Topic: Eastern Kentucky University Foot
Eastern Kentucky University vs. Tennessee Tech
Tucker Stadium
Tennessee Tech University
Cookeville, TN
October 1, 2016
© 2016 by Ron Harrison
Tennessee Tech defeated Eastern Kentucky 33-30 in overtime. Eastern Kentucky’s Lucas Williams kicked a 25 yard field goal to open overtime to give the Colonels a 30-27 lead but Michael Birdsong threw a four yard touchdown pass to Alex Carling to give the Golden Eagles the victory. This game featured a lot of offense as the teams combined for 63 points, 52 first downs, and 1005 yards of total offense. Tennessee Tech recorded 29 first downs and 446 yards of total offense. The Golden Eagles were penalized five times for 35 yards. Eastern Kentucky recorded 23 first downs and 559 yards of total offense. The Maroons were penalized five times for 33 yards and had one pass intercepted.
Yeede Thaenrat led Tennessee Tech’s ground game with 62 yards on 28 carries. Michael Birdsong carried the ball 14 times for 26 yards and a touchdown. Michael Birdsong completed 27 of 42 passes for 327 yards and three touchdowns. Dontez Byrd caught seven passes for 116 yards and two touchdowns. Joseph Cunningham added seven receptions for 69 yards. Kip Patton caught six passes for 63 yards. Alex Carling added a game winning four yard touchdown reception. Nick Madonia punted six times for a 44.5 average with a long punt of 64 yards and two punts inside the 20 yard line. Deontay Wilson led the defense with six solo and two assisted tackles. Josh Poplar added three solo and five assisted tackles. Shannon Fayne recorded three solo and four assisted tackles. Maleek Hall added four solo and one assisted tackles, intercepted one pass he returned for 11 yards, and broke up two passes.
Jared Sanders led Eastern Kentucky’s ground game with 60 yards and one touchdown on four carries. Ethan Thomas carried the ball 12 times for 34 yards. Bennie Coney completed 32 of 49 passes for 464 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. Coney eclipsed his existing record (417 yards) in this game. Devin Borders caught nine passes for 121 yards and a touchdown. Ryan Markush added seven receptions for 104 yards and a touchdown. Dan Crimmins recorded six receptions for 65 yards and a touchdown. Bryan Green added five receptions for 73 yards. Cameron Fogle caught one pass for 50 yards. Keith Wrzuszcak punted four times for a 39.5 average with a long punt of 41 yards with three punts inside the 20 yard line. Jared Sanders returned five kickoffs for 149 yards with a long return of 41 yards. Jeffrey Canady led the defense with five solo and 12 assisted tackles with one of his tackles resulting in a two yard loss. Kiante Northington added nine solo and six assisted tackles with 1.5 of his tackles resulting in losses totaling three yards. Patrick Graffree recorded six solo and three assisted tackles with three of his tackles resulting in losses totaling 10 yards. Aaron Patrick added three solo and five assisted tackles with three of his tackles resulting in losses totaling 23 yards.
Scoring Summary
| School | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final |
| Eastern Kentucky University | 6 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 30 |
| Tennessee Tech | 7 | 10 | 3 | 13 | 33 |
| EKU | - | Jared Sanders 59 yard run (two point conversion fails) |
| TTU | - | Michael Birdsong 1 yard run (Nick Madonia kick) |
| TTU | - | Dontez Byrd 22 yard pass from Michael Birdsong (Nick Madonia kick) |
| EKU | - | Ryan Markush 27 yard pass from Bennie Coney (Lucas Williams kick) |
| TTU | - | Nick Madonia kicks a 42 yard field goal |
| EKU | - | Devin Borders 26 yard pass from Bennie Coney (Lucas Williams kick) |
| TTU | - | Nick Madonia kicks a 26 yard field goal |
| TTU | - | Dontez Byrd 9 yard pass from Michael Birdsong (Nick Madonia kick) |
| EKU | - | Dan Crimmins 25 yard pass from Bennie Coney (Luca Williams kick) |
| EKU | - | Lucas Williams kicks a 25 yard field goal |
| TTU | - | Alex Carling 4 yard pass from Michael Birdsong |
Selected Statistics
| Eastern Kentucky University | ||||
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| Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long |
| Jared Sanders | 4 | 60 | 15.0 | 59 |
| Ethan Thomas | 12 | 34 | 2.8 | 9 |
| Henry Enyenihi | 3 | 12 | 4.0 | 6 |
| Daryl McCleskey | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 |
| Bennie Coney | 1 | -5 | -5.0 | 0 |
| James Smith | 1 | -7 | -7.0 | 0 |
|
| ||||
| Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long |
| Bennie Coney | 49-32-1 | 464 | 3 | 50 |
| Tyler Swafford | 1-0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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| Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long |
| Devin Borders | 9 | 121 | 1 | 27 |
| Ryan Markush | 7 | 104 | 1 | 27 |
| Dan Crimmins | 6 | 65 | 1 | 25 |
| Bryan Green | 5 | 73 | 0 | 44 |
| Cameron Fogle | 1 | 50 | 0 | 50 |
| Dan Paul | 1 | 28 | 0 | 28 |
| Jared Sanders | 1 | 20 | 0 | 20 |
| Daryl McCleskey | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Neiko Creamer | 1 | -1 | 0 | 0 |
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| Tennessee Tech | ||||
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| Rushing | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long |
| Yeede Thaenrat | 28 | 62 | 2.2 | 19 |
| Michael Birdsong | 14 | 26 | 1.9 | 19 |
| Andr. Goldsmith | 5 | 13 | 2.6 | 6 |
| Kip Patton | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 8 |
| Dontez Byrd | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 7 |
| Joseph Cunningham | 3 | 3 | 1.0 | 3 |
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| Passing | A-C-I | Yds. | TD | Long |
| Michael Birdsong | 42-27-0 | 327 | 3 | 27 |
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| Receiving | No. | Yds. | TD | Long |
| Dontez Byrd | 7 | 116 | 2 | 27 |
| Joseph Cunningham | 7 | 69 | 0 | 22 |
| Kip Patton | 6 | 63 | 0 | 27 |
| Yeede Thaenrat | 2 | 27 | 0 | 23 |
| Jordan Smith | 2 | 23 | 0 | 21 |
| Austin Hicks | 1 | 13 | 0 | 13 |
| Krys Cates | 1 | 12 | 0 | 12 |
| Alex Carling | 1 | 4 | 1 | 4 |
Acknowledgements
A special thanks to the Tennessee Tech Stats Crew for the comprehensive stats provided for tonight's games.
Please feel free to send your comments and questions concerning the event, teams, or players to me at prepgridiron@yahoo.com.
Ron Harrison’s reports on this and other football events appear on https://www.angelfire.com/ky2/prepgridiron.
Updated: Sunday, 2 October 2016 11:01 PM EDT
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