College Football Final – Guilford 69, Greensboro 0(Dave Walters):Herbie Bridges(Southwest Guilford HS) Greensboro College MVP/Wes Gullett has Game Wrap

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Guilford College notched the second shutout in series history with a 69-0 whitewashing of Greensboro College in Saturday night’s Gate City Soup Bowl football game.

The Quakers (1-0) matched the longest winning streak in the 20-game series with their fourth straight victory and retain possession of the Soup Bowl Trophy.

Junior quarterback Karsten Miller looked sharp in his Guilford debut as he completed 16-of-19 passes for 195 yards and a touchdown in less than two quarters of work. He also ran for two short scores and helped the Quakers open a 48-0 halftime lead.

Miller got some help from junior running back De’Eric Bell, who darted through the Pride defense for 125 rushing yards and two scores on 13 first-half carries. Reserve running backs Hunter Causey (5 carries, 59 yards) and Eryk Brandon-Dean (9 carries, 61 yards) also ran for two scores as the Quakers rushed for 334 yards and a school-record nine touchdowns. The 334 rushing yards stand third in school history.

The Quakers’ defense forced five turnovers and yielded only 59 rushing yards in 44 attempts (1.3 yards per carry). Greensboro reached the red zone twice, but came away empty both times. Junior defensive end Gibson Ziah earned Guilford’s game Most Valuable Player Award with eight tackles and three sacks, both career highs. His sack, strip and recovery of a Mac Graham fumble on the Greensboro 9 led to a Bell touchdown and a 21-0 first-quarter lead.

Graham finished with 152 passing yards on 11-for-29 attempts with two interceptions. Kenneth Purvis carried 20 times for a team-high 74 yards. Senior Herb Bridges(Southwest Guilford HS) won Greensboro’s team Most Valuable Player honor thanks to eight tackles and 109 kickoff return yards.

Guilford also retained possession of the Soup Cup, presented to the school that collects the most food in the canned-goods drive that accompanies the football game. Guilford collected 5,829 cans, compared to 1,829 from Greensboro. The 7,658 items were donated to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina.

Guilford hosts Methodist University in a nonleague contest September 10 at 7:00 p.m.

# Q U A K E R S #

Dave Walters
Guilford College Athletics

*****Pride Stumble In Season Opening Soup Bowl Loss*****
from Wes Gullett, Greensboro College SID

GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Greensboro College football fell in the 20th Annual Gate City Soup Bowl Saturday against Guilford College, 69-0.

The Pride (0-1) attempted an onside kick to open the game, but the Quakers (1-0) maintained possession.

Guilford then pushed the ball deep into the red zone, but the Pride defense was able to force a Guilford fumble to get the ball for the first time. Adam Webber recovered the ball for Greensboro on the Pride’s seven yard line, but Greensboro started the drive on its own 22 yard line following a Quakers penalty.

However, the Pride was not able to capitalize on the turnover.

Later in the game with Guilford leading 14-0, Montrell Tillman recorded his first interception to stop Guilford from threatening again.

Guilford continued to pull away to take at 48-0 lead into half time.

Greensboro showed signs of moving the ball in the second half, but could not capitalize despite moving into the red zone two times.

“This was not the start that we were hoping for,” first year Head Coach Greg Crum said. “However, I am extremely proud of our team as they did not give up and kept on fighting.

“Despite the score there were several positive things in the game. Our special teams did an outstanding job for us.”

On the special teams side of things, Herb Bridges led the way with 109 return yards, including a 59 yard return in the third quarter.

Matt Romanowski led the way for Greensboro after hauling in four receptions for 34 yards. Demario Smith had 54 yards receiving on two catches, while Kenneth Purvis railed off 95 yards rushing on 20 carries.

Garrett Brannock paced the Pride defense with 11 tackles, while Bridges tallied nine stops, including on for loss.

The Pride football team will return to action Saturday when they welcome Newport News Apprentice to town at 1 p.m. For more information on Greensboro College football, continue to follow www.greensborocollegesports.com.