The Presbyterian College football team takes to the road for its final game of the season away from Bailey Memorial Stadium when the Blue Hose take on Coastal Carolina Saturday, Nov. 5. PC has been on the road the last two games with trips to Georgia Southern to face the Eagles Saturday, Oct. 22 and to Liberty Oct. 29. PC returns home for the final two games (VMI on Nov. 12 and Charleston Southern on Nov. 19). Saturday's game will kick-off at 6 p.m. and will be broadcast over the radio at WLBG 860-AM with the pre-game show starting at 3:30 p.m.
PC and Coastal Carolina meet for just the fifth time. The Chanticleers own a 3-1 record over the Blue Hose with PC taking the first meeting, 41-34, in a two-overtime contest in 2007. It was the first overtime game for PC in its short Division I history. CCU won last year, 35-7, at Bailey Memorial Stadium.
Coastal Carolina is 4-4 overall and 1-2 in the Big South after falling to Stony Brook, 42-0, this past weekend. The Chanticleers posted just 73 yards of total offense, compared to 489 yards for the Sea Wolves. Leading CCU in receptions this season is Matt Hazel with 26 catches for 391 yards and four touchdowns. He averages 48.9 yards per game and 15.0 per catch. The rushing attack is led by Quarterback Aramis Hillary who has 59 carries for four touchdowns and 227 net yards. He is also 111-for-168 with two interceptions and eight throwing TDs. Leading the Chanticleers defensively is Josh Norman with 44 total tackles (34-10), on interception and 11 pass breakups. He is closely followed by Johnnie Houston with 41 tackles (25-16).
While Coach David Bennett has only seen the Blue Hose four times as the Chanticleers head coach, he is very familiar with the program, having graduated from PC in 1984 and serving as a student assistant for the football team as a senior. In 1995 Bennett became the head coach at Catawba, a rival of the Blue Hose in the NCAA Division II's South Atlantic Conference. His team squared off with PC every year until he left for CCU in 2001. He held a 5-2 mark over PC during his tenure with the Indians.
The Blue Hose were edged this past Saturday by #23 Liberty, 27-20, in double overtime. It marked the second straight ranked opponent PC has faced and the third team of the season. Georgia Southern was ranked #1, while the Wofford Terriers were ranked #8 earlier this season. PC led 10-6 late in the fourth quarter before Liberty scored with 1:26 left in the game to make it 13-10. The Blue Hose came back to force overtime with a 22-yard field goal by Aaron Mayes. Both teams scored in the first overtime before the Flames scored in the second and stopped the Blue Hose from the end zone in their try to come away with the one-touchdown win. It was just the second overtime game for the Blue Hose in Division I history and the closest margin this season. Ryan Singer had a 74-yard touchdown run in the first quarter to give PC its first touchdown of the game. It was his career long and the longest TD run in PC's Division I history ... Defensively, Justin Bethel is still tops.
With 116 rushing attempts for a net gain of 566 yards, Lance Byrd leads PC on the ground. He also has six touchdowns on the year and averages 70.8 yards per game and 4.9 per carry. Michael Ruff leads PC with 26 catches for 255 yards and one touchdown. He is averaging 31.9 yards per game and 9.8 a carry. Joey Gilkey paces the team in TD receptions with three. Ryan Singer, who is third on the team in rushing with 31.0 yards per game, is 80-of-163 with six interceptions and four touchdowns for the Blue Hose. Justin Bethel continues to pace the team defensively with 73 tackles (49-24), three for a loss, on sack and three interceptions. Donnelle Williams is second with 62 tackles (35-27). His 27 assisted tackles lead the team as well.
