JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Sept. 14, 2024) – In front of the largest crowd in the history of Bank of Tennessee Field at William B. Greene, Jr. Stadium (11,040 fans), the ETSU football team had one of the premier programs in college football on the ropes on Saturday night in No. 2 North Dakota State. Unfortunately for Buc fans, the Bison scored two touchdowns in the final two minutes of action to outlast ETSU, 38-35. The loss moves ETSU’s record to 1-2 on the 2024 campaign.
ETSU continues to be one of the top rushing teams in the FCS as it racked up 270 yards on the ground on Saturday. Bryson Irby was especially good for the Bucs totaling a career-high 147 yards plus three touchdowns on 15 carries (9.8 yards per carry). Quarterback Jaylen King also added 79 yards of his own to help the Bucs’ rushing total.
Cameron Lewis was King’s top target again as he caught five passes on nine targets for a career-high 73 yards and a touchdown. Defensively, six different Bucs had five tackles or more. Jaden Woods led the charge with nine stops with Chris Hope (eight tackles) Jimmy Bowdry (seven tackles) and Ty Anderson (seven tackles) not far behind for the defensive leaders for ETSU.
The 12-point lead for ETSU held up until late in the fourth quarter. Despite muffing a punt by Brackett near midfield, NDSU still managed to keep possession as John Gores corralled the loose ball with just under three minutes to play. A six-play drive for 51 yards culminated in a three-yard touchdown by TK Marshall to make the score 35-30 with 1:59 to go in regulation. A key 38-yard completion to Gores on 4th-and-10 kept the game alive for the Bison as they went to score one play later to pull within five.
An onside kick attempt followed and NDSU was able to recover it to give its offense a chance to win the game. Starting at their own 45-yard line, NDSU used eight plays to find paydirt and regain the lead. The Bucs had NDSU 3rd-and-4, but Miller found an opening and crossed the goal line to put the Bison back out front, 36-35. A two-point conversion followed and ETSU had 50 seconds to try and tie the score or potentially win the game.
King ran for 26 yards and found Lewis to convert a fourth down to keep the drive going. However, the Bison intercepted a pass to seal the game, 38-35. It marked ETSU’s first turnover this season.
Next Up – ETSU will face off against another nationally-ranked foe next Saturday as it travels to take on Elon in their final non-conference game of the season. Kickoff between the Buccaneers and Phoenix is set for 6 p.m.
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