from www.elonphoenix.com:
BOONE, N.C. – Despite pulling within a field goal of the nation’s top-ranked team late in the fourth quarter, the No. 19 ranked Elon University football team suffered a 34-31 setback to the No. 1 ranked Mountaineers from Appalachian State on Saturday afternoon at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
Down 10 points late in the fourth quarter, the Phoenix (2-4, 1-2 Southern Conference) drove down the field to make it a three-point game, as senior quarterback Scott Riddle found receiver Sean Jeffcoat in the corner of the end zone by the pylon for the score, pulling the Phoenix within a field goal, 34-31, with 3:50 remaining in the game.
However, the Mountaineers managed several first downs in the game’s waning minutes to run out the clock and secure the win to avoid the potential upset.
“It was a great college football game,†said Elon head coach Pete Lembo. “The kids really played hard for four quarters and played a pretty clean game, but big plays hurt us in the end. The only thing that I would have liked to see us do a little better of a job of is make tackles on some of those big plays and just make them 20-yard gains instead of a 40- or 50-yard gain.â€
Scott Riddle(Eastern Randolph HS) had another outstanding passing day for the Phoenix, completing 31-of-43 throws for 394 yards and four touchdowns. With his performance, Riddle surpassed 12,000 career passing yards.
Sophomore wide receiver Aaron Mellette had a stellar performance, catching nine passes for 127 yards and a career-high three touchdowns. Mellette is the first player to catch three touchdown passes in a game versus Appalachian State since 2003. Jeffcoat recorded eight grabs for 102 yards and a touchdown.