Oct. 10, 2009
Box Score | Photo Gallery 
CONWAY, S.C. - The Coastal Carolina University football team opened Big South Conference action, earning a hard-fourth 20-6 win against visiting VMI, Sat., Oct. 10 at Brooks Stadium. The Chanticleers moved to 3-2 on the year and 1-0 in league play, while the Keydets are now 1-4 and 0-2 in the conference. The win was the third straight home victory for Coastal, guaranteeing a winning home record for the fifth time in seven years.
VMI took the opening possession and, utilizing its option running attack for all but one play, marched down the field in 17 plays for the opening score. Quarterback Kyle Hughes dove over the pile in from the one for a touchdown. After the 81-yard drive, Jeff Sexton's extra point was blocked by Josh Norman to give the Keydets a 6-0 lead just over seven minutes into the contest.
Coastal Carolina's first drive of the game proved to be successful, going 74 yards in just six plays and 2:02. Quarterback Zach MacDowall bought time and found wide receiver Adrian Sullivan with a 41-yard touchdown strike, the receiver's first collegiate touchdown. Kicker Justin Durham hit the extra point to give Coastal Carolina a 7-6 lead with 5:44 to go in the first.
Coastal Carolina drove downfield during the first possession in the second half. The offense powered through 65 yards in 13 plays over 5:44, but the drive stalled at the VMI 16. Justin Durham attempted a 33-yard field goal and split the uprights, giving Coastal a 10-6 lead with nine minutes left in the third quarter.
After the Coastal Carolina defense forced an interception deep in its own territory, the Chanticleer offense again moved the ball, traveling 49 yards in 12 plays and chewing up 6:06 on the clock. The VMI defense again was able to keep the Chants out of the end zone, but Durham connected again, this time from 37 yards and the lead was seven at 13-6 with eight minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
The Keydets made a push late in the fourth quarter, getting the ball down to the Chanticleer 17. On fourth-and-3, the Coastal defense made a stand, stopping the running back for a 2-yard gain, but giving the ball back to the Chants with 5:15 to play.
VMI had one last chance with just over three minutes to play in the game, getting the ball on its own 38. On 3rd and 19, Hughes was intercepted by linebacker Andrae Jacobs and his 22-yard return put the ball at VMI 13. On the second play, quarterback Jaime Childers ran 13 yards into the end-zone to seal the victory. Durham hit the point-after attempt for the final 20-7 margin.
Coastal outgained VMI 418-243, including limiting the Keydets to just 162 yards and no points after the visitors' opening scoring drive. The two teams were almost even on rushing, with VMI, the league's leading rushing team, to just 168 yards, more than 40 less than their season average. The yardage difference came in passing game, with the Chants totaling 245 yards as compared to 75 for the Keydets. Turnovers were also a major factor, with VMI giving up two fumbles and two interceptions and Coastal fumbling the ball away twice. After the opening drive and going 3-of-4 on third down conversions, the Keydets were just 2-of-14 the rest of the way, while Coastal was 8-of-13 for the contest.
The Chants were led on the ground by running back Eric O'Neal, who had a game-high 78 yards on 15 carries and became the sixth Coastal and 25th Big South player to reach the career 1,000-yard rushing mark. MacDowall was 14-of-20 for 207 yards and one touchdown through the air, while Childers added a 5-of-5 for 38-yard performance. Wide receiver Brandon Whitley had a career-high 94 yards on five catches, while O'Neal also had five receptions for 43 yards. Coastal Carolina's defense took a stand with linebackers E.J. Brown and Derrick Frasier leading the Chants. Brown led the team with nine tackles and Frasier stood out with seven tackles, one interception and one fumble recovery.
VMI was led by Hughes' 57 yards on 16 rushes and one score, with Howard Abegesah rushing 20 times for 54 yards. Hughes was 4-for-15 for 75 yards and two interceptions through the air. VMI's defensive leader was Damiso Alexander who stood out with nine tackles and one sack for an eight-yard loss.
The Chanticleers head on the road for a three-game swing, starting next Saturday at two-time defending Big South champion Liberty. Kickoff at Williams Stadium is set for 3:30 p.m., as the contest will be televised as part of the league's television package. The Keydets are also back next Saturday, returning to Lexington to play Stony Brook at 1:30 p.m.
