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Old 12-26-2023, 10:52 AM   #1202
Careless Whisper
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Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)



Wilson Answers Call, Leads Tartans to Massive MAC Win
CMU quarterback Kevin Wilson replaced an injured Gerald Culver and threw for 330 yards and four touchdowns




Tartans wide receiver Chris Smith hauls in this 41-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter. (Alexander Rooney / Getty Images)


by Jayson Thomas, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reporter

PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- Two weeks ago, Carnegie Mellon senior quarterback Kevin Wilson was stripped of his captaincy due to his attitude from his benching. Tartans head coach Jules Nottingham had no intentions of demoting Wilson even further, but affirmed his commitment to Gerald Culver as his starting signal-caller for the rest of the season.

So when Wilson was called upon late in the first quarter of CMU’s game against Miami (Ohio), facing a 13-0 deficit, no one knew what to expect. Two plays later, the senior was celebrating his first of four touchdown passes, lifting the Tartans to a crucial 42-35 victory over the Redhawks from Gesling Stadium.

Wilson was nearly flawless off the bench for Carnegie Mellon (6-1, 4-0 MAC), throwing for 330 yards and four touchdowns on 16-of-26 passing. The former captain tossed a pair of touchdowns in the first half while leading the Tartans to 21 unanswered points, and fired two more scores – both of 40-plus yards – as the hosts made up another deficit.

“I’m really proud of Kevin (Wilson) for his performance today,” said Nottingham. “We know how disappointed he has been with his season, and that it hasn’t gone as planned. Despite his frustration, we knew if he were called upon, he would perform to the best of his ability and help us win. With Gerald (Culver) going down early, the pressure was high for Kevin to perform – especially now that every game is a must-win one to get to Detroit – and he answered by playing possibly the best football of his career.”

Miami (Ohio) (4-2, 0-2 MAC) took advantage of a shanked punt on its first drive, with T.J. Randolph capping an eight-play, 53-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown plunge. The Redhawks then forced turnovers on CMU’s next two drives, picking off Culver and forcing a fumble on the option, with the visitors finishing off the latter drive as Randolph hauled in a six-yard touchdown pass from Tyler Byers to make it 13-0 after a blocked extra point.

Culver’s bad day became worse when the Tartans started their next drive, as the junior was sacked on the first play and left with a head injury. Two plays later, Wilson fired a downfield strike to Eddie Williams, who outraced the Miami defense for a 66-yard touchdown to make it 13-7. Robert Wall then picked off Byers at the Redhawks’ 19-yard line, and as the frame expired, Lawrence McIntire scored from a yard out to give CMU a 14-13 advantage.

Both teams traded three-and-outs throughout the second quarter until the closing minutes, as Wilson engineered a 12-play, 84-yard drive that ended in an eight-yard touchdown pass to Travis Sledge. Miami answered a minute later with a Byers 14-yard touchdown run, and then took a 27-21 lead on the first drive of the second half as Randolph scored on a five-yard run, and Byers found Willie Vincent on the two-point attempt.

The Tartans regained the lead in spectacular fashion three minutes later, as freshman wide receiver Chris Smith picked a jump ball out of the air for a 41-yard touchdown. Bobby Magnum then forced Byers’ second interception of the day, which led to a seven-play, 35-yard drive that ended in a Williams 11-yard scoring rush on a jet sweep.

CMU grabbed its largest lead of the day with 10:18 remaining, with Wilson connecting on a 43-yard touchdown pass to Williams to make it 42-27. The Redhawks couldn’t answer until the 1:12 mark, as broken coverage led to a Byers 76-yard strike to Greg Hoyte and a two-point run from the quarterback, but the ensuing onside kick was recovered by the host to set the result.

Williams accounted for three touchdowns (2 receiving, 1 rushing) on eight receptions, 179 receiving yards, and an 11-yard rush. On defense, Matt Burnsides collected two sacks and Matt Butler had a game-high nine tackles and a sack.

Byers finished with 239 passing yards, 42 rushing yards, and three total touchdowns (2 passing, 1 rushing). Randolph scored three times (2 rushing, 1 receiving) despite accumulating just 28 scrimmage yards on 18 touches, and Hoyet finished with 100 receiving yards on three catches.

Carnegie Mellon begins a two-game road trip next Saturday, Oct. 20 when it travels to Akron.
Miami (OH) RedHawks at Carnegie Mellon Tartans
Oct 13, 20121ST2ND3RD4THSCORE
Miami (OH) RedHawks (4-2, 0-2 MAC)1368835
Carnegie Mellon Tartans (6-1, 4-0 MAC)14714742
Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORINGM-OHCMU
9:18(M-OH) T.J. Randolph 1-yard run (Calvin Russell kick)70
2:50(M-OH) Tyler Byers 6-yard pass to T.J. Randolph (XP blocked)130
2:16(CMU) Kevin Wilson 66-yard pass to Eddie Williams (Joseph Love kick)137
0:00(CMU) Lawrence McIntire 1-yard run (Joseph Love kick)1314
SECOND QUARTER SCORINGM-OHCMU
1:40(CMU) Kevin Wilson 8-yard pass to Travis Sledge (Joseph Love kick)1321
0:14(M-OH) Tyler Byers 14-yard run (run failed)1921
THIRD QUARTER SCORINGM-OHCMU
10:51(M-OH) T.J. Randolph 5-yard run (Tyler Byers to Willie Vincent)2721
7:39(CMU) Kevin Wilson 41-yard pass to Chris Smith (Joseph Love kick)2728
0:22(CMU) Eddie Williams 11-yard run (Joseph Love kick)2735
FOURTH QUARTER SCORINGM-OHCMU
10:18(CMU) Kevin Wilson 43-yard pass to Eddie Williams (Joseph Love kick)2742
1:12(M-OH) Tyler Byers 76-yard pass to Greg Hoyte (Tyler Byers run)3542
Miami (OH) RedHawks
PASSINGC/AYDSTDINT
Tyler Byers15/2623922
RUSHINGATTYDSAVGTD
Tyler Byers10424.21
T.J. Randolph15211.32
RECEIVINGRECYDSAVGTD
Willie Vincent58216.30
Greg Hoyte310033.31
T.J. Randolph372.31
Alvin Bush23517.50
Trevor Turner199.00
Bryan Newman166.00
DEFENSETACKSACKINTTD
Anthony Carter6100
Craig Mitchell6000
Greg Nolan5000
Kareem Henry4000
Ryan Miller1010
KICKINGFGXPPTSLONG
Calvin Russell0/01/21--
PUNTINGNOYDSAVGIN20
Johnny Duncan522444.71
KICK RETURNRETYDSAVGTD
Greg Hoyte47719.20
Willie Vincent36020.00
PUNT RETURNRETYDSAVGTD
Willie Vincent2126.00
Carnegie Mellon Tartans
PASSINGC/AYDSTDINT
Kevin Wilson16/2633040
Gerald Culver3/72601
RUSHINGATTYDSAVGTD
Lawrence McIntire20753.71
Eddie Williams11111.01
Clay Armstrong252.50
Jeff Gilmore111.00
RECEIVINGRECYDSAVGTD
Eddie Williams817922.32
Travis Sledge55010.01
Chris Smith36521.61
Lawrence McIntire36220.60
DEFENSETACKSACKINTTD
Matt Butler9100
Matt Burnsides5200
Rob Jones4000
Jabari London4000
Robert Wall4010
Bobby Magnum4010
KICKINGFGXPPTSLONG
Joseph Love0/06/66--
PUNTINGNOYDSAVGIN20
Andy Fitzhugh310936.30
KICK RETURNRETYDSAVGTD
Kelvin Butler47518.70
Kyle Holland12323.00
PUNT RETURNRETYDSAVGTD
Kelvin Butler5275.40
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