TENNESSEE TECH AT SAMFORD
NOV. 9, 2024 | 2 PM | PETE HANNA STADIUM | BIRMINGHAM, ALA.
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By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Tennessee Tech football team will get a one-week reprieve from the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference jaunt this weekend as the Golden Eagles head down to Birmingham to take on Samford in a Saturday battle.
Kickoff against the Bulldogs is set for 2 p.m. Roger Ealey and Dylan Vazzano will have the call locally on 106.1 The Eagle, while the game will also be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
A former Ohio Valley Conference opponent, the Golden Eagles have seen their fair share of the Bulldogs since they left the conference ranks with three meetings in the last six seasons. Samford has won two of the three, but the Golden Eagles had a thrilling 59-58 double-overtime victory at Tucker Stadium in 2019.
Samford won the last two meetings – 52-14 in Birmingham in 2021 and 33-28 in Cookeville in 2022. The Bulldogs lead the all-time series 14-11.
The Bulldogs this season are kind of hard to predict. Towing along a 3-5 record and a 2-3 mark in the Southern Conference, Samford has taken some lumps this season. The Bulldogs opened with a 38-29 loss to Football Championship Subdivision West Georgia, then dropped a 45-7 decision at Florida before picking up their first win of the season in a 12-7 decision over Alabama State. Following a win to VMI, the Bulldogs have dropped three of their last four games with the only outlier being a 55-35 victory over then-No. 7 Mercer.
Samford also fell 31-28 at East Tennessee State, 28-11 at The Citadel and 17-13 at home last week against Wofford.
Bulldog head coach Chris Hatcher is no stranger to the Golden Eagles either, holding on to a 6-2 record over Tech, including his days at Murray State.
The Samford offense leans heavily into the pass, throwing for almost 2,000 yards and 15 touchdowns this season compared to 750 yards on the ground with six scores. However, the Bulldog defense – overseen by previous Tennessee Tech defensive coordinator Adam Braithwaite – has been allowing similar yardage numbers with 1,923 yards and 10 touchdowns allowed through the air, 950 yards and 17 rushing touchdowns. In all, Samford is allowing an average of 359.1 yards of total offense per game.
The Bulldogs' attack is led by quarterback Quincy Crittendon, who has completed 201 of 277 passes for 1,981 yards and 15 touchdowns, but has also thrown seven interceptions. He averages 247.6 yards passing per game. His favorite target is D.J. Rias, who has caught 37 passes for 295 yards and two scores, while E. Jai Mason has a team-best five touchdown catches and Brendan Jenkins leads the way in yardage with 407 and two scores on 30 catches.
On the rushing front, Damonta Witherspoon has carried the ball 95 times for 350 yards with four of Samford's six ground touchdowns.
The Bulldogs have struggled on field goals, hitting just five of their 11 tries. The success rate has been much better on PATs, connecting on 19 of 21.
Defensively, Noah Martin leads the way with 79 tackles, including four for-loss and one sack, while picking off a pass, forcing and recovering a fumble, a pass break-up and a QB hurry. Jaden Mosely leads the team in tackles-for-loss with 8.5 for 37 yards, with Conroy Cunningham leading in sacks with three for 25 yards. In all, Samford has 19 sacks, while forcing five fumble recoveries and seven interceptions.
Conversely, Samford's offense has yielded 75 tackles-for-loss for 297 total yards, 22 sacks for 156 yards and has turned the ball over 10 times – three fumbles and seven interceptions.
Tech has 60 tackles-for-loss for 255 yards and 23 sacks for 165 yards and has created 18 turnovers – 12 interceptions and six fumble recoveries. Tim Coutras has three interception returns to lead the Golden Eagles, while Myles Parker has two of the fumble recoveries. Cayman Spaulding, the team leader in tackles, returned an interception for a touchdown last week in the Homecoming win over Lindenwood.
Spaulding, who has 53 total tackles, also has 7.5 TFL for 18 yards, two sacks for seven yards and a pass breakup. Kanstin Brooks also has 7.5 TFL, while Theron Gaines leads the team in sacks with four for 43 yards.
Tech's offense has allowed 54 tackles-for-loss for 231 yards and 21 sacks for 150 yards with 15 turnovers – eight interceptions and seven fumbles lost.
Since Dylan Laible has come on for the Golden Eagles, Tech has surged, winning back-to-back games. Laible has thrown for 574 yards and four touchdowns on 47-of-75 passing. D.J. Linkins leads the receivers with 530 yards and three touchdowns on 39 catches, while Ashton Maples also has three touchdown catches.
Tech rushed for 400 yards last week against Lindenwood to finish 12 yards short of tying the single-game record of 412 yards recorded against East Tennessee State in 1956. Jalen Mitchell leads the team with 573 yards and four touchdowns on 100 carries, while Aidan Littles (334 yards, two TDs) and Torin Baker (220 yards, two TDs) have also been putting up great numbers this season.
Freshman Dom LeBlanc continues to lead the team in scoring with 50 points as he is 9-for-12 on field goals and 23-for-24 on extra points.
Following Saturday's contest in Birmingham, the Golden Eagles will head to UT Martin next week for a Sergeant York Trophy showdown with the winner claiming the trophy. Tech, then, will return home on Nov. 23 for the regular-season finale against Eastern Illinois.
Tickets for that game are on sale now – call (931) 372-3940, visit the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office or order online at TTUsports.com.
Photo | Jim Dillon
