Box Score SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio – The Notre Dame Falcons fell for the first time in the 2014 season, as they dropped a 28-14 decision to Charleston at Mueller Field on Saturday afternoon.
The Falcons (3-1, 3-1 MEC) saw a four-game winning streak come to an end in the process, while the Golden Eagles (4-0, 3-0) remain one of three unbeaten teams in the Mountain East Conference with the victory.
Points were very tough to come by on both sides, early on. The two teams traded defensive blows early on, with the Falcons forcing UC to punt on their first two possessions, while UC forced two NDC punts and turnover on downs.
The Golden Eagles struck first, with 25 seconds left in the first quarter, as John Knox found Joey Augustin on a 5-yard touchdown pass to complete a 10-play, 64-yard drive, giving Charleston a 6-0 advantage.
The second quarter belonged to Charleston, as they outscored the Falcons, 10-0, taking a 16-0 lead into the half. The Charleston ground game picked up steam, and Marvin Elam scored from two yards out on a third-and-goal situation with 6:13 to play, capping a 13-play, 80-yard drive to give UC a 13-0 advantage.
Bret Benes nailed a field goal from 24 yards out in the final 30 seconds of the half to give the Golden Eagles a 16-0 lead. Much of their success in the first half came from keeping the ball away from the Falcons. UC ran 50 offensive plays to Notre Dame's 27 in the first half, and controlled time of possession, holding an 18:45-11:15 advantage in that category, and did so by obtaining 15 first downs to Notre Dame's three.
Charleston scored on their opening drive of the second half, as Benes connected on a 39-yard field goal to give the Golden Eagles their largest lead of the game, 19-0, with 13:35 left in the third quarter.
Notre Dame responded a few possessions later, as
Ray Russ threw his first of two touchdown passes on the day, a 10-yard touchdown pass to
Colton Wallace with 6:28 left in the third quarter to bring NDC within 12 (19-7).
The Golden Eagles put together an 11-play, 69-yard drive that took six minutes and 19 seconds off the clock, which concluded with Knox's second touchdown pass of the day, on a four-yard pass to Daniel Cherry with 9:36 to play.
The Falcons came right back with an extremely fast drive. They went 65 yards on just three plays in less than a minute and reduced the deficit to 12 again, (26-14) on Russ's 14-yard touchdown pass to
Mitchell Shegos.
Notre Dame eventually ran out of chances, as they were not able to mount much more offense against the Golden Eagles, and Charleston continued to attack the Falcons on the ground to chew up much of the remaining time on the clock. Michael Cater sacked Russ in the end zone with 37 seconds left for the safety to seal the deal.
Charleston's incredible success on the ground, (61 carries for 256 yards) allowed them to control the clock, as they went 8-fof-19 on their third down conversions, and held an incredible advantage in time of possession, holding a 38:04-21:56 advantage in that battle.
Russ completed 22-of-44 passes for a pair of touchdowns and two interceptions as well. For Russ, it was the first time he threw more than one pick in a game this season, but his fourth straight game with multiple touchdown passes.
Shegos was Russ's top target, as he hauled in 10 passes for a game-high, 117 yards and a touchdown. Wallace caught three passes for 63 yards and a touchdown, and tight end
Ray J. Brown kept his streak alive, catching two passes, and has caught at least one pass in 26 consecutive games.
Marlon Oden led the NDC defense with 11 total tackles, including one for a loss.
Onslow Williams was right behind him with 10, including a sack. The Falcons forced three fumbles on the afternoon, but could not recover any of those loose balls.
The Falcons will be back in action on Saturday, Oct. 4, when they head to Wise, Va., for another MEC til against the Virginia-Wise Cavaliers. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
