CLARION, Pa. --- The Golden Eagles football team improved to 4-0 for the first time in a decade with a dominant offensive performance at home, beating Shepherd 51-38 at Al Jacks Field at Memorial Stadium. Clarion's defense got the stops when they needed them in the second half, sealing the first win over the Rams in program history.
 
The win marked a handful of milestones in recent Golden Eagle history, both on the team and individual levels. Clarion has now started the season 4-0 for the first time since 2015, when they opened the year with a 7-0 record; it is only the fourth time since 1983 that the Golden Eagles have opened the year with four straight wins. The Golden Eagles went off for 603 yards of total offense, the first time they've done so since putting up a school record 676 yards against Seton Hill on Oct. 17, 2015 against Seton Hill. The 51 points scored by the Golden Eagles were the most in a single game since putting up 59 in a win over Cheyney earlier that season, on Sept. 19.
 
Individually, Anthony Guercio had a monster day, completing 26 of 35 passes for 413 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. It was the first 400-yard passing day for the Golden Eagles since Connor Simmons threw for 432 yards in the aforementioned game against Seton Hill, and the fifth-highest single-game total in program history. Meanwhile, running back Khalon Simmons rushed 14 times for 84 yards and four touchdowns, marking one of just eight games in the 99-year history where one player recorded four rushing touchdowns.
 
The Rams had their own share of success on offense – 38 points and 530 yards of offense, including 224 yards on the ground – but the turning point of the game may well have been the lone turnover of the game for either side, forced by the Golden Eagles. Shepherd scored a touchdown on their first drive of the second half when Jordan Barnett broke loose for a 77-yard score on the second play to put the Rams ahead 31-24. Clarion countered with a scoring drive of their own, tying the game up on a nine-yard scoring pass from Guercio to Davon Jones. On the very first play of the ensuing drive Mathew McGregor strip-sacked Shepherd quarterback Michael Hardy and fell on the loose ball, giving Clarion possession.
 
It took just two plays for the Golden Eagles to take the lead, this time for good. Simmons knifed through the line on 2^nd-and-Goal from the five-yard line, putting Clarion ahead by a touchdown. Simmons scored again with a rush up the middle to make it 45-31, and Andrew Kurtas tacked on a 32-yard field goal later in the quarter to give his side a three-score lead. Kurtas would make another kick, this one from 30 yards in the fourth quarter, to set the final deficit.
 
Shepherd drew first blood with a methodical touchdown drive, traveling 75 yards on 10 plays to take a 7-0 lead. Kurtas responded with a field goal, but early in the second quarter Barnett rambled for an impressive 96-yard touchdown run, giving the Rams a 14-3 advantage, and kicker Maxwell Barba kicked a 38-yard field goal to up the lead to two touchdowns.
 
Rather than fold the Golden Eagles fought back, marching down the field on an eight-play, 85 yard touchdown drive. The key play came when Guercio hit Holt Egan for a 21-yard gain on 3^rd-and-1 to cross midfield, and Simmons capped the drive with a 15-yard touchdown run to cut it to 17-10. Clarion forced a stop on the ensuing Rams possession and then tied the score, with Guercio escaping pressure and hitting Ja'Tawn Williams 46 yards downfield for a touchdown. Shepherd took a 24-17 lead with 57 seconds left to play in the half but the Golden Eagles had one more touchdown drive in their pocket, this time with Guercio making an option pitch to Simmons for a walk-in touchdown with four seconds left on the clock.
 
Egan caught six passes for 121 yards while Jones pulled in eight passes for 103 yards as the Golden Eagles tortured the Rams in the middle of the field. Simmons gave them trouble in the flat with six catches for 47 yards. Defensively Griffin Buzzell had 13 tackles for the second straight game, and also broke up a pass.
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