Mario Anderson dives into the end zone in the Wolves 33-30 overtime playoff win over the West Florida Argonauts.
Courtesy Newberry College Athletics
PENSACOLA, Fla. — Redshirt sophomore Mario Anderson capped off a 19-point comeback for the Newberry College (10-2) football team as they knocked off the third-seeded and defending national champion Argonauts of West Florida in an overtime thriller at the Blue Wahoos Stadium on Saturday, November 20.
Anderson and redshirt senior Dre Harris were the two leading rushers for a Newberry team that posted 169 yards on the ground in the contest, with Anderson recording a pair of scores, including the game-winner, and Harris adding a score as well. Redshirt junior Bryson Woodruff led the receiving corps on the afternoon for the Wolves as he hauled in seven catches for 131 yards and a score.
Defensively, the Wolves were led by the usual suspects, including senior Anthony Blue who hauled in two interceptions in the game, both stopping Argo drives at pivotal moments. Graduate student Nick Yearwood led the team with six tackles, including half credit for a tackle-for-loss and a sack. Sophomore Ja-Quez Smith recorded the third interception on the afternoon for the Wolves while also recording three tackles.
After taking the opening kickoff for a touchback, the Wolves attacked quickly as after a nine-yard reception by Brentley Allen, Harris found Woodruff along the right-hand side of the field and went the distance, 66-yards down the sideline to give the Wolves the 7-0 lead just 43 seconds in. The Argos looked shaky in the pocket as their quarterback threw three straight incompletions in their opening drive to give the ball right back to Newberry.
The Wolves then strung together a nine-play 48-yard drive that only had four yards gained through the air. The drive was finished off by Harris who took off up the middle of the field for nine yards on a gutsy fourth down call to put the Wolves up 14-0 in the first quarter.
The Argos were able to put up their first points of the day on a 30-yard field goal to bring the score back to 14-3 and that’s where it stood at the end of the first quarter.
West Florida put together their best drive of the opening half, aided by a costly pass interference call on third-down, that got their first touchdown on the board, bring the score to 14-10 at the halftime break.
After a fruitless opening drive, the Argos were able to get their second touchdown on the board following an interception. They ran just one play to score a 42-yard touchdown to take their first lead of the day at 17-14. Newberry found themselves in a hole on their next drive, as a strip-sack set the Argos up on the Wolves seven-yard line. WFU cashed in on that opportunity with a seven-yard toss to the corner of the end zone to extend their lead to 24-14.
Carrying that margin into the fourth quarter, the Argos were able to further extend that margin by converting on a 42-yard field goal by Griffin Cerra to put them up 27-14.
The next score of the day came from the Wolves’ special teams unit, as sophomore Ke-Shoun Williams was able to break through the protection of the Argos and not only block the punt, but scoop up the ball and take it across the goal line to bring the margin back to 27-20.
Anthony Blue was again able to prove why he has earned an invitation to the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, as he hauled in his second interception of the day on a first-down play for the Argos on their own 30 to swing the momentum back to the Wolves favor. Then, on what was the most methodic drive of the afternoon for the Wolves, Newberry posted a thirteen-play 70-yard drive that brought the score back level at 27-27 with just over three minutes to play in regulation.
Newberry won the OT coin toss and elected to go on defense first, the Argos choice would pit them on the home side of the field. That didn’t faze the Wolves defense as three straight rushes for the Argos found them looking at fourth and one. They chose the safe route with a field goal, forcing the Wolves to match or better them to continue the contest.
The rushing attack provided the finishing blow for the Wolves as Harris accounted for 12-yards of the drive and Anderson provided 14-yards, including the game ending one-yard rush around the left side to wrap up the 33-30 win for the Wolves.
Newberry will now make the trip up to Bowie, Md. as they will take on the Bulldogs of Bowie State University, Saturday, November 27 at 1 p.m.