Presbyterian College

CLINTON, S.C. – The nation's fifth-longest FCS home winning streak stayed intact in dominant fashion on Saturday afternoon, as the Presbyterian College football team put the pedal to the metal and raced past St. Thomas by a final score of 55-21.

Surpassing 500 total yards for the second straight time at home, the Blue Hose will now eclipse 700 days since they were last defeated at Bailey Memorial Stadium. They led 27-0 with just over two minutes until halftime and scored the final 14 points of the 4^th quarter.

This is the largest conference defeat for St. Thomas since they joined the Pioneer Football League five seasons ago, as PC turned them over five times (three interceptions, two fumbles).

The Tommies were named the Stats Perform FCS National Team of the Week just seven days ago after stomping preseason PFL favorite San Diego, but the Scotsmen gave the Minnesota visitors a taste of their own medicine with a wire-to-wire blowout.

Presbyterian has now tied the program's longest-ever home winning streak (10 games), a record that was established in 1966. Seven of those 10 victories have come against conference opponents.

PC's arch nemesis will arrive at Bailey Memorial next weekend for the annual Carolina Border Clash versus Davidson. Kickoff will take place at 5:30 on ESPN+ as Presby looks to win the Battle for the 1919 Cup.


 
FINAL SCORE: Presbyterian, 55 – St. Thomas, 21

RECORDS: Presbyterian (2-3)…St. Thomas (4-2)

LOCATION: Bailey Memorial Stadium (Clinton, S.C.)






 
LANDON LIGHTS IT UP

 
- Sophomore quarterback Landon Sharpe was practically unstoppable in PC's 7^th conference victory since the start of last season, passing for five touchdowns and rushing for another. He charted 455 total yards, just six off his season-high against UVA Wise.

- The White Knoll graduate generated nine plays of 20 yards or greater, including a 73-yard missile to Brice Johnson for the game's first touchdown less than three minutes in.

- Sharpe was even on the receiving end of a 13-yard pass from rookie Anton Smith in the 3^rd period. He would eventually sneak into the end zone on the next play as PC kept growing the advantage throughout.

- Landon completed a pass to eight different receivers, with the aforementioned TD to Johnson being the team's longest play so far this season.


 
TAYLOR AT THE TOP

 
- Among the many Blue Hose defenders who continually clamped the Tommies all day, senior corner Noah Taylor stood out with four pass breakups. That gives him nine deflections in just five games.

- His four breakups are tied for the most of any player in a single game across all of FCS so far this season (Montana State's Takhari Carr is the only other who can match it).

- It is also tied for a Presbyterian Division-I record that was first accomplished by Rod Haygood in a 2018 loss to Gardner-Webb.

- The California native was a key piece to shutting down St. Thomas quarterback Nick Peipert, limiting the three-time PFL Freshman of the Week to a putrid 43 passing yards and two interceptions.


 
TURNOVER MACHINE

 
- Head coach Matt Rahl's unit put St. Thomas in the proverbial torture chamber for seemingly the whole contest, becoming the first team all year to force a fumble against them on the very first series.

- That was just the tip of the iceberg, as the Tommies punted on their second drive and then threw an interception on the third. Debo Hall popped the ball free and Shyne Johnson snagged it, helping stall another UST sequence.

- Senior Nick McGill was a Grade A agitator, picking off a pass at the goal line on the second play of quarter number two and returning it 41 yards. He also forced and recovered a fumble with less than seven minutes left, allowing PC to score their eighth and final touchdown.

- Carson Freese (a fifth-year defensive lineman) was responsible for Presby's third INT of the first half, a wacky play where Peipert was an inch off the ground and about to be sacked only to fling the ball straight up in the air for the taking.

- Entering Saturday, St. Thomas had surrendered just two sacks in five games (only Robert Morris and Cornell had fewer). PC got into the backfield for a season-high seven tackles-for-a-loss.

- Senior linebacker Jalyn Turner led the way in that department with 3.5 TFL's, the most by any Blue Hose since Campbell Watson at Morehead State four years ago. One of those stops was a 15-yard sack on 3^rd & long near midfield.


 


HOW IT HAPPENED – FIRST HALF

 
- Presbyterian played a picture-perfect first 30 minutes of football, benefitting from UST's early slip-up with the long touchdown pass to Brice Johnson.

- PC's first two scoring drives both cleared 70 yards in total distance, going up 14-0 with 2:26 to go in the opening period on a five-yard rumble from Jackson Burleson.

- McGill's end zone pick ignited a third touchdown drive for Rahl's crew, as Sharpe found a wide-open Deverious Abercrombie with 11:09 until halftime to put his squad ahead by 20 points.

- The circuslike interception by Freese provided Presby with a chance to go up by four touchdowns in the waning moments of the first half. They capitalized on the opportunity once again with a three-yard surge past the goal line from Damion Moate.

- PC's only blemish of the first two quarters was a roughing-the-kicker penalty to keep a nonexistent Tommies drive afloat, and the visitors avoided a first-half shutout by scoring with 21 seconds on the clock.


 
HOW IT HAPPENED – SECOND HALF

 
- Still ahead by a comfortable margin, the Blue Hose continued to pound St. Thomas in the 3^rd quarter with two touchdown drives that both covered 75 yards on 21 combined snaps.

- Sharpe threw a 42-yard completion to Johnson on 3^rd & 10 to break the Tommies' spirits, and the pair connected again later in that drive for a 10-yard TD to take a 34-7 lead.

- St. Thomas answered less than two minutes later to get back within 20 points, but PC delivered another haymaker with 4:57 to go in that same stanza (the Sharpe sneak).

- The Blue Hose blanked their conference foe in the final quarter, tossing a 14-yard touchdown to Caleb Johnson (his third of the season) and then getting to the finish line on a 31-yard heave to Anton Smith with exactly six minutes remaining.



COACH RAHL'S COMMENTS