Football Stumbles in Alabama
from the Guilford College athletics website……
The Guilford College football team headed south to face Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama. The Quakers fell behind early and struggled to get back in the game as they fell, 40-14.
To open the game, Guilford received the opening kickoff. On the return, Jay Daniels lost the ball as Huntingdon recovered at the Guilford 29. Three-consecutive rushes and the Hawks were into the endzone. A successful point after gave the hosts the 7-0 lead at the 13:23 mark of the first.
On the first drive for the Quakers, they were able to pick up a first down but the offense stalled. GC punted the ball away to Huntingdon. The hosts began its next drive on its own 45.
The Hawks marched down the field including a fourth down pick up to set up first and goal. After two plays, the Huntingdon quarterback was met in the back field by Joey Strong Jr. as he forced and recovered the fumble.
Starting at its own 10, Guilford had its second drive of the afternoon. Following another first down, GC faced a third-and-19. Bailey Baker tried to gain the yardage but was stopped short as the team punted the ball away.
Huntingdon went 33 yards on five plays as the Quaker defense forced it to attempt a 36-yard field goal. The kick was good as the hosts led 10 with 52 seconds left in the first.
Guilford put together its most successful drive as the team marched 56 yards on nine plays including passes from Baker to Messiah Ramseur and Parker DeHart. On fourth-and-seven, Burke Nettles attempted a 36-yard field goal but unfortunately missed.
For its next drive, Huntingdon worked down the field efficiently, using 10 plays over 80 yards to find the endzone. After the point after, the hosts led 17-0 with 8:15 remaining in the half.
The Quakers were able to pick up two first downs on the ensuing drive but were stopped at their 42 and punted the ball away. The Hawks quickly went to work and scored just 1:44 later to go ahead 24-0 with under three minutes left in the half.
Guilford went three-and-out on its next drive but a 54-yard punt from Nettles pinned Huntingdon at its own two-yard line. The hosts ran out the final 1:08 and carried its 24-0 lead going into the locker rooms.
In the second half, Huntingdon scored on its opening drive; going 45 yards over eight plays to jump ahead 31-0 just under five minutes into the third.
The Quakers got on the board during their next drive. The team used 3:15 to go 95 yards in eight plays as Baker found JuJu Rice for the one-yard touchdown catch. Nettles converted the point after as the team trailed 31-7 with 7:21 on the clock.
Huntingdon added one more score to lead 38-7 at the end of the third period. In fourth, the Hawks were able to tackle the Guilford running back in the endzone for a safety. After the teams went back and forth with possessions.
GC took over at its own 41 after a turnover on downs. On the very first play, Malik Woodard broke free for the 59-yard touchdown with six seconds left in regulation. The point after was good as it made it the final score of 40-14.
Baker finished the day going 11-25 from the pocket for 92 yards and a touchdown. Woodard ran for 74 yards and a score on nine attempts. Strong Jr. finished the day with 10 total tackles (6S, 4A) with three tackles for loss, a forced and recovered fumble.
Guilford (2-1) will take the next week off before opening conference play on Saturday, September 30 against ranked Randolph-Macon on Homecoming Weekend. Kickoff is slated for 1:00 p.m.