Sept. 3, 2011

Box Score

LEWISBURG, PA - Brandon Wesley scored on a quarterback keeper with 57 seconds left and Alex Eckard added the extra point to give Bucknell a 27-26 win over Duquesne at Lewisburg, Pa.

Wesley's run came on a fourth down play which capped an 82 yard drive.

The win ended a two-game Duquesne series win streak and left the Dukes winless in seven tries at Bucknell.

Larry McCoy gained 112 yards on 30 carries and Sean Patterson added a pair of touchdown passes for Duquesne.

Jeremiah Young ran for 105 yards and Wesley, who completed 11-of-21 passes for 173 yards, added a touchdown pass to lead the Bison.

A 20-yard punt return by true freshman David Thomas set up a 22-yard Patterson to Isaac Spragg touchdown pass the put the Dukes up 6-0 nine minutes into the game.

Bucknell answered with a 21-yard Alex Eckard field goal to make it 6-3 after one quarter.

On the first play of the second quarter, Patterson scrambled 31 yards to the Bucknell nine before hitting Connor Dixon with a 14-yard TD pass on third-and-goal to make it 13-3. It was the first play of the game for Dixon, who was granted a sixth year of eligibility Friday afternoon. It was also the first play since November of last season for Dixon who did not practice with the team while awaiting a decision on his status.

The Dukes made it three scores in three consecutive possessions when Charlie Leventry connected on a 27-yard field goal to make it 16-3.

Duquesne looked to be in control when a Patterson pass intended for tight end Brian Layhue was tipped and returned for a 24 yard touchdown by Bucknell linebacker Tim Bolte to make it 16-10 with 1:52 left in the half.

The Bison held and drove 59 yards in 49 seconds to take a 17-16 halftime lead when Wesley hit Gabe Skwara with an 11-yard touchdown pass.

DU took the second half kickoff and drove 60 yards in eight plays to take a 23-17 lead on a four-yard McCoy run.

Bucknell took 6:52 off the clock in driving to the Duquesne two yard line before settling for a 19-yard Eckard field goal to pull within three with just over five minutes left in the third quarter.

Richie Piekarski covered a fumbled punt at the Bucknell 23 that resulted in a 34-yard Leventry field goal that made it 26-20 entering the fourth quarter.

Neither teamed managed a drive of significance until Wesley completed passes of 27 and 19 yards and Young added a 19-yard run to move the Bison into DU territory. Bucknell faced a third-and-15 from the DU 22 when Duquesne was flagged for pass interference giving BU first-and-goal on the Dukes 10. DU held until Wesley's fourth down run.

Senior Isaac Spragg, who had eight catches in 22 career games entering the game, finished with nine catches for 100 yards. Patterson was 19-of-35 for 188 yards.

Derrick Lakins, Chidozie Oparanozie and Khiry Carter led DU with eight tackles each. Zach Richert added a pair of sacks.

DU outgained Bucknell 342-308 and had a 20-13 advantage in first downs. Duquesne, which is opening the season with back-to-back games outside Pittsburgh for the first time since 2000, returns to action next Saturday at Dayton at 1:00 p.m.

The Flyers opened their season with a 19-13 win at 2010 NEC co-champion Robert Morris on Saturday afternoon.

Scoring by Quarters

SCORING SUMMARY
1st
6:03 DU - Spragg, Isaac 22 yd pass from Patterson, Sean (Leventry, Charlie kick blocked), 7-45 (3:30) --- 6-0
2:32 BU - Eckard, Alex 21 yd field goal, 7-57 (3:24) --- 6-3

2nd
13:01 DU - Dixon, Connor 14 yd pass from Patterson, Sean (Leventry, Charlie kick), 8-71 (4:22) --- 13-3
4:08 DU - Leventry, Charlie 27 yd field goal, 14-69 (6:05) --- 16-3
1:52 BU - Bolte, Tim 24 yard interception return --- 16-10
0:27 BU - Skwara, Gabe 11 yard pass from Wesley, Brandon (Eckard, Alex kick), 5-59 (:49) --- 16-17

3rd
12:02 DU - McCoy, Larry 4 yd run (Leventry, Charlie kick), 8-60 (2:50) --- 23-17
5:02 BU - Eckard, Alex 19 yd field goal, 12-53 (6:52) --- 23-20
1:37 DU - Leventry, Charlie 34 yd field goal, 4-6 (1:22) --- 26-20

4th
0:57 DU - Wesley, Brandon 1 yd run (Eckard, Alex kick), 12-82 (5:49) --- 26-27

LEADERS
Rushing (Att./Yds./TD): DU - McCoy (30-112-1); BU - Young (19-105-0)
Passing (Att./Comp./Int./Yds./TD): DU - Patterson (19-35-1-188-2); BU - Wesley (11-21-0-173-1)
Receiving (Att./Yds./TD): DU - Spragg (9-100-1); BU - DeNick (4-38-0)
Tackles (Tot./Solo): DU - Oparanozie (8/4), Lakins (8/4), Carter (8/3); BU - Bolte (8/4)

GAME NOTES
Duquesne was denied a third consecutive win over Bucknell ... DU is 0-7 at Lewisburg in the series which dates back to 1933 ... head coach Jerry Schmitt is now 3-4 in season-opening games with two of the wins over Bucknell ... senior Isaac Spragg (Westfield, Va./Valley Forge Military Academy), who entered the game with eight catches in 22 career games, finished with nine catches for 100 yards ... his 22-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter was a career long ... graduate student receiver Connor Dixon (South Park, Pa./South Park), who was granted a sixth year of eligibility Friday afternoon, caught a 14-yard touchdown pass from Sean Patterson on his first play from scrimmage early in the second quarter ... it was the first time the 6-5, 206-pounder had touched a football field since last November ... Dixon was not permitted to practice with the team while awaiting a decision ... he finished with two receptions for 21 yards to extend his personal streak to 16 consecutive games with a catch ... he has caught a pass in every game since moving from quarterback to receiver eight games into the 2009 season ... junior running back Larry McCoy (Wytheville, Va./George Wythe) carried 30 times for 112 yards ... it was his seventh 100-yard game in his past nine outings and 11th of his career ... McCoy, who topped the 100-yard mark on his 26th carry early in the fourth quarter, carried eight times for 40 yards in the third quarter ... junior quarterback Sean Patterson (Toledo, Ohio/St. John's Jesuit) completed 19-of-35 passes for 188 yards and two touchdowns ... he has thrown for at least two scores in six of his last seven games ... junior linebacker Chidozie Oparanozie (Pittsburgh, Pa./Linsley School), a three-time NEC Rookie of the Week in 2008, had a team high-tying eight tackles (four solo) in his first game back ... Oparanozie left school in spring of 2009 ... junior linebacker Zach Richert (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) had a pair of sacks to bring his career total to 5.0.