ELON, N.C. – After 14 days without a game, the Elon University football team had its Homecoming festivities spoiled by the sixth-ranked Richmond Spiders on Saturday afternoon at Rhodes Stadium as the Phoenix fell by a 35-7 score.
Elon is now 2-5 overall and 1-3 in CAA Football play, while Richmond upped its record to 7-1, 4-1 on the 2016 season.
Quotable: “Early on, we came out pretty competitive in the first half, made some big stops. Their missed field goal obviously played a role in it. The second half, I think that’s the sign of a veteran, good football team. I think the disappointing thing is, there were some easy plays we missed early on, like the very first play of the game. And those are plays we need to make.” – Elon head coach Rich Skrosky
How it happened: Elon limited the Spider offense to just six first-half points as Griffin Trau hit field goals of 21 and 37 yards.
Richmond got the ball to start the second half and went 69 yards on six plays to grab a 13-0 advantage after Deontez Thompson ran the ball in from five yards out. The Spider would score on all three of their third-quarter possessions to increase their lead to 28-0 with 15 minutes to play.
The Phoenix scored to make it 28-7 when De’Sean McNair found the end zone. The Elon drive covered 61 yards on eight plays. On the drive, McNair toted the ball six times for 51 yards.
Richmond answered right back after recovering Elon’s on-side kick attempt and starting its drive at the Elon 27. A five-play drive ended with a James Pavik one-yard touchdown run to complete the scoring.
Stat Leaders:
Rushing
Elon – De’Sean McNair (18 carries, 77 yards, 1 TD)
UR – Deontez Thompson (14 carries, 116 yards, 1 TD)
Passing
Elon – Daniel Thompson (11-25, 92 yards)
UR – Kyle Lauletta (18-30, 223 yards, 2 TD)
Receiving
Elon – John Luke Arrington (3 receptions, 27 yards)
UR – Brian Brown (8 receptions, 100 yards, 1 TD)
Defense
Elon – Warren Messer (10 total tackles)
UR – Brandon Waller (7 total tackles, 1.0 sack, 1.5 TFL, 1 forced fumble)
Noteworthy: McNair’s 18 carries and 77 yards were both career highs… Messer has now posted back-to-back games with double-digit tackles… John Silas broke a tie with Ernie Tootoo (1978-81) for seventh place on Elon’s all-time tackles chart; Silas now has 331 career tackles.
Up Next: Elon will return to the road for the first time since a 27-10 win at William & Mary on Sept. 24, for its next game. The Phoenix heads to Albany, N.Y. to battle the Albany Great Danes in a noon game on Oct. 29. The game will be broadcast by the American Sports Network.