CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. ? Junior kicker Eric Benson booted a 43-yard field to send the game into overtime and then connected for the difference-making extra point in OT as Tennessee State defeated Austin Peay State University, 33-32, Saturday night at Governors Stadium, in the Ohio Valley Conference opener for both teams.
Saturday's game was played in front a standing-room only crowd of 8,539 as Austin Peay, who returned to scholarship football a year ago, played its first OVC game since 1996.
Benson, who hit the game-winning overtime field goal a week ago against Jackson State, became Tennessee State's hero for the second straight week as he connected on a 43 yarder that barely cleared the cross bar with nine seconds left to tie the game at 26 all.
That came after the Governors appeared to have victory within their grasp late in the game when Kevin Buckley returned a Tennessee State fumble 64 yards to give the Governors a 26-23 lead.
TSU, largely on a 42-yard Antonio Heffner to Troy Bell pass, drove the ball deep into Governors territory with a little more than three minutes left. With TSU facing a fourth-and-one at the APSU five, Heffner was unable to control a snap and the Governors fell on the ball with 2:50 left.
The Govs seemingly had game's control when on first down Chris Fletcher raced 14 yards out to the 25 yards. Offsetting facemasks penalties were called, putting the ball back at the APSU 11. Then a loss of two yards on a rushing play and then a five-yard illegal procedure play backed the Govs up inside the 10. Finally, APSU was forced to punt and freshman Ryan Key only was able to get the ball out to the TSU 35-yard line.
The Tigers quickly moved to the APSU 11 but on second down Josh Hackett sacked Heffner and forced a fumble. But TSU lineman Cecil Newton fell on it at the TSU 25. On third down, with TSU having no more timeouts, Heffner was told to spike the ball and he did, setting up Benson's game-tying field goal.
That sent the game to overtime. The Govs immediately drove it inside the TSU 10-yard line before Chris Fletcher scored his second TD of the day, this one from six yards out. However, TSU's All-America cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie blocked Isaac Ziolkowski's extra point.
It was Tennessee State's turn and they also drove it inside the 10 and then took advantage of a pass interference penalty to set up a first-and-goal at the two. That's when Javarris Williams tied it, setting up Benson's game-winning PAT.
And it was the kicking game that cost the Govs during the night. Ziolkowski missed a third-quarter extra-point attempt and the Govs mishandled a bad snap on a fourth-quarter PAT attempt after freshman Terrence Holt electrified the APSU crowd with a 67-yard punt return that provided the Govs with a 19-16 lead.
It was a night of big plays for the Governors, who scored on the game's third play when Mark Cunningham hit Jeff Lyle with a 58-yard swing pass for a quick 7-0 lead.
Holt's punt return brought the Govs back from a 16-13 deficit and later Buckley gave the Govs a 26-23 advantage with his fumble return.
But the Govs could not maintain TSU's offensive balance. The Tigers saw Terrence Wright (106 yards) and Williams (100 yards) reach the 100-yard plateau while Heffner completed 19 of 27 for 233 yards.
The Governors, in fact, were outgained 471 to 245 as they were on the short end of a 37:26-to-22:34 time-of-possession disadvantage. Fletcher did rush for 110 yards on 27 carries, giving him nine straight 100-yard rushing efforts.
As a result of the defense being on the field much of the game, five different Governors recorded 10 or more tackles, led by sophomore linebacker Daniel Becker, who had 19 stops, including 13 initial hits. His roommate, Kit Hartsfield had 16 stops while freshman strong safety JayR Harper, subbing for the injured Jason Vanata, had 15 tackles.
Senior linebacker Josh Hackett had 11 stops, including two for losses, while sophomore free safety Tremayne Townsend had 10 stops.
However, the game's defensive star was TSU's Shaun Richardson, who had fourth tackles for loss, including two quarterback sacks. One of those sacks saw him strip the ball from Mark Cunningham and race 73 yards for a score.
"Overall, I think after tonight we can say we are ready for the OVC,” APSU coach Rick Christophel said. “I think we earned it tonight, and if we make two extra points, we don't go into overtime and we win the game. The kids showed that tonight and proved that our team can compete with anyone through four quarters. I think if you ask TSU and coach Webster he would say the same thing and give credit to their kicker for making a tough field goal to send us to overtime."
- AP -
