GREENWOOD, S.C. --- Tusculum University scored on its first seven possessions and went on to a 52-14 victory over Erskine College in South Atlantic Conference action Saturday afternoon at J.W. Babb Stadium.
Matthew Palazzo threw for 229 yards and three touchdowns in one half of action and the Pioneers (5-4, 5-2 SAC) piled up 487 yards of offense against the Flying Fleet (0-9, 0-7 SAC). Tusculum controlled possession for 35:37, amassed a school single-game record 35 first downs to eight for Erskine and held the Fleet to 187 total yards in the victory.
Tusculum will host Mars Hill next Saturday at Pioneer Field, with the winner earning the SAC Mountain Division title and the right to host the SAC Championship game on Saturday, Nov. 11.
Palazzo connected with Zaron Collins on a pair of touchdowns and also threw a scoring pass to Lanadrick Bradley as the Pioneers led 38-7 at halftime. Tusculum's three quarterbacks (Palazzo, Preston Roberts and Brayden Phillips) combined to go 31-for-39 for 313 yards and four touchdowns passes in the victory. TU's .795 completion percentage is the fifth-best single-game performance in TU history (min. 10 completions).
De'Arius Hazel ran for 103 yards on 14 carries for Erskine, including a 46-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-1 that tied the game at 7-7 in the first quarter. The Flying Fleet was 3-for-13 on third-down conversions and punted nine times in the game.
Tusculum ran for 174 yards as a team, led by freshman John Celestin who had 35 yards on seven carries along with a touchdown. Kareem Carswell added 28 yards on eight attempts and Jojo Restall had six rushes for 27 yards, with each scoring a touchdown.
The Pioneers took the opening kickoff and moved 75 yards in 10 plays, with Palazzo hitting Collins at the right pylon for a 29-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead just 4:29 into the first quarter. Erskine responded by going 77 yards in seven plays, with Hazel going over left guard for 46 yards on fourth-and-1 to tie the game at 7-7 with 6:57 to play in the opening quarter.
Tusculum regained the lead at 14-7 on a four-yard run by Restall that capped a 12-play, 68-yard drive with 2:13 left in the opening quarter. The Pioneers would force a Fleet punt and took over at midfield, with a short pass from Palazzo to Bradley covering 10 yards and stretching the Tusculum lead to 21-7 with 12:24 remaining in the first half.
A three-and-out by the Fleet gave the Pioneers the ball at their own 44, and a 37-yard pass from Palazzo to Carswell put the Pioneers to the Flying Fleet 19. From there, four runs by Carswell ended with a three-yard run for a touchdown and a 28-7 Tusculum advantage with 6:35 to go in the half.
Tusculum's special teams came up with a big play on Erskine's next possession, as Rashad Watson blocked a punt to give the Pioneers the ball at Flying Fleet 16. However, Tusculum's drive stalled out and Nicholas Pope was called upon for a 27-yard field goal to stretch the Pioneer lead to 31-7 with 5:46 left until halftime.
The Pioneers would take over after a Flying Fleet punt at their own 20 with 2:12 left in the first half, and moved the ball 80 yards in 11 plays for the touchdown as Palazzo hit Collins in the middle of the end zone from 30 yards for a 38-7 Tusculum lead with 14 seconds left in the half.
The Tusculum offense kept humming in the second half, getting the ball at its own 39 after an Erskine three-and-out to start the half and needing nine plays to find the end zone. Roberts, who hooked up with Corey Moraux for 28 yards earlier in the drive, completed a screen pass to Moraux for four yards and a 45-7 Pioneer lead with 9:38 to play in the third quarter. Luke Barna made the extra point following the Moraux touchdown.
After the Pioneers punted for the first time with less than six minutes to go in the third quarter, the Flying Fleet broke the run of 38 unanswered points as backup quarterback Austin Parker found Justin Wilson over the middle, and he went 45 yards for a touchdown with 4:38 to play in the third quarter.
Both teams went deep into their benches by the fourth quarter, and Tusculum closed the scoring with 12:56 left as Celestin scored from eight yards out to stretch Tusculum's lead to 52-14. The Pioneers would control the clock for much of the fourth quarter, including a 12-play drive that spanned more than six minutes.
Tusculum receiver Tyler Burke recorded five receptions including the 100th of his career to become the 19th Pioneer to achieve the feat. He finished the game with 44 receiving yards, while Moraux tallied four grabs for 55 yards. Collins totaled 70 receiving yards on his three catches including the two touchdowns.
Corey Radcliff led the Pioneers defensively with five tackles including four solo stops. Earnest Johnson III added four tackles including one for loss while Gavin Rowell and Robert Allen also contributed four tackles apiece.
Erskine's Jarvis McClurkin led all players with 14 tackles, while Nolan Holloway was credited with 11 tackles for the Flying Fleet who suffer their 18th consecutive loss.
