Sept. 20, 2008
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PITTSBURGH, PA. - Connor Dixon's 91-yard touchdown pass to Conrad Carter on the second-to-last play of the first half broke open a tight game as Duquesne took advantage of three first half Saint Francis, Pa. turnovers to post a 21-7 win over the Red Flash before a standing room crowd of2,454 at Rooney Field.
The win, Duquesne's first as a member of the Northeast Conference, evened the Dukes' record at 1-1, while Saint Francis dropped to 0-3.
Duquesne led 14-7 when freshman Chidozie Oparanozie picked off a Saint Francis pass at the DU two-yard line with 1:40 left in the half. Three plays later, Dixon found a streaking Carter on the left sideline. Carter caught the pass at the Duquesne 47 yard line and outraced the SFU secondary to the end zone to give the Dukes a 21-7 lead at the half.
Duquesne's defense, which surrendered 206 yards in the first half, held the Red Flash to 70 yards in pitching a second-half shutout.
Dixon, who finished 13-of-25 for 211 yards and three touchdowns, was 5-of-5 for 150 yards in throwing all three of his scoring passes in the second quarter.
Saint Francis got on the board first when Calvin Williams capped a 72-yard drive with a nine-yard run late in the first quarter.
Duquesne answered with a 12-yard Dixon to Alex Roberson touchdown pass to tie the score at 7-7 less than two minutes into the second quarter.
Oparanozie picked off a George Little pass at the Duquesne 12 and returned it 55 yards to set up a seven-yard Dixon to Michael Rasky touchdown pass to put the Dukes up 14-7 with 10:41 to go in the half.
Oparanozie's second pick - which was tipped by teammate Aaron Strader - preceded the Dixon-to-Carter bomb. The Dixon-to-Carter pass play - the second-longest in school history - broke the Rooney Field record of 90 yards set by a Dave Loya to Mark Neely touchdown pass against Wagner in 1995.
Carter finished with a career-high 107 yards on four catches for the Dukes. It was the first 100-yard game of his career.
Duquesne tailback Cleodis Williams posted his first career 100-yard game with 129 yards on 23 carries.
SFU's Little was 15-of-31 for 144 yards and was intercepted three times. Duquesne outgained Saint Francis 342-276. Nathan Totino, who posted a career-high 16 tackles in DU's season-opening loss at Bucknell, finished with a game-high 11 stops. Duquesne returns to action next weekend against defending Pioneer Football League and 2007 Mid-Major National Champion Dayton (3-0) at Rooney Field. Game time is 1:00 p.m.
| BY QUARTER | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | FINAL |
| SAINT FRANCIS, PA. | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| DUQUESNE | 0 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
LEADERS
Rushing (Att./Yds./TD): DU - Williams (23-129-0); SFU - Williams (22-74-1) Passing (Att./Comp./Int./Yds./TD): DU - Dixon (25-13-1-211-3); SFU - Little (31-15-3-144-0) Receiving (Att./Yds./TD): DU - Carter (4-107-1); SFU - Williams (4-41-0) Tackles (Tot./Solo): DU - Totino (11/5); SFU - Shepard (9/4)
GAME NOTES --
The win was Duquesne's tenth in a row over Saint Francis, Pa. ... the Dukes lead the overall series 30-5 ... Saint Francis had three red zone turnovers (all interceptions) in the first half ... DU intercepted two passes at its own 12 and one at its own two yard line and followed the last two with scores ... neither team punted in the first half ... the first punt of the game came at the 12:54 mark of the third quarter when a Saint Francis drive stalled ... Duquesne's first punt came on the ensuing possession ... the two teams combined for 437 yards in the first half and 181 in the second ... sophomore quarterback Connor Dixon (South Park, Pa./South Park), who threw for 429 yards and a school record six touchdown passes in his first career collegiate start at Bucknell on Sept. 6, completed 13-of-25 passes for 211 yards and three touchdowns ... Dixon once again started slowly, completing 2-of-8 passes for four yards in the first quarter ... the 6-4, 200-pounder was 5-of-5 for 150 yards in the second quarter alone ... in two games this season, the first-year sophomore is 4-of-14 for 13 yards in first quarter play ... freshman linebacker Chidozie Oparanozie (Pittsburgh, Pa./The Linsly School (W.Va.)) stopped a pair of SFU drives with interceptions at the DU 12 and two yard lines ... he returned the first pick 55 yards to set up one touchdown and his second interception was followed by a 91-yard Dixon-to-Conrad Carter touchdown pass ... Oparanozie finished the game with six stops (four solo) ... junior tailback Cleodis Williams (Carlisle, Pa./Carlisle) posted his first career 100-yard game with 129 yards on 23 carries ... Williams rushed for 77 yards (on nine carries) in the first half ... senior receiver Conrad Carter (Clinton, Md./Archbishop Carroll) caught four passes for a career-high 107 yards ... it was the first 100-yard game of his career ... The Dixon-to-Carter 91-yard touchdown pass with eight seconds left in the first half was the second-longest pass play in school history, second only to a 95-yard Tony Zimmerman-to-Jeremy Conley connection at Siena in 1998 ... it was the longest pass play in Rooney Field (1993) history ... sophomore Nathan Totino (Pittsburgh, Pa./Seton-La Salle), who had a game- and career-high 16 tackles (10 solo) in the season opener at Bucknell, posted a game-high 11 stops for the Dukes.
