GLASSBORO, N.J. – The Salisbury University football team won its third game in a row and delivered head coach Sherman Wood the 200th victory of his career, powering through the Rowan Profs, 35-20, in a New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) matchup on Saturday afternoon at Coach Richard Wackar Stadium.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
- Salisbury took the opening kickoff and drove down to the Rowan 37, but Eric Bryant picked off Sea Gull quarterback Ben Hutchins at the 25 to kill the drive.
- After the next three drives ended in punts, the Sea Gulls went on a nine-play, 75-yard march that ate up over four minutes. Jadyn Thomas punched it in from six yards out to give SU a 7-0 lead.
Second Quarter
- With the Profs backed up on their own 20 yard line, quarterback Thomas Goldsborough fumbled while winding up for a pass, and Casey Counts pounced on the ball in the red zone. Thomas capitalized on the very next play with a 14-yard touchdown rush, his second of the day, to make it 14-0.
- Salisbury forced a three-and-out and Rowan shanked the punt to set the Sea Gulls up with a short field at the RU 30. On the seventh play of the drive, Joey Bildstein pounded it up the middle for a one-yard touchdown to build the SU lead to 21-0.
Third Quarter
- The Profs punted on their first possession of the third, and the Sea Gulls responded by going 66 yards in 11 plays for another TD. Bildstein again barreled over the goal line from one yard out to make it 28-0.
- Rowan answered with its first score of the game. Nate Maiers found Corey Gordon for a 21-yard strike to cap a nine-play, 75-yard drive and get the Profs within 28-7.
- SU advanced to the Rowan eight on its next drive, but Mason Fisher fumbled it out of the back of the end zone for a touchback on the final play of the quarter.
Fourth Quarter
- Rowan capitalized on the turnover with an 80-yard touchdown drive, capped by a 19-yard pass from Maiers to Jake Schicke to make it a two-score game at 28-14.
- Salisbury punched back with a 10-play, 75-yard drive that took 6:07 off the clock and essentially put the game on ice. Bildstein ran it up the gut for five straight plays, capping it off with his third touchdown plunge, this one from three yards out, to build the SU lead back to 35-14.
- Charles Barley and Josh Barker picked Maiers off on back-to-back Rowan possessions to keep the Profs from staging a rally.
- Rowan got one score back when Vincent Guarino forced Ronald Clark to fumble and Nick Cerulli ran it back 64 yards to the house to make the score 35-20, where it would stay until SU ran out the clock on its next drive.
SALISBURY GAME NOTES
- Salisbury rushed for all 387 of its total yards of offense for the day.
- Joey Bildstein put up his third straight 100-yard, multi-score game, powering 28 carries for 121 yards and three touchdowns. Bildstein moved into ninth in Sea Gull history with 2,590 career rushing yards, surpassing Leroy Satchell '05 (2,514) on the all-time leaderboard.
- David Fletcher gave the Sea Gulls a pair of 100-yard rushers, racking up 110 yards on 10 carries.
- Jadyn Thomas ran it six times for 67 yards and the first two touchdowns of his career.
- Ben Hutchins carried it 14 times for 68 yards. He also finished 0-of-4 passing with an interception.
- Josh Barker led the SU defense with eight tackles (five solo) and recorded an interception. Colin Wargo racked up seven tackles (three solo).
- Charles Barley picked off a pass in the end zone, broke up one pass, and finished with five tackles.
- Ben Malley sacked the quarterback once, while A.J. Butler made three pass breakups, and Casey Counts recovered his fourth fumble of the season.
- Head coach Sherman Wood becomes just the 12th active football coach across all levels of the NCAA to reach 200 career wins. Wood, who began his career at Bowie State in 1993 before arriving in Salisbury in 1999, joins a shortlist of college football's winningest bosses that includes Alabama's Nick Saban, North Carolina's Mack Brown, and LSU's Brian Kelly.
ROWAN GAME NOTES
- Rowan totaled 275 yards of offense, including 222 through the air.
- Nate Maiers completed 21-of-31 passes for 213 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. Thomas Goldsborough went 2-of-5 for nine yards and lost a fumble.
- Tyshawn Bookman and Nunes Bukula IV each accumulated 30 rushing yards.
- Corey Gordon caught four passes for 97 yards and a touchdown. Kevin Degnan finished with 76 yards on 10 receptions, and Jake Schicke grabbed two receptions for 23 yards and a score.
- Aeneas Robinson led all tacklers with 12 stops (seven solo), while Vincent Guarino finished right behind with 11 tackles and a forced fumble.
- Eric Bryant intercepted a pass and made three tackles.
- Nick Cerulli scored a defensive touchdown on a 64-yard fumble return.
UP NEXT
- The Sea Gulls will host their Homecoming game next Saturday, Oct. 28, against The College of New Jersey Lions. Kickoff from Sea Gull Stadium is scheduled for 1 p.m.
- SU will host a Flock Party outside the main gates of the stadium on Wayne Street beginning at 11 a.m. On-site ticket sales at the box office will begin at that time.
Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with the New Jersey Athletic Conference for football and men's and women's swimming, and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, featuring dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on and off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 23 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 196 conference championships, and 45 Academic All-Americans.
To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.