Oct 14, 2023
LEXINGTON, Va. - The Washington and Lee University football team won its fifth-straight game on Saturday afternoon as a balanced rushing attack and a stubborn defensive effort helped them cruise by Ferrum College 41-16 at Wilson Field.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter | 14-0 W&L
- The Generals received the opening kickoff after the Panthers deferred to the second half. On their first drive, Senior quarterback Stephen Murrin got the Generals into the red zone as he found a hole in the defense and sprinted 57 yards to the Ferrum six-yard line.
- Murrin capped off the seven-play, 75-yard drive with a two-yard scamper to put W&L up 7-0 with 11:45 left in the first quarter.
- The Generals defense stood tall on the Panthers first possession as Jalen Todd and Nathan Unger clobbered Nathan Carr in the backfield, forcing a Ferrum punt.
- Washington and Lee's next drive resulted in another score; they marched 51-yards on 11-plays to take a 14-0 lead. Murrin capped off the drive once again as he walked into the end zone from a yard out.
Second Quarter | 28-0 W&L
- The Panthers second drive spanned into the second quarter but the Generals defense helped stall the drive. On 4th and 3, punter Seth Deaton sprinted left of the line of scrimmage but was stopped short of the sticks by Charlie Fleming to turn the ball over on downs.
- The Blue and White's next drive ended in a negative result. On 3rd and 12, Murrin dropped back to pass but the ball slipped out of his hands, falling to the turf. Ferrum's Alijiah Gray snatched up the loose ball, forcing the Generals first turnover of the day.
- On 3rd and 9 of Ferrum's next drive, Todd blitzed off the edge and delivered a crushing blow to quarterback Carr to force a fumble.Todd kept his footing and scooped up the loose ball and returned it to the W&L 22-yard line.
- The Generals only needed 3:31 to march 64-yards to the end zone to take a commanding 21-0 lead. Anthony Crawford capped off the drive with a nine-yard rush, his first score of the afternoon.
- Jerzee Allentini spoiled the Panthers next drive as he ripped Braxton Hughes to the turf for a nine-yard loss to force a Ferrum punt.
- The Generals started their next drive on their own 33-yard line with just 2:51 left in the first half. Murrin went five of six in the air to get W&L down to the Ferrum four-yard line before Crawford walked into the end zone from one yard out to put the Generals up 28-0.
- Jack Johnson closed out the second-half by picking off the Panthers hail mary attempt and returning it 55-yards to the 49-yard line.
Third Quarter | 34-0 W&L
- On the Panthers opening drive of the second half, Johny McGrath ran through the left guard on his way to his second sack of the season.
- Following Ferrum's punt, the Generals wasted 6:09 of the game clock on a 14-play, 50-yard drive which resulted in six points. Marcus Payne found the end zone for his fifth touchdown of the year, putting the Generals up 34-0.
Fourth Quarter | 41-16 W&L
- The Panther put points on the board just 31 seconds into the fourth quarter as quarterback Braxton Hughes capped off a ten-play, 65-yard drive with a two yard scamper.
- Ferrum's defense forced a W&L punt in their first drive of the quarter and capitalized on the failed drive. Braxton Hughes punched it in from three yards out to cap off a nine-play, 60-yard drive.
- Two-plays was all the Generals offense needed to find the endzone for the final time of the afternoon. On the first play of the drive, Eli Hildebrandt found a hole on the right side of the defense and rumbled down the sideline for a 56-yard gain.
- A personal foul on the Panthers put the General on the Ferrum 14-yard line. Michael Schoenberg took the next hand off 14-yards to the house to give the Blue and White a 41-14 lead.
- On the Generals final drive of the game, Andrew Swann lined up for a punt but a bad snap forced him near the end line where the ball went out of the back of the end zone for a safety.
W&L GAME NOTES
- Washington and Lee improved to 5-1 on the season and remained undefeated in Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) play. The Generals are now 5-0 in the all-time series against Ferrum since they joined the ODAC in 2018. W&L's 41 points this afternoon marks the most points scored against the Panthers.
- The Blue and White ran 73 plays for 368 yards of total offense while averaging 5 yards per play. The rushing attack was the main focal point of the offense as they rushed 57 times for 315 yards while averaging 5.5 yards per carry.
- Four different rushers scored for the Generals while Stephen Murrin and Anthony Crawford both scored twice on the ground.
- W&L was 7 of 14 (50%) on third down while converting three of their four (75%) fourth down conversions. The offense found the endzone on each trip to the red zone.
- The Generals defense was dominant as they registered seven sacks while forcing a fumble and picking off a pass. The defensive unit limited an offense that averaged 102.2 rushing yards to only 76.
FERRUM GAME NOTES
- The Panthers fall to 2-4 on the season and 0-3 in conference play. Ferrum has lost their last three games, with the last win coming on Sept. 16 against LaGrange.
- Ferrum was dominant in the air, throwing for 200 yards on 22 completions. They averaged 5.7 yards per attempt and 9.1 per completion. The Panthers registered 276 yards of total offense while averaging 3.8 yards per play.
- Ferrum held a slight advantage in time of possession as they had the ball for 30:28. The Panthers were not effective on third down as they were 4 of 15 (26%) but converted twice on their four fourth down conversions.
TOP PERFORMERS
- Braxton Hughes of Ferrum was 18 of 29 for 186 yards with one interception. Murrin completed four of his seven passes for 38 yards.
- Eli Hildebrandt led all rushers with 71 yards on four carries with a long of 56 yards. Crawford rushed 16 times for 61 yards and two scores. Nathan Carr of Ferrum rushed 14 times for 43 yards.
- Ferrum's Josh Powell caught a game-high seven passes for 86 yards while Marquise Woodruff caught four passes for 39 yards. Dryden Duggins caught two passes for 24 yards.
- Alan Haigler and Hunter Hawk led the Generals with seven tackles each. Both Haigler and Hawk had four solo tackles and three assisted tackles. Jalen Todd led the Generals with two TFLs while recording a strip sack for the second straight-game.
- Hunter Cannaday of Ferrum led all players with a career-high 15 tackles. Josh Austin recorded nine tackles and Hunter Callahan had eight.
UP NEXT
- The Blue and White are back in action on Saturday, Oct. 21 as they travel to Hampden-Sydney College. The Tigers and Generals kickoff action at 1 p.m. inside Lewis C. Everett Stadium.