ELON, N.C. – Allowing just 46 yards of offense and zero points in the second half, ninth-ranked Elon University football defeated New Hampshire 30-9 inside Rhodes Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 29, to open CAA Football action.
Final Stats | Highlights | Press Conference
“Good team win for us in our first conference game,” said Elon head coach Curt Cignetti. “It was a decisive win and I thought it started with a great opening drive. We went down the field and we were able to execute some throws. Davis Cheek and Kortez Weeks kind of got it going and we kept our tempo up from there. They got a few yards on us early with some trick play kind of stuff, but I really liked the way our defense took over physically as the game went on.”
THE RUNDOWN
Opening the day with the ball, Elon drove 75 yards on 11 plays with Cheek carrying the ball into the end zone from two yards out for his first rushing touchdown since Oct. 7 of last season against William & Mary. He was also 5-for-5 for 58 yards with three different receivers catching passes on the drive.
With its first drive of the second quarter, Elon extended its lead to 14-3 with Malcolm Summers carrying in from 21 yards out. He toted the ball the last 25 yards after Cheek completed back-to-back passes of 15 yards to Cole Taylor and 28 yards to Kortez Weeks.
Though UNH cut the lead to five at 14-9 with its only touchdown and a failed two-point conversion, Skyler Davis added a 32-yard field goal to give Elon a 17-9 lead heading into the final minutes of the first half, where it came up with a stop and another touchdown in the final 90 seconds to go up 24-9 at halftime. To start the sequence, Marcus Willoughby broke through the offensive line for a sack to bring up fourth down. With UNH quarterback Christian Lupoli passing on fourth, his attempt over the middle was broken up at the line by Kadrien Darity to give Elon the ball. On the ensuing drive, two personal foul penalties on New Hampshire put Elon on the UNH 40. Following three consecutive completions by Cheek, he split out wide and Jalen Greenetook a quarterback keeper seven yards for his third touchdown of the year.
STATISTICS
Rushing
Elon: Malcolm Summers – 22 carries, 124 yards, 1 touchdown
UNH: Sean Coyne – 1 carry, 25 yards, 1 touchdown
Passing
Elon: Davis Cheek – 24-31, 258 yards
UNH: Christian Lupoli – 16-27, 174 yards, 1 interception
Receiving
Elon: Kortez Weeks – 14 receptions, 165 yards
UNH: Neil O’Connor – 4 receptions, 56 yards
Defense
Elon: Marcus Willoughby – 9 tackles, , 6 solo, 2.0 sacks, 4.5 TFL
UNH: Quinlen Dean – 12 tackles, 0.5 TFL
NOTES
-Elon’s 30 points mark the most the Phoenix has scored in five games to date against New Hampshire. The previous high was 14 on two occasions.
-The Phoenix defense has now allowed just 89 yards and three points combined in the second halves of its last two games against Charleston Southern and New Hampshire.
-With 10,856 in attendance, the crowd is the fifth-best on Family Day and is the sixth-best attendance at Rhodes Stadium in program history.
-With 30 points, Elon has now scored 30-plus points in three consecutive games for the first time since scoring 30-plus four games in a row from Oct. 10 to Nov. 7, 2009.
-Marcus Willoughby finished with eight tackles, but five of them came behind the line of scrimmage. With 4.5 tackles for loss, the junior upped his career high from 2.5.
-Greg Liggs, Jr., had his first multi-interception game with two second-half picks. It marks the second time in as many seasons Elon has had a player with two interceptions in a game after Tyler Campbell picked off two Albany passes last season. Liggs had three career interceptions entering Saturday’s game.
-Skyler Davis upped his career best with three made field goal from 32, 18 and 30 yards out.
-Elon has now posted total offense numbers of 446, 448 and 451 in its three victories this season while allowing just 214, 264 and 266 in those contests.
-Kortez Weeks’ 14 receptions marks a career high for the sophomore. It topped his 11 at Villanova last season.
-Davis Cheek has now completed 55-of-72 passes against FCS opponents this season, marking a 76.4 completion percentage.
-Curt Cignetti is now 11-3 against FCS foes in his time as head coach of the Phoenix.
UP NEXT
Heading out for its final two road games before a three-game homestand, Elon will visit No. 2 James Madison on Saturday, Oct. 6, for a 1:30 p.m. kickoff at Bridgeforth Stadium. The game will air on MASN and SNY, but can also be seen on CAA.tv.