ANDERSON, S.C. — Tyler Wesley threw for 218 yards and two touchdowns and added 61 yards on the ground as Anderson University shut out Tusculum University 30-0 in South Atlantic Conference football Saturday afternoon at Younts Stadium.
The Trojans (3-0, 1-0 SAC) scored on each of their first five possessions and built a 24-0 lead at halftime. Anderson’s defense limited Tusculum (1-2, 0-2 SAC) to just 88 yards of total offense, including 74 on the ground for the fourth-ranked rushing offense in Division II entering the game.
It is the first time since a 19-0 loss at Wingate on Oct. 8, 2016 that the Pioneers have been shut out and held under 100 yards of total offense. Tusculum had just two plays of longer than 10 yards and gained only eight first downs in the game against an Anderson defense that has allowed just 14 points in three games.
All three of Anderson’s touchdowns came from inside the 10 yard line, and Elijah Swett booted three field goals for the Trojans from 27, 43 and 30 yards. Anderson ran 78 plays to 41 for Tusculum and piled up 369 yards of total offense while controlling the ball for 38:03.
Wesley was 25-for-42 through the air for the Trojans, with Jalon Warthen-Carr the top receiver with six catches for 68 yards. Cameran Loyd and Monz Campbell each had five catches for Anderson, and Bryson James was the top running back with 42 yards on 16 carries.
Tusculum quarterback Richard Hunter, making his first career start, was 2-for-10 for 14 yards on completions of nine yards to Javon Richardson in the third quarter and five yards to John Celestin in the fourth. Celestin was the leader on the ground for the Pioneers with 30 yards on five carries, and Lex Dinwiddie added 23 yards on six attempts.
Anderson took the opening kickoff and moved 75 yards in 14 plays, including a 19-yard completion from Wesley to Zaidon Gunn on third-and-15, before scoring on a five-yard pass from Wesley to Wesley Beckett for a 7-0 lead.
After a three-and-out for Tusculum on its first possession, Anderson stretched its lead to 10-0 as a 10-play, 30-yard drive ended with a 27-yard field goal from Swett with 1:56 left in the opening quarter.
Tusculum had another three-and-out to end the first quarter, and Anderson went 71 yards on 13 plays over the next 8:07. The drive included a 14-yard run for Wesley on fourth-and-2, and ended on a three-yard run by Gunn for a 17-0 Trojans lead with 6:53 to play in the first half.
The Pioneers earned first downs on three straight plays on their next drive, including runs of 10 yards from Hunter and 19 from Dinwiddie, but Tusculum was forced to punt with just over three minutes left in the half.
Anderson drove 88 yards in 12 plays, highlighted by an 11-yard pass from Wesley to Warthen-Carr on fourth-and-2, scoring on a nine-yard pass from Wesley to Jonathan Bowden with eight seconds left to give the Trojans a 24-0 lead at halftime.
The Trojans stopped the Pioneers on the first drive of the third quarter, and moved 34 yards in nine plays over 4:38 before settling for a 43-yard field goal from Swett for a 27-0 lead with 7:03 left in the third quarter.
Neither team moved the ball the rest of the third quarter, with Anderson stopped for a three-and-out in the final four minutes of the period. Tusculum had its best drive of the day straddling the third and fourth quarters, but the 12-play, 40-yard march ended with an incompletion on fourth-and-7.
Anderson went on another long drive midway through the fourth quarter, but a penalty pushed them back from the goal line and the Tusculum defense came through as Dayquan Diston intercepted Wesley in the end zone to deny the threat. Anderson would close the scoring on a 30-yard field goal from Swett with 17 seconds left.
Anderson was 10-for-20 on third downs and converted both of its fourth-down tries, while Tusculum was 2-for-10 on third down as a team. The Pioneers were flagged 10 times for 100 yards in penalties, and the Trojans were called for 60 yards on six infractions.
Jahaad Scales led the Pioneers with 11 tackles (six solo) and Rashad Watson had eight tackles including a pair for six yards in losses and one sack. Jerrod Woods led Anderson with eight tackles (four solo).
Tusculum punter Quinton Brandon booted the ball six times for a 35.8 yard average, with a long of 47 yards, and kicker Camilo Nanfra put his only kickoff through the end zone for a touchback.
The Pioneers host Emory & Henry on Saturday, Sept. 20 at Pioneer Field, beginning at 2 p.m. The Wasps put a 2-0 record on the line Saturday night on the road against Lenoir-Rhyne.
