QBs Earle and Mansell lead TD drives at UVA

Written by Ron Hadfield | Photos: Keith Lucas

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Abilene Christian freshman quarterback Stone Earle  made his first collegiate start Saturday, throwing for 150 yards and one TD as part of his team’s 340 yards of offense against the University of Virginia, which scored two touchdowns in each quarter to win 55-15. Quarterback Brennan Armstrong led the Cavaliers in passing (383 yards) and rushing (52), accounting for four touchdowns at Scott Stadium. 

ACU junior Kobe Clark added 81 yards in receiving and a TD for the Wildcats, who were playing their third FBS opponent in the same season for the first time since moving to Division I in 2013. Junior quarterback Peyton Mansell entered the game in the third quarter and completed nine of 13 passes for 128 yards and had a 2-yard scoring run late in the fourth quarter, which was followed by a Ben Norman safety with 34 seconds left in regulation.

FCS-member ACU (1-5) of the Southland Conference closed its 2020 season by playing its first Atlantic Coast Conference opponent. Two of ACU’s other scheduled games this fall were victims of COVID-19.

Virginia (4-4) used two one-play scoring drives and an interception return – including on the final snaps of the first, second and fourth quarters – to build a three-score lead at the half and put the Wildcats away in the second half. Three other times the Cavaliers added TDs on five-play drives.

The game featured two teams at different points of their seasons. The Cavs still have three games against ACC rivals Florida State, Boston College and Virginia Tech, while the Wildcats were wrapping up a makeshift schedule affected greatly by the pandemic and injuries to key players. 

The game began promisingly for a gritty Abilene Christian team.

ACU stopped the Cavaliers on downs on Virginia’s opening drive and then moved smartly back downfield on an 11-play drive. The Wildcats gambled on 4th-and-3 from their opponent’s 19-yard line before a pass was batted away.

Head coach Adam Dorrel’s team, which had trouble stopping Division II Angelo State in a loss last week, forced Virginia to punt on its second drive as well.

ACU linebacker Jack Gibbens sacked Armstrong on Virginia’s third possession. Three plays later, the Cavaliers opened the scoring when Armstrong connected with tight end Tony Poljan on a 28-yard scoring pass with 4:40 left in the quarter.

After forcing an ACU punt, Virginia struck quickly on the next play – a 90-yard catch-and-run TD pass from Armstrong to 6-7 wide receiver Lavel Davis Jr. to put the Cavaliers up 14-0 on the final snap of the first quarter. The play was the longest in games involving an ACC team thus far in 2020.

With Armstrong’s scrambling ability proving nearly impossible for the Wildcats to corral, the Cavaliers found the end zone on their next drive as well. Shane Simpson’s 1-yard run with 7:53 left in the first half put the home team up 21-0.

Virginia looked to have scored again on ACU’s ensuing drive when safety D’Angelo Amos intercepted an Earle pass and returned it 40 yards for an apparent TD, but a penalty for pass interference negated the play.

ACU made its last drive of the first half count, moving 75 yards in 14 plays, capped by Kobe Clark’s 2-yard TD pass from Earle with 30 seconds left. Oscar Hernandez’s PAT kick drew the Wildcats closer, 21-7.

Virginia got the ball at the 36-yard line and Armstrong put on a precision passing clinic to move Virginia back downfield in the final half minute. ACU was flagged for pass interference on what should have been the last play of the quarter, giving the Cavaliers new life and one more opportunity. They took advantage, with Simpson bulling his way 1 yard into the end zone for his second TD of the day and his team’s fourth, extending his team’s lead to 28-7.

The Cavs lit the scoreboard on their first drive of the third quarter. Keytaon Thompson took a short underhand toss from Armstrong, broke a tackle and raced 56 yards for another Virginia TD to put the home team up 35-7.

Virginia extended its lead to 42-7, striking once more with another 1-play drive.  Armstrong took a pitch from the Wildcat formation and threw a 52-yard scoring pass to Ra’Shaun Henry with 9:06 left in the quarter.  

Mansell entered the game on the ensuing drive for ACU. The Wildcats got as far as the Virginia 34-yard line, gambling on 4th-and-1 but coming up short, turning the ball over on downs.

The ACU defense then stiffened for the first time since halfway through the first quarter, forcing only the second Cavalier punt of the day. The Wildcats showed new life on a 42-yard run by Mansell, but the gain was erased by a penalty, and ACU had to punt once more. 

The Cavs commenced a nearly 11-minute drive to score again on what looked to be a cap on the Virginia afternoon. Backup quarterback Lindell Stone threw a 2-yard TD pass to Demick Starling with 5:57 remaining.

But at the end of the ensuing drive, Mansell ran 2 yards on a keeper to cut the Cavalier lead to 49-13. Hernandez missed a second PAT kick after a penalty wiped out a Virginia block of his first. The Wildcats had covered 73 yards on 10 plays to score.

Following the kickoff and with a 36-point lead and time winding down, Virginia inexplicably tried a trick play in its end zone and failed miserably. Stone was tackled by Wildcat linebacker Ben Norman after catching a pass from Thompson, giving ACU two more points, 49-15, with 34 seconds left.

ACU took the ensuing punt and quickly advanced to the Virginia 20-yard line, where D’Sean Perry intercepted a Mansell pass and raced 84 yards for a TD on the game’s final play. 

Earle completed 19 of 31 passes for 150 yards and led the Wildcats in rushing with 20 yards on 13 carries. Mansell completed 9 of 13 passes for 128 yards, and ran for a TD. The Wildcats attempted just 32 rushes and gained only 62 yards against a tough Virginia defense.

Darius Lewis added six catches for 51 yards for ACU, and L.J. McConnell had five for 67.

A week after Gibbens recorded 14 tackles, he led ACU today with seven tackles and recorded his team’s only sack. Cornerback Christopher Satterfield also had seven tackles.

PLAYS THAT MATTERED

• 1Q – Brennan Armstrong threw a 28-yard TD pass to Tony Poljan and Brian Delaney’s successful PAT kick put Virginia up 7-0 with 4:40 left. Scoring drive: 5 plays, 80 yards, 2:21
• 1Q – Lavel Davis Jr. caught a 90-yard TD pass from Armstrong. Delaney’s PAT kick gave Virginia a 14-0 lead on the last play of the quarter. Scoring drive: 1 play, 90 yards, 00:11
• 2Q – Shane Simpson ran 1 yard for a TD with 7:53 left to give Virginia a 21-0 lead. Scoring drive: 14 plays, 61 yards, 5:51
• 2Q – Kobe Clark caught a 2-yard TD pass from Stone Earle with 30 second left, pulling ACU closer, 21-7. Oscar Hernandez kicked the PAT. Scoring drive: 14 plays, 75 yards, 7:23
• 2Q – Simpson ran 1 yard for a TD with no time left on the clock, padding the Virginia lead to 28-7. Scoring drive: 5 plays, 64 yards, 00:30
• 3Q – Keytaon Thompson took a quick toss from Armstrong and raced 56 yards for a TD with 11:18 left to take a 35-7 lead. Scoring drive: 5 plays, 83 yards, 1:40
• 3Q – Armstrong threw a 52-yard TD pass to Ra’Shaun Henry to extend Virginia’s lead to 42-7 with 9:06 left. Scoring drive: 1 plays, 52 yards, 00:08
• 4Q – Demick Starling caught a 2-yard TD pass from Lindell Stone with 5:57 left to put Virginia ahead, 49-7. Scoring drive: 17 plays, 69 yards, 10:57
• 4Q – Peyton Mansell ran 2 yards for a TD to pull ACU closer and seal the game’s final margin, 49-13. Hernandez had his first PAT blocked and the second, enabled by a Cavs penalty, sailed wide left. Scoring drive: 10 plays, 73 yards, 4:31 
• 4Q – Ben Norman tackled Stone for a safety. Scoring drive: 2 plays, -5 yards, 00:52
• 4Q – D’Sean Perry’s pick-6 of Mansell covered 84 yards to provide the game’s final margin, 55-15. Scoring drive: 0 plays, 0 yards, 00:00

THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

• ACU held Virginia to just 115 yards on the ground after giving up 414 yards rushing last week to Angelo State.
• Virginia outgained ACU 518-340 in total yards, including 403 through the air, although 198 came on three TD-producing pass plays (90, 56 and 52 yards).
• ACU head coach Adam Dorrel said Stone Earle started at QB for ACU because Peyton Mansell did not practice this week following a medical issue. Mansell entered the game in the third quarter.

STAT CORNER

• There were no turnovers in the game until the game’s final play, a pick-6 for the Cavaliers. Virginia scored two TDs in each quarter.
• The Wildcats scored on half of their trips into the red zone, while Virginia was three-for-three.
• ACU had a nearly five-minute advantage in time of possession, but the quick-strike Virginia offense made the Wildcats pay on the scoreboard.
• At the half, Virginia led in total offense (317-151), first downs (13-11), rushing yards (71-34), passing yards (246-117) and on the scoreboard (28-7). ACU led in time of possession (18:11 to 11:49).

NOTABLE

• With a seating capacity of 61,500, Scott Stadium is the largest football venue in which the Wildcats played in 2020. Others included UTEP’s Sun Bowl (51,500), Globe Life Park (48,114) and Army West Point’s Michie Stadium (34,000). Attendance at all, however, was severely limited by COVID-19 health protocols and distancing rules.
• Prior to 2020, the Wildcats’ had not played on the East Coast since a 1995 game in Connecticut with New Haven. The Virginia game is ACU’s third road trip that far this season, including Army West Point (New York) and Mercer (Georgia).
• In 2020, Virginia has wins over Duke (38-20), North Carolina (44-41), Louisville (31-17) and losses to Clemson (41-23), North Carolina State (38-21), Wake Forest (40-23) and Miami (19-14). All are members of the ACC.
• Last season, the Cavaliers lost to No. 3-ranked Clemson in the ACC Championship Game and played in the Orange Bowl, losing to No. 6-ranked Florida, 36-28.

QUOTABLE

• “It makes you feel good as a program moving forward that you have two guys that are competitors and have the respect of the rest of the locker room because of their work ethic … the way they go about their buisness; they’re very personable with everybody and they work very hard.” – ACU head coach Adam Dorrel about his two quarterbacks, Peyton Mansell and Stone Earle
• “We played really, really well. I’ve gone out of my way to not make excuses for our football program this year. Today we were absolutely decimated with injuries and COVID. We had spots today where we were one-deep … so you’re talking about guys that played 62 snaps against Virginia, and that’s just so hard to do in college football.” – ACU head coach Adam Dorrel
• “I was really proud of our guys. We’ve had to move a corner over to running back [Robert McKnight]. [Jermiah] Dobbins is banged up and Tyrese [White] has a medical situation going on right now where the fact that he’s even trying to suit up and play means a lot to us as coaches. We’re just using him in protections; he’s lost a lot of weight and doesn’t have a lot of energy right now. ” – ACU head coach Adam Dorrel
• “I just thought it was a real gutsy performance by our guys. [Virginia is] a real good football team and we were just short-handed.” – ACU head coach Adam Dorrel
• “For us to take the next step, we have to learn love each other better and hold each other acccountable in everything we do.” – ACU head coach Adam Dorrel