BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – The Golden Eagles once again showed the ability to move the ball on the ground, but Clarion was unable to take advantage in key swing moments as they fell 42-3 to Bloomsburg at Redman Stadium.
Similar to their first game of the season, Clarion moved the ball effectively on the ground, recording 38 rushes for 186 yards and a 4.9 yards per carry average against the Huskies. This time it was receiver
Corahn Alleyne that did the lion's share of the damage, carrying 10 times for 50 yards. He also caught six passes for 35 yards, and his 75 kick return yards gave him 160 all-purpose yards for the day.
Khalil Owens added 46 yards on 11 carries, while quarterback
Zach Benedek supplemented his offensive output with 37 rushing yards.
The Golden Eagles were generally able to move the ball on offense, but the difference in this game came in their ability to break through for the big play. Six Clarion drives ended in Bloomsburg territory, but only one of them ended with a score – a 25-yard field goal by
Trent McDowell in the third quarter. Twice the Golden Eagles turned the ball over on downs inside the Huskies' 40-yard line, with Alleyne tackled one yard short of the lead stick at the start of the second quarter and Owens tripped up in the third quarter.
Clarion's scoring drive came midway through the third quarter, starting on their own 28-yard line. Benedek connected with Alleyne in the left flat for a first down early in the drive, and the quarterback converted a 3
rd-and-1 when he found
DJ Rawley on a crosser that took the team to near midfield. Benedek carried for eight yards on a 3
rd-and-5 to crack Bloomsburg territory, and Owens ripped off his best run of the day – a 13-yard sprint through the middle – to get the team close. Alleyne took a sweep handoff 18 yards down to the Bloomsburg five-yard line, but the Husky defense stood tall and forced the Golden Eagles to a field goal by McDowell that made it 35-3.
Conversely, Bloomsburg took advantage of early opportunities to take the lead. On their second drive of the game, KJ Riley hit Nas Jones down the middle for a 34-yard touchdown pass to open the scoring, and Riley scored on a 57-yard quarterback keeper on his team's second drive to make it 14-0.
The Golden Eagles did force a turnover in the second quarter, with
Shane Kemper lowering his head and jarring the ball loose from John Ayres on a rush attempt.
Robert Lachmann fell on the fumble to give Clarion possession. Later, the Golden Eagles blocked an extra-point attempt by the Huskies, with
Deuce Lyons getting a hand on the ball as it went up. A rare blocked kick recovery / fumble into the endzone / kicking team recovery gave Bloomsburg the point anyway as they led 35-0 at that point.
Kemper finished the game with seven tackles and the forced fumble, while
Griffin Buzzell notched six stops. Lachmann and
Jake Tarburton each recorded sacks.
