A week after a disappointing loss to kick off the season, the Owls dominated the Point University Skyhawks 49-3 on Saturday, Sept. 10.
There was a tense feeling in the crowd after the loss against East Tennessee State last week, but that was replaced with excitement after the performance by the team Saturday night.
Red-shirt sophomore Chandler Burks filled in for the injured Trey White as starting quarterback.
“I was pretty confident [Burks] could do the job,” head coach Brian Bohannon said after the game. “I thought he might have had some nerves early on.”
Although the running game was by far the most dominant aspect for the Owls, they passed the ball well early on.
On their first possession, the Owls marched down the field on just six plays, scoring on a pass between Burks and red-shirt sophomore wide receiver Justin Sumpter. The two connected yet again later in the first quarter.
The second quarter brought even more excitement from KSU’s offense as Burks led them on a 98-yard touchdown drive, highlighted by two huge rushes of 31 and 51 yards.
Success by the offense brought momentum to the defense, which in the next possession forced the Skyhawks to punt from deep in their own end zone. Red-shirt sophomore Taylor Henkle brought the ball all the way to Point’s 28-yard line, which set up the Owls perfectly for another scoring drive, with KSU earning a touchdown on a short run by senior running back Micah Reed.
In the closing seconds of the quarter, Point scored for the first time in the game on a field goal, bringing the score to 28-3 in favor of KSU going into halftime.
In the second half, huge gains by Reed and Burks eventually led to a rushing touchdown scored by red-shirt sophomore running back Trey Chivers.
After a few substitutions, another touchdown was scored on a 31-yard pass from freshman quarterback Daniel David to senior running back Chaston Bennett.
For the remainder of the game, the Owls did not leave the Skyhawks any room for success.
“When you have an opponent down, you have to finish it,” Bohannon said. “You have to finish the job.”
A final touchdown in the beginning of the fourth quarter brought the score to 49-3. Even with the large lead, the Owls continued to play well on defense, forcing a turnover on an interception by red-shirt junior Duronte Carter.
After a disappointing first game of the season, Bohannon said the team had a lot to reflect on.
“Practice was pretty intense this week,” he said. “[We] didn’t even talk about the opponent this week, we talked about ourselves.”
Bohannon was proud of his team but also grateful to the fans in the stands.
“It’s great to get a win at home,” he said. “We’ve got a special thing going on here.”
