OWINGS MILLS, Md. – The Stevenson University football team erupted for 42 unanswered points in the second half to surge past FDU-Florham, 42-14, in MAC action on Saturday afternoon at Mustang Stadium. The Mustangs (3-1, 2-1 MAC) entered halftime trailing 14-0 before scoring 20 points in the third quarter and adding 22 more in the fourth to complete the comeback.
FDU-Florham struck first, taking a 7-0 lead with 12:01 remaining in the opening quarter on a five-yard touchdown pass from Jake Sconza to Nahjee Adams. The Devils added another touchdown in the second quarter, taking a 14-0 advantage into halftime.
Stevenson responded immediately coming out of the break.
Daryus Henderson blocked an FDU-Florham punt and returned it 33 yards for a touchdown with 13:34 remaining in the third quarter, putting the Mustangs on the board and cutting the deficit to 14-7.
The Mustangs continued their second-half surge when
Jailen Knight connected with
Khari Walker for a 35-yard touchdown with 5:58 remaining in the third quarter, tying the game at 14-14. Just over two minutes later, Knight found
Noah Robinson for a 21-yard touchdown, giving Stevenson its first lead of the afternoon, 20-14.
Stevenson carried the momentum into the fourth quarter as Knight connected with
Anthony Rodriguez for a four-yard touchdown.
Stephen Tatum added the successful two-point conversion on a pass from Knight, extending the Mustang advantage to 28-14 with 13:58 remaining.
The Stevenson defense continued to make an impact, as
Terae Franklin recovered a FDU-Florham fumble and returned it 33 yards for a touchdown with 12:18 remaining in the fourth quarter. The score pushed the Mustang lead to 35-14 and capped a stretch of 35 unanswered points by Stevenson.
John Asuquo closed out the scoring with a 12-yard touchdown run with 3:18 remaining, capping an eight-play, 58-yard drive and giving the Mustangs the 42-14 final.
The Mustangs totaled 344 yards of offense, including 199 on the ground and 145 through the air.
Nicolas Blagmon led the rushing attack with 71 yards on seven carries, while
John Asuquo added 53 yards and a touchdown.
Jailen Knight completed all four of his passes for 76 yards and three touchdowns, with
Khari Walker recording two catches for 51 yards and a touchdown.
Noah Robinson and
Anthony Rodriguez also added touchdown receptions.
Defensively, Stevenson recorded five sacks and seven tackles for loss.
Brandon Adler led the way with two sacks for 26 yards, while
Xavier McKinney,
Michael Hall and
Ibrahim Dail each added a sack. McKinney also forced a fumble, while
Kai Sands recorded two interceptions.
Ethan Marshall and
Matthew Berry each finished with eight total tackles to lead the Mustangs.
Stevenson will enjoy a bye week before returning to action on Saturday, October 10, traveling to Lebanon Valley for another MAC match up. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
