RICHMOND, Ky. – HCU out-gained Eastern Kentucky and nearly doubled the hosts in first downs but ultimately fell, 20-10, on Saturday night at Roy Kidd Stadium.
HCU (1-1) got the ball to start the game but on the third play from scrimmage quarterback
Jake Weir lost a fumble that set the Colonels (1-1) up with a short field at the HCU 21-yard line. The first EKU play was a 14-yard completion down to the HCU seven. A false start penalty on the Colonels and a rushing loss of 10 yards on a bad snap pushed EKU back and the HCU defense held to force a 30-yard field goal.
On their next possession, the Huskies methodically drove down the field with a 63-yard drive on 16 plays. HCU got down to the three-yard line before
Charlie Weinrich kicked a 23-yard field to even the score at 3-3 with 4:15 left in the first quarter. On the next EKU drive, safety
Matai Tomas knocked a fumble loose at the EKU 34 that was recovered by
Zayteak McGhee. The very next play, however, saw Weir complete a short pass to
Mason Graham that was knocked loose from his grasp and recovered by EKU's Derek Taylor who took it 69 yards to the house to put HCU at a 10-3 deficit.
On the ensuing kickoff,
Braylon Finney returned the ball to the HCU 24 where it was forced loose and recovered by the Colonels, again giving the hosts a short field. The HCU defense stood strong, forcing another field goal but giving EKU a 13-3 lead just before the end of the first quarter.
Following drives by both teams that resulted in punts, the Huskies took possession at their own 48 with 8:39 left in the half. A big 18-yard completion to
Darryle Evans on third and eight kept the possession going and then on third and six, Weir delivered a perfect pass to
Deuce McMillan at the back of the end zone for a 16-yard touchdown. Following the PAT, the Huskies trailed just 13-10, a score that would last until halftime.
Both teams went three-and-out to start the third quarter before the Colonels took an 11-play, 35-yard drive to the HCU 24.
Caleb King came up with a block on the 41-yard field goal attempt and gave possession back to the Huskies at the HCU 24. HCU was forced to punt after a three-and-out and EKU took its next drive 50 yard on 12 plays for a touchdown and a 20-10 advantage at the 13:46 mark in the fourth quarter.
With 10 minutes left in the game,
Thio Georges picked off an EKU pass at the EKU 27-yard line and had a clear shot at the end zone but lost control of the ball at the one with the ball falling loose and rolling out of bounds, resulting in a touchback and giving the Colonels the ball at their own 20.
With 3:15 left on the clock, the Huskies started a drive at their own 18-yard line. HCU moved the ball 66 yards on 14 plays while using up just over two minutes of game time but Weinrich's field goal attempt from 34 yards out missed wide right.
The Huskies finished the night with 248 yards of total offense while limiting EKU to 177. Redshirt freshman
Tamarcus Gray Jr. ended the game with 10 receptions for 80 yards while
Ja'Ryan Wallace added 57 yards on five catches. Weir completed 21-of-44 passes for 204 yards with one touchdown and zero interceptions. On the ground, Evans led HCU with 40 yards on 15 carries.
McMillan's touchdown catch was the ninth of his career, moving him into a tie for fourth-most in program history. He also now stands at 929 career receiving yards, just 71 shy of breaking the 1,000-yard mark.
Defensively, safety
Norey Johnson led the Huskies with eight tackles while
Rodney Dansby added seven. Georges finished with his first interception wearing the blue and orange and also had 1.5 tackles for loss.
EKU scored 10 points off four HCU turnovers while the Huskies were unable to turn any of their three takeaways into points.
The Huskies make another trip out of state next weekend with a trip to Lincoln, Neb. to take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 13, at 11:00 a.m. for the program's first-ever matchup against a Big Ten program.
