LEXINGTON, Va. – VMI welcomed No. 10 Mercer to Foster Stadium on Saturday, playing a competitive first half before ultimately falling to the Bears 34-0. With the win, Mercer moves to 9-1 and 6-1 in league play, clinching the 2024 Southern Conference Title.
Key Stats
- Mercer outgains VMI 518-111, picks off the Keydets twice
- Dorien Starnes (3.0 tackles, 0.5 TFL) reaches 100.0 career tackles, Terrell Jackson (4.0 tackles, 0.5 TFL) reaches 50.0 career stops
- Hunter Rice gains 52 yards on the ground, 23 yards receiving
- Eric Rankin has 6.0 tackles; Jason Cole, Shamus Jones record 5.0
- Chandler Wilson goes 11-for-25, 35 yards and a pick
- Mercer's Newbauer has 282 yards, three touchdowns; Parker Wroble has 102 yards, two scores
Rocco's Remarks
On the Game
"Defensively we played well enough, especially early to keep us in the game. We gave up some explosive plays but we had some really good series. Offensively we were unable to sustain any sort of drives. They pressured us and were in our backfield. They really got after Chandler (Wilson) today. The ball was bouncing around all afternoon and we really never made a play on the ball all afternoon. I give them credit. They are as advertised. Their defense is probably the best defense in our league and offensively they were strong today."
On the Team's Identity
"The biggest thing is this does not define who we are. It's so hard to deal with defeat and leave the locker room and try to act like everything is okay, because it's not. Our record is our record, but our team continues to fight and compete and we have more football ahead of us."
What's Next
VMI (1-9, 1-5 SoCon) will travel to Western Carolina for its last road game of the year, facing the Catamounts next Saturday at 1:00 p.m.
How it Happened
First Half
- After both defenses held strong early, VMI converted a third and 17 and move into Mercer territory, but turn the ball over a few plays later leading to a Mercer field goal (0-3, 0:23 1st).
- The Bears would take over on their 47, driving 53 yards for the score to go in front 10-0 (7:54, 2nd)
- Despite the best efforts of the defense, Mercer would march down the field on its next possession, traveling 88 yards in 13 plays to go into the half leading 17-0
Second Half
- The Bears would blow the game open with a 69-yard bomb from Whitt Newbauer to Parker Wroble (24-0, 11:24 3rd), tacking on three more with 5:49 remaining in the third (27-0)
- Mercer added one more score at the 10-minute mark of the fourth before running the clock out
