By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – With the end of several historic and storied careers, it was only proper that the Tennessee Tech football team ended the 2014-15 campaign with a victory. And the Golden Eagles did just that, dominating in-state rival Austin Peay Saturday evening, 41-15, in Clarksville, Tenn.
The Golden Eagles wasted no time jumping out to an early lead, running right down the field on the opening position and putting up a six-spot on the ninth play of the game. With the first real showing of trickery all season by the Tech squad, Brock McCoin hit Darian Stone in the endzone for a five-yard score after taking a lateral on a reverse from Ladarius Vanlier.
The score marked the first touchdown pass of McCoin's career and gave the redshirt freshman a passing, rushing, and receiving score all this year. He also became the second Tech player in two seasons to throw a TD on his first career pass attempt, joining teammate Jared Davis who accomplished the feat last season.
While Stone managed a touchdown catch, he provided the biggest impact in the game with his legs and his arm. The senior couldn't be stopped on the ground, rushing for 130 yards, including 114 in the first quarter alone. He added 186 through the air on 15-of-18 passing to finish the night with 321 total yards of offense.
Turnovers looked to doom the Golden Eagles early, as the Govs' first 10 points came off the power of Tech fumbles.
Austin Peay grabbed a field goal after a muffed punt inside the Tech 20, cutting the lead to 10-3. The Govs then added seven points on an 80-yard bomb following a Golden Eagle fumble inside APSU territory, tying the game at 10 points apiece.
The Golden Eagles quickly cleaned things up, marching down the field again on a 75-yard drive, capped off by a nine-yard rushing score by Isaiah McKinney.
A late 20-yard field goal by the Govs with under a minute in the half left Tech with a 17-13 lead heading into the break.
Sophomore quarterback Jared Davis provided a spark in the second half, entering the game on the second Tech drive of the third quarter and leading the Golden Eagles on a 52-yard scoring drive. He connected with Cody Matthews for a 15-yard touchdown to up the Tech advantage to 24-13.
After a quick Austin Peay three-and-out, Darian Stone reentered the contest, matching Davis' scoring drive with one of his own. Stone hit Matthews for his second score of the day, a 16-yard connection to give the Tech squad a 31-13 lead into the fourth quarter.
The Golden Eagle defense was nearly impenetrable in the second half, forcing punts on the Govs' first four possessions, followed up by a huge goal-line stand to keep Austin Peay out of the endzone and off the scoreboard. On third down, in typical Marty Jones fashion, the sixth-year safety made an incredible solo stop at the one-yard line. One play later, Michael Cain broke through the middle and held the line.
All-in-all, the Tech D held the Govs off the scoreboard the entire second half with their lone two points coming on a safety.
Ladarius Vanlier broke free late through the fourth quarter to completely ice the contest, scampering like a bolt of lightning through the line and around the secondary for an 84-yard score. It marked the longest run of the junior's career, putting the Golden Eagles up 41-15.
Cody Matthews finished his absolute best for last, racking up a career-high 171 yards receiving to lead all receivers on the night. He finished with 10 catches and two touchdowns in the game, wrapping up a fantastic career ranked eighth all-time in Tech history with 110 receptions and 10th all-time with 1,647 yards receiving.
Fellow senior Marty Jones, a staple in the secondary for much of his career, carved his name into the Tech record books, collecting seven tackles to finish the year with 113 total stops and take complete ownership over fourth place for career tackles in Tech history with 356 and the most since Jeff Daughtry from 1981-84.
Finishing right behind Jones on the career list was fellow senior safety Austin Tallant. The two made up arguably the best safety tandem in Tech history as Tallant put on a stamp on his career by finishing with 353 total stops after five in the game and 102 on the year. He also tied the Tech career record for starts, making his 44th tonight.
Darian Stone's 321 yards of offense gave him 4,407 to end his career, moving him up to sixth on the all-time career list. The signal caller also wrapped up his career ranked ninth all-time in passing, totaling 2,921 yards through the air.
Photo by Tony Marable
