straight contests from 1935-1950, missing a handful of years because of World War II. Carson-Newman outscored Tusculum 359-20 over that stretch. The Eagles shutout TU in eight of those meetings.
Carson-Newman is trying to snap a seven-game road losing streak. The Eagles haven't won away from Burke-Tarr Stadium since a March 13, affair at UVA Wise in four-overtimes. The Eagles' seven-game road losing streak is the 10th longest active streak in the country. C-N hasn't won at Tusculum since 2014, a streak of three straight defeats. During that streak, the Pioneers have returned three kickoffs for touchdowns in those three-straight home wins.
Carson-Newman has played the 16th toughest schedule to date in the nation. Tusculum marks the fifth out of six opponents to start the year who has one loss or fewer. No other team in the country played three of its first five foes inside the AFCA top 20 (West Georgia, Lenoir-Rhyne and Newberry).
Tusculum is off to its best start to a season since 2010. That rendition of the Pioneers started the year 4-0, including a 54-30 triumph at Western Carolina. This edition of the Pioneers has dropped 50 twice, including a 50-17 beatdown of Catawba and a 70-13 shellacking of Saint Augustine's.
Tusculum has scored three defensive TDs this year which leads the nation. Two of them came at Catawba with pick-6's by Ryan Dolce (72 yds) and Andrae Robinson (97 yds).
"I think the biggest thing is like they do, they gamble on defense and when you gamble, you are going to make some big plays and you are going to give up some," Clowney said. "The biggest thing that we have to do is be sound. Don't push something somewhere if it's not there. We have to be smart with the football, the opportunity for us to give to them and snap the ball again, like we need to snap it again."
The Pioneers give up 258 yards per game, good for 14th in the country and second in the SAC. Only Barton (345) has produced more than 300 yards of total offense against TU, while Wingate, Chowan and Saint Augustine's were all kept below the 250-yard threshold.
Newberry was fifth in the country in rush defense last week, giving up 50 yards per game on the ground. Carson-Newman, the league's leading rushing attack, sextuples the Wolves rushing total allowed with a 311-yard day.
Tusculum signal-caller Tre Simmons leads the SAC in passing yards (1,073), passing touchdowns (nine), total offense (243.8) and points responsible for (60). He is second in the league in completions per game (17).
"You just kind of see him being on a star on the rise," Clowney said. "He's an athletic kid that is really good with his legs and can kind of create opportunities down the field where they make a lot of big plays just being able to buy him time and receivers working to get open. So, the big thing that we've got to do is we've got to stay with our guy. We've got to keep our eyes in the right place. We have to do some things to make sure we can hem him up and not give him time enough to get the ball down field."
Carson-Newman wide receiver Braxton Westfield's next touchdown catch will (the 17th of his career), move him into sole possession of fifth on the all-time receiving TD list. He needs five more touchdown catches to match Tank Black for fourth all-time (21).
Westfield is already up to 25 receptions on the year, good for second in the SAC. If he were to haul in four passes, he would begin to move up the top 20 for most catches in a single season at C-N in only week four.
Carson-Newman is looking for its first win at Tusculum since 2014 when the Eagles prevailed 55-35. After Tusculum scored a school-record 35 second-quarter points to take a 35-27 lead into the locker room, Carson-Newman limited the Pioneers to just two first downs and 14 yards on 22 plays in the second half.
Kickoff between Carson-Newman and Tusculum is set for 1:30 p.m. Saturday. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network starts at 12:30 p.m. with the AEC Tailgate Show on Joy 620 (WRJZ-AM, Knoxville), Mountain Sports 106.3 (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live.
