FOOTBALL: TOUGH TIME

CU FALLS TO FCS FOE ELON UNIVERSITY

Tackle #1 at Elon (JL) 269 x 235
Concord Football head coach Garin Justice had a realistic outlook on Saturday's game at Elon University.

The Phoenix are part of the NCAA's Football Championship Subdivision – formerly known as Division I-AA – a decided step up from Division II, of which Concord is a member.

Elon is a member of the Southern Conference, arguably the top football league in the FCS. On top of that, Elon was off a respectable showing in its season-opening loss at Division I Vanderbilt last week and was hosting its 2011 home opener.

So Justice knew Saturday's task would be difficult. With that in mind, the first-year coach wanted the contest at Elon to help the Mountain Lions get ready for their West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference schedule, which starts next week.

“We're ready for Elon, but we can't think too much about them in terms of what our goals are,” Justice said this week. “Let's look at this as Concord getting better. This week, it's more about the process than the product. We need to make ourselves a better football team.”

In many ways, the Mountain Lions showed improvement over last week's season-opening home loss to Lenoir-Rhyne. But up against a bigger, deeper and more talented opponent, CU fell to Elon 42-10 Saturday night at Rhodes Stadium in Elon, NC.

Elon took the opening kickoff and went on a nine-play, 62-yard drive that ended on a one-yard touchdown pass from Thomas Wilson to Matt Eastman. The Phoenix led 7-0, and would never trail.

Elon took control of the game by scoring on three consecutive possessions in the 2nd quarter. Wilson found Andre Davis for a six-yard TD pass with 14:56 left, and connected with NFL prospect Aaron Mellette on a pretty two-yard fade route for a touchdown with 9:35 remaining. A 21-yard TD run by Dontay Taylor with 6:15 to go before halftime ended Elon's eruption.

BK Run #2 (JL) 314 x 171
Concord got its lone touchdown in the 2nd quarter. A 66-yard kickoff return by Andrew Gondor gave CU the ball on Elon's 22, and Brian Kennedy capped a three-play drive with an 11-yard scoring run with 8:56 remaining.

Elon was ahead 28-7 at halftime and added two non-offensive touchdowns in the 2nd half. A.J. Harris returned a blocked punt 11 yards for a score with 13:56 left in the 3rd quarter, and Jonathan Conner returned an interception 99 yards for another with 8:43 to go in the game.

Concord's freshman kicker John Scritchfield closed out the scoring with a 36-yard field goal with 1:34 remaining in the 4th quarter.

Kennedy turned in a superlative performance, rushing 22 times for a game-high 129 yards.


Up next for the Mountain Lions is the start of their WVIAC campaign. Concord visits the University of Charleston on Saturday, September 17, in a 1:00 pm kickoff at UC Stadium.



(photos by Jennifer Logan)




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