The Rock football squad did not come out of the gate firing against Gannon this past Saturday, conceding a turnover on downs and a punt on their first two drives. After the slow start though, they did not go two series for the rest of the game without scoring a touchdown.
A 53-yard touchdown rush by Gannon’s quarterback, Nate Mikell, opened the scoring.
The Golden Knights capitalized on early success by forcing a three-and-out on SRU’s following drive. They scored again on another long rush, this time on a 63-yard scamper by running back David Morgan.
Already down 14-0 and allowing over 100 rushing yards in the first quarter, a situation PSAC-heavyweight Slippery Rock hasn’t been accustomed to, locked in.
Within the next two drives, they erased the deficit by way of two Brayden Long touchdown passes to Kyle Sheets.
Gannon punched back with another ground score, again by Mikell, to take a 21-14 lead. This lead would not hold and would end up being the Golden Knights’ last touchdown of the game.
The Rock tied it up on yet another receiving score by Sheets just before halftime.
The White and Green defense figured something out in the locker room. After allowing 21 points in the first half, they allowed just three in the entire second half.
Brayden Long and the offense took the lead at 28-24 on a 17-yard strike to Kam Kruzelyak and never looked back.
Up by just four going into the fourth quarter, The Rock running game put it away. Khalid Dorsey, Isaiah Edwards and Chris D’Or all found their way into the end zone on the ground. The scores finalized the final score of 49-24.
Edwards led the backfield in rushing with 82 yards and Dorsey also managed 71. Long tacked on 24 yards on the ground. The signal caller continued his stellar season with 263 passing yards and four touchdowns.
Sheets was once again the leading receiver, totaling 134 yards and those three touchdowns in the match-up.
Eddie Faulkner IV showed out on the other side of the ball, delivering pressure from an unusual source. The defensive back had 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble.
Fellow defensive back Ali Abdul-Hakin added an interception on Gannon’s final drive, his third of the year.
Slippery Rock football has now played four conference games. They are 4-0 and have won each contest by at least 21. The Rock is ranked #7 in the AFCA poll and plays California University (Pa.) this Saturday at 1 p.m.
