GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- A battle to remain atop the South Atlantic Conference standings will take place Saturday afternoon as the Tusculum Pioneers and the Newberry Wolves clash for the 24th time on the football gridiron. Kickoff is slated for 1:30 p.m. from the Niswonger Sports Complex and Pioneer Field.
Both teams come into the game with identical 2-1 records and are coming off victories in their respective SAC openers last weekend. Tusculum scored 18 points in a four-minute span to open the second half to rally to a 24-21 home win over Limestone. The Wolves posted a 28-21 upset over fifth-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne last Saturday night in Newberry to reclaim the Bishops' Trophy.
Tusculum begins a key stretch of its 2021 schedule this weekend. Following Saturday's home tilt with the Wolves, Tusculum will be on the road the next two weeks as they take on 13th-ranked Wingate next weekend, followed by a SAC Championship game rematch with No. 17 Lenoir-Rhyne on Oct. 10. TU's next three opponents combined to go 10-4 during the COVID-shortened spring season.
LAST WEEK'S GAME
The Pioneers committed three turnovers against Limestone, including a pair on its first two possessions, but only trailed 7-3 at halftime. TU opened the third quarter with a safety, a touchdown and two-point conversion, followed by a defensive TD and another successful two-point try in the opening four minutes of the half.
Tusculum would also get two field goals from Greeneville sophomore Eli Shepherd, including the game-winning kick midway through the fourth quarter to secure the 24-21 win over Limestone.
TU quarterback Ivan Corbin, who played his first two collegiate seasons at Limestone, finished the afternoon passing for 140 yards and a touchdown while also rushing eight times for 23 yards. TU receiver Justice Parham made three catches for 56 yards including his team-leading third TD of the young season.
TU rookie running back Reggie Kellum led all rushers with 58 yards on eight carries including four big runs on TU's final series to seal the victory for the Pioneers.
TU's Jermaine Witherspoon returned to the lineup and posted a career-high 10 tackles including eight solo stops, forced a fumble and notched an interception. For his efforts, Witherspoon was named the SAC Defensive Player of the Week.
Jamari Hill added eight tackles including four for loss, which are tied for sixth-most ever by a Pioneer. TU defensive end Kane Deshauters had a career-best three tackles for loss, two sacks and forced a fumble resulting in a 49-yard touchdown return by linebacker Jahaud Russ during TU's 18-0 run to start the third quarter.
Tusculum out-gained Limestone 302-268 in total yards. TU held a 162-94 edge in rushing yards, while the Saints edged the Pioneers 174-140 through the air.
THE SERIES
The 24th renewal of the Tusculum/Newberry football rivalry will be held this Saturday. The series, which began in 1998, has the Wolves holding a slim 12-11 edge. Tusculum won six of the first seven meetings of the series, including five in a row from 2000-2004. Newberry answered with three consecutive wins from 2005-2007, before TU followed with back-to-back victories in 2008 and 2009.
Since 2009, the Wolves have won nine of the last 11 meetings, including a 21-6 Newberry victory in its last meeting in March 2021 to open the spring campaign. Ten of the 23 previous meetings have been decided by seven points or less and five by at least a field goal including a 16-14 Tusculum win over Newberry in 2014 at Pioneer Field. The Pioneers trailed 14-3 before rallying with a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns. But there have been blowouts in the series as well with three decisions being decided by 30 or more points.
SCOUTING THE PIONEERS
Tusculum will be closing out its three-game home-stand when the Sons of Davy Crockett welcome the Newberry Wolves on Saturday.
The Pioneers continue to boast the top scoring offense in the league averaging 40 points per contest which is listed 17th in NCAA Division II. TU is averaging 397.0 yards offensively (3rd SAC) and boasts one of the most balanced attacks in the country. TU is averaging 190.3 rushing yards per game (3rd in SAC / 35th in NCAA II), while posting 206.7 passing yards per contest. (6th in SAC).
The Pioneers continue to be solid defensively, allowing 27 points per game and have forced a SAC-best seven turnovers resulting into 32 points. TU leads the nation with four defensive touchdowns, including three scoop-and-scores and one pick-six. The four defensive scores are tied for the most in school history (2003, 2004, 2017, 2021).
TU also leads the conference in defensive interceptions (4 - 14th in NCAA II), first down offense (67 - 23rd in NCAA II) and fewest tackles for loss allowed (5.33 tpg - 46th in NCAA II).
Ivan Corbin is slated to get the start at quarterback for the Pioneers this weekend. The Warner Robins, Georgia graduate student has gone 45-of-86 for 583 passing yards and four touchdowns and has ran for 127 yards on 33 carries and a TD.
Corbin's top targets have been wide receivers Tyler Ajiero and Justice Parham. Ajiero leads the team with his 13 receptions (7th in SAC) for 130 yards. Parham is tops on the TU roster with 232 receiving yards (4th in SAC) with three touchdowns (2nd in SAC / 28th in NCAA II). Last week, he accounted for three catches for 56 yards including a 32-yard TD.
Senior running back Maurice Gomillion is averaging 49 yards per game including 5.4 yards per carry. He has scored two touchdowns and is 169 yards away from eclipsing the 1,000-rushing yard mark for his Tusculum career. Gomillion ran for 101 yards and two touchdowns in TU's 58-14 season-opening win at St. Augustine's.
Corbin is the team's No. 2 rusher while freshman Reggie Kellum has posted 118 yards on 17 carries, while averaging 6.9 yards per rush.
The Tusculum offensive line features the quintet of Andrew Theobald, Mike Peppin, Thomas Mahoney, Tremaine Chatman and Rick Jeantihomee. Will Shellenbeck has earned the start at tight end in all three games, while Bryce Moore, who started at quarterback in the 2019 season, has been seeing playing time at tight end this year where he has recorded three receptions for 44 yards.
Junior defensive end leads the Tusculum defense with a SAC-best four sacks (1.33 spg - 13th in NCAA II). The 2018 SAC Defensive Freshman of the Year is tied for the team-lead with 14 tackles and forced a fumble in the season-opener which resulted into a return for a score.
Linebacker Jahaud Russ has also made 14 tackles this season including a team-best 12 solo hits. He has made three stops behind the line of scrimmage with two quarterback hurries and his 49-yard fumble return for a TD last week against Limestone.
John Smith, Quaheim Glasgow and Kahmari Lovett are in a three-way tie for third with 11 tackles apiece. Smith has been credited for two tackles for loss and a pass break-up, while Glasgow is tied for the team-lead with four tackles for loss with a sack and returned a fumble 20 yards for a touchdown at St. Augustine's in the season-opener. Lovett has recorded two tackles for loss with one interception and two pass break-ups.
Witherspoon and Ryan McIntyre have 10 tackles each his year, while Deshauters has eight stops including a team-high five tackles for loss with two sacks.
Tusculum's top scorer this year has been sophomore kicker Eli Shepherd. He has amassed 23 points, going 11-of-12 on extra points and 4-of-5 on field goals. His 96 career kicking points moves him into sixth place in school history.
Veteran Andrew Cantrell is in his fourth campaign as TU starting punter. The Sparta, Tennessee senior is averaging 39.6 yards per punt (3rd in SAC / 36th in NCAA II) with six kicks resulting in fair catches and two inside the 20-yard line.
The duo of Justice Parham and freshman Kanon Hall have handled the punt return chores this young season. Parham is averaging 7.7 yards per return, while Hall has a 9.7 ypr average. Derrick Wright has been TU's primary returner on kickoffs, averaging 23.7 yards per return.
SCOUTING NEWBERRY
Newberry head coach Todd Knight is in his 13th season on the sidelines with the Wolves. A win this week at Tusculum would make him the winningest coach in Newberry history giving him his 73rd career victory, surpassing Harvey Kirkland who notched 72 wins from 1952-1967.
Mario Anderson rushed for 124 yards and two touchdowns in Saturday's 28-21 win over No. 5 Lenoir-Rhyne at Setzler Field. The Wolves amassed 441 yards against the Bears as Newberry claimed the Bishops' Trophy for the first time in four years. It was also the Wolves' first win over ranked opponent since beating No. 24 Carson-Newman in 2014.
Newberry leads the SAC in completion percentage (.690 – 7th in NCAA II), passing yards per completion (14.82 ypc – 27th in NCAA II), tackles for loss allowed (5.33 tpg – 46th in NCAA II), team passing efficiency (170.71 – 11th in NCAA II), blocked kicks (2 – 9th in NCAA II) and fourth-down offense (1.000 – 1st in NCAA II).
Leading the Wolves' offense is redshirt senior quarterback Dre Harris. Harris has gone a sizzling 38-of-55 for 565 yards (5th in SAC) with four touchdowns (5th in SAC) and two interceptions. He went 16-of-20 for 260 passing yards with a touchdown. Harris also rushed for 34 yards and a TD.
In his 18-game career with the Wolves, Harris has passed for 1,636 yards completing 59 percent of his passes with eight touchdowns against nine interceptions. In his last encounter with Tusculum, he accounted for all three touchdowns for the Wolves as he rushed for two TDs and passed for another.
Anderson enters this week's game as the conference' top rusher with 371 yards (8th in NCAA II) and averaging 123.7 yards per contest (2nd in SAC – 10th in NCAA II). His three rushing touchdowns are the most in the league (27th in NCAA II), while his 6.9 yards per carry average is second in the SAC and 13th nationally.
Bobby Irby leads the Wolves in receiving averaging 79.7 yards per game (2nd in SAC). Irby has made 13 catches for 239 yards and a touchdown. Bryson Woodruff leads Newberry with his three TD catches (2nd in SAC / 28th in NCAA II) to go along with 14 receptions for 167 yards.
Linebacker Alex Smith leads the Wolves on defense with his 23 tackles, while cornerback David Vereen is second with 15 tackles including two for loss and a pass break-up. Marcus Morgan and Tyran Dixon are tied for third with 13 tackles apiece. Cornerback Anthony Blue has been credited with 11 stops and seven passes defended (2nd in SAC / 7th in NCAA II) including an interception. Last weekend, he posted four pass break-ups against Lenoir-Rhyne.
Junior Gibson Marsh handles the punting duties for Newberry, averaging 33.3 yards on his nine punt attempts. Junior Lawson Reel is the starting kicker where he is 4-of-4 on extra points and has attempted only one field goal try. The duo of Brentley Allen (punts) and Quanta Jackson (kickoffs) are the special team returners for the Wolves.
TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets for Tusculum home football games are $15 for fans. Children ages 12 and under will be admitted free. Tickets go on sale at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday and are available at both the north main entrance and the south visitors' entrance.
Tusculum is conducting a canned food drive at Saturday's game. Fans donating three (3) non-perishable food items will be admitted free to the TU/Newberry game with donations going to benefit those in need in the area.
FOLLOW THE GAME
If you can't make it to Saturday's game, fans can watch the action on-line at www.TusculumPioneers.com on the Pioneer Sports Network and the SAC Digital Network. The radio call of the game will also be available locally on WSMG Radio on 95.5 FM and 1450 AM, as well as online at https://jewel955.com/listenlive.
The "Voice of the Pioneers" Brian Stayton and Joe Byrd will describe all the action for both the radio and video broadcasts. Stayton is in his 25th season as the broadcast voice of Tusculum University Athletics.
