South Florida Pulls Away in 2nd Half to Beat Wofford, 40-7

TAMPA, Fla. –
Wofford College was defeated 40-7 by the University of South Florida in the season opener at Raymond James Stadium. The game was tied at 7-7 late in the first half, but two bad snaps on punts, plus two fumbles in the third quarter, turned the tide in favor of the Bulls.

The Terriers open the season 0-1, while the Bulls are 1-0. Wofford was led by Eric Breitenstein with 121 yards on 13 carries. Mitch Allen added 54 yards and he was 3-of-9 passing for 27 yards. The Bulls were led by quarterback Matt Grothe with 19-of-23 passing for 155 yards and a touchdown. Mo Plancher had 78 yards with two touchdowns.

The Bulls took the opening kickoff and put together a twelve-play drive that went 65 yards. Mo Plancher took the ball in from four-yards out for the touchdown at 9:46 and a 7-0 lead.

Wofford was able to respond with a 13-play drive that took 6:46 off the clock and went 69 yards. The Terriers picked up five first downs on the drive that ended with a two-yard touchdown run by Eric Breitenstein that tied the game at 7-7 at the 3:00 mark of the first half.

On the next series by USF, after two first downs the Terrier defense was able to force a punt at the end of the first quarter. Wofford took over and converted a 4th and one on a run by Mitch Allen, but the drive stalled and the Terriers punted.

USF turned the ball over on the first play from scrimmage as Mike Niam forced Aston Samuels to fumble and it was recovered by Tommy Irvin. Eric Breitenstein picked up a 16-yard first down. The Terriers attempted a 38-yard field goal at the 6:55 mark, but the kick was just wide left.

With the ball back, Bulls quarterback Matt Grothe ran for 39-yard to set up a first down at the ten-yard line. Ricco Braxton came up with a sack, but a personal foul penalty gave the Bulls a first down. After getting the ball to the two-yard line, Tommy Irvin intercepted Matt Grothe in the endzone to end the drive.

The Terriers went three-and-out on the drive. On the punt, the snap was high and Chris Tommie was taken down at the eight-yard line. Matt Grothe found Theo Wilson in the endzone for a six-yard touchdown reception and the Bulls took a 14-7 lead with 36 seconds left in the first half.

Wofford gained one first down on the final drive of the half before being forced to punt. The snap was high again and the ball was kicked out the back of the endzone for a safety with just one second left on the clock. After the free kick, the half was over with the Bulls having a 16-7 lead.

To open the second half, the Terriers were sacked, had a holding penalty and sack by All-American George Selvie to go three-and-out and punt. The Bulls took over on the 39-yard line and in just four plays Mo Plancher ended the drive with a nine-yard touchdown run to take a 23-7 lead at the 10:47 mark in the third quarter.

On the next possession for the Terriers, Stev Davitte was in at quarterback and fumbled the ball on the second play of the drive after a gain of 18 yards. The Bulls were able to convert the turnover into three points as Delbert Alvardo hit a 30-yard field goal with 5:57 on the clock in the third quarter for a 26-7 lead.

Wofford then had a 44-yard gain by Eric Breitenstein up the middle, but Jerome Murphy came from behind and forced a fumble that was recovered on the sideline by Tyson Butler. Coach Mike Ayers challenged the call on the field, but the call was upheld and the Bulls gained possession. The Bulls gained one first down before being forced to punt. Wofford then gained one first down, but the drive stalled at the 46-yard line and the Terriers turned the ball over on downs.

USF picked up a first down and then converted a fourth-and-three on the ensuing drive. Lindsey Lamer scored on a 13-yard run at the 8:18 mark of the fourth quarter to take a 33-7 lead. After Wofford went three-and-out, the Bulls answered with a 22-yard touchdown pass from B.J. Daniels to Jeffrey Wilson with 1:17 left in the game for the 40-7 final score.

Wofford had 211 total yards of offense, including 177 on the ground. USF had well balanced 359 total yards, with 174 rushing and 185 passing. The Bulls were 4-of-8 on third down and converted one fourth down. Wofford was 3-of-13 on third down and 3-of-6 on fourth downs.

The Terriers will return home on Saturday at 7:00 pm when Wofford hosts Charleston Southern.

Wofford vs. USF
Post-Game Notes

The start of the game was delayed for approximately 25 minutes due to a thunderstorm near the stadium during pregame warm-ups.

The game was the first collegiate start for Mitch Allen, Matt Vick, Ben Wilmoth, Clark Bishop, Brenton Bersin and Johnson Richardson on offense. Jordan Ingman, SeQuan Stanley, Ameet Pall, Keaton Thompson, Eric Eberhardt, Alex Goltry, Mike Niam and Kendall Bratcher recorded their first career starts on defense.

Game captains were Gary Blount and Johnson Richardson.

Attendance was 40,360 at Raymond James Stadium, the home of the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers.