SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. (Oct. 10) – The Vulcans committed four turnovers, including two in the red zone, and allowed over 600 yards of total offense on Saturday afternoon while suffering a 56-21 loss at Slippery Rock in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West action.
With the loss, the California University of Pennsylvania football team falls to 4-2 overall and are now tied with Slippery Rock for second place in the PSAC West standings with a 2-1 divisional mark. Meanwhile, The Rock improves to 5-1 this season after winning the league title last season for the first time since 2000.
Slippery Rock, which entered the weekend ranked fourth in the country in scoring offense, finished with 609 yards of total offense and scored 42-unanswered points to build a 49-7 lead late in the third quarter. The Rock nearly became the first opponent to rush for 300 yards in a game since the 2009 NCAA Playoffs, as it finished with 297 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns.
Senior quarterback
James Harris (Woodstock, Ga./Etowah) recorded his third 300-yard game of the season after passing for 349 yards on 24-of-41 attempts. However, he threw three interceptions for the second time this year while being held without a touchdown pass for the fourth time in 22 career starts (twice at Slippery Rock).
Senior wide receiver
Kowan Scott (Easton, Pa./Wilson) led all players with 143 receiving yards for his seventh career 100-yard game and tied his career high with seven catches. Sophomore wide receiver
Luke Smorey (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) set career highs with five receptions for 122 yards, marking the first 100-yard game of his career.
Each team scored a touchdown on its opening possession of the game with the Vulcans tying the score at 7-7 on a 2-yard touchdown run by sophomore
John Franklin III (Canal Winchester, Ohio/Canal Winchester) with 7:35 left in the first quarter. Slippery Rock quickly reclaimed the lead with a 74-yard touchdown pass on the second play of the ensuing drive. Cal U looked to counter following a 69-yard reception by Scott on the initial play of the drive before a fumble inside the 5-yard line and a missed field goal left the Vulcans still trailing 14-7 with 4:14 remaining in the quarter.
Early in the second quarter, Cal U again advanced inside the red zone before Scott lost a fumble inside the 10-yard line. The Vulcans regained possession near midfield when junior defensive back
Aaron Terry (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake) registered his third interception of the year on the first play of The Rock drive. Cal U turned the ball over on downs after finishing just one yard shy of converting a fourth-and-11 before Slippery Rock seized control of the game. The Rock then scored touchdowns on their next three drives to build their lead to 35-7 at halftime. After failing to convert the fourth down, Cal U was held to three-and-outs on consecutive drives (seven yards) before interceptions inside the red zone halted back-to-back drives in the second quarter.
The Vulcans received the second-half kickoff and advanced to near midfield before temporarily losing possession on an interception that ended with a fumble recovered by the offense. After regaining possession, Cal U turned the ball over on downs following a sack of Harris on fourth-and-12. Slippery Rock then scored a pair of touchdowns to stretch its lead to 49-7 after forcing another turnover on downs following a sack.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, senior
Errol Brewster (Harlem, N.Y./Springbrook (Md.)) blocked a punt and junior
Jordan Bowman (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) returned the loose ball 40 yards for a touchdown. The Rock was then forced to a three-and-out before senior
Derrick Fiore (Monongahela, Pa./Ringgold) blocked another punt. Taking over inside the red zone, freshman
Jimmy Wheeler (West Mifflin, Pa./West Mifflin) posted an 18-yard rushing touchdown on the opening play of the drive to cut the deficit to 49-21 with 13:02 left to play. The Rock answered with a touchdown on the ensuing drive before the Vulcans turned the ball over on downs inside the 5-yard line on consecutive drives.
Sophomore linebacker
DeVonte Suber (Coatesville, Pa./Coatesville) led the team with nine tackles (three solo), while Bowman and junior defensive lineman
Jawan Turner (Pittsburgh, Pa./Woodland Hills) both tallied eight stops and 1.0 TFL.
Cal U returns to action on Saturday, Oct. 17, when it travels to face IUP in the seventh-annual Coal Bowl at 6 p.m.
Notes:
Cal U was limited to a season-low 79 rushing yards on 38 attempts … Harris moved past
Josh Portis (2009-10) for fifth place in school history with 6,097 passing yards … The Vulcans featured multiple 100-yard receivers in a game for the second time this season … Bowman, a starting defensive back, has now scored a touchdown (one fumble recovery, two blocked punt) in each of his three seasons with the program … Cal U scored just twice on seven trips to the red zone and failed to convert on five fourth-down attempts … The 35-point loss is the largest margin of defeat since the 2008 NCAA Semifinals (Minnesota Duluth) … The Vulcans have lost four of the last five meetings against Slippery Rock and dropped three-straight road games in the series
