Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - The second round of the FCS playoffs
Saturday provided plenty of offensive fireworks and record-setting
performances.
Old Dominion quarterback Taylor Heinicke set a new FCS playoff record with 542
yards of total offense and tied a playoff record with six touchdown passes.
Georgia Southern quarterback Jerick McKinnon rushed for 316 yards, second in
FCS playoff history behind former school legend Adrian Peterson and his 333-
yard
performance in 1999.
Wofford fullback Eric Breitenstein, who holds the Southern Conference regular-
season single-game rushing record with 321 yards on Sept. 29, rushed for 247
yards and three touchdowns, carrying his team to victory in the second round.
Illinois State quarterback Matt Brown threw for five touchdowns in his teams
one-point overtime victory at "The Rock" versus Appalachian State.
Perhaps the most overlooked aspect in the second round, however, was the role
of special teams.
Montana State used three Rory Perez field goals to beat Stony Brook, 16-10.
Wagner stayed alive in its 29-19 loss versus Eastern Washington with four
David
Lopez field goals.
And then there was Sam Houston State and Appalachian State. SHSU needed a
critical blocked punt, which rolled out of the end zone for a safety, and
three
Miguel Antonio field goals to survive Cal Poly, 18-16, while Appalachian State
realized just how vital special teams are as Illinois States Shelby Harris
blocked an extra point in overtime to give his team a 38-37 victory.
For all the promise in its teams, some things can never be ignored.
Whether it be scores, statistics or standout performances, the numbers never
lie.
Here are some important figures from Week 14 of the 2012 FCS season - the
second round of the playoffs - that should not be overlooked:
McKinnon rushed for 316 yards on 34 carries and totaled three touchdowns - two
rushing and one passing - in the Eagles 24-16 second-round victory over
Central Arkansas. It was the second-highest total in school history, just 17
yards behind Petersons 333 rushing yards against Massachusetts (1999), also
in
the FCS playoffs. It was the third-highest single-game rushing total in the
2012 season. He averaged 9.3 yards per carry.
Breitenstein rushed for 247 yards on 22 carries and scored three touchdowns in
a 23-7 victory over New Hampshire. The senior now has 5,595 career rushing
yards and 65 career rushing touchdowns, which leads the FCS for active career
marks. In 12 games, hes rushed for 1,900 yards and 19 touchdowns and leads
the
FCS in rushing with 158 yards per game.
Stony Brook entered Saturdays second-round playoff matchup, averaging 288
yards per game on the ground, good for No. 5 in the FCS. However, the
Seawolves
were held to just 123 rushing yards on 37 carries, in the teams 16-10 defeat.
Montana State held SBU to just 4-of-13 on third down conversions and now rank
fourth in the FCS in that category, holding teams to 29 percent on third downs
this season.
Eastern Washington totaled 411 yards of offense in its 29-19 victory over
Wagner. The team passed for 327 yards and rushed for just 84 yards, but
running
back Demitrius Bronson scored two key rushing touchdowns on 76 yards in the
win. Receiver Brandon Kaufman caught 10 passes for 174 yards and averaged 17.4
yards per reception.
Wagner finished its season with just one turnover in its last 10 games. The
Seahawks rank first in the FCS with just six turnovers lost in 13 games.
Quarterback Nick Doscher threw just one interception this season - in the
opener versus Florida Atlantic - and threw 231 straight passes without an
interception.
North Dakota State has now held 11 of its last 13 opponents to under 250 yards
of total offense, dating back to the 2011 FCS championship game victory over
Sam Houston State. The Bison limited South Dakota State to just 217 total
yards in their 28-3 second-round victory Saturday. In two contests versus NDSU
this
season, SDSU running back Zach Zenner, who ranks second in the FCS with 157
rushing yards per game, managed only 43 and 46 rushing yards, respectively.
Sam Houston State scored one offensive touchdown in its 18-16 victory over Cal
Poly. Antonio nailed three field goals and the Bearkats forced a team safety
to account for 11 of their 18 points. Quarterback Brian Bell threw for 88
yards and one touchdown, an 18-yard pass to Keshawn Hill in the third quarter,
which provided SHSU with its only offensive touchdown of the game.
Sam Houston State gave up 224 rushing yards in its victory, allowing an FCS
team to cross the 100-yard rushing mark for just the second time this season.
The
only other times a team has rushed for more than 100 yards came against FBS
foes Baylor (232 yards) and Texas A&M (157 yards), and Southland Conference
member Southeastern Louisiana (105 yards).
Old Dominion's Heinicke added to his historic season by setting an FCS playoff
record with 542 yards of offense in his teams 63-35 victory over Coastal
Carolina. He threw for 497 yards and tied an FCS playoff record with six
passing touchdowns and rushed for 45 yards in the win. He has now thrown for
4,655
yards in 12 games this season and is just 208 yards behind Steve McNair (1994)
for the FCS single-season passing record.
Illinois State's Brown threw for 322 yards and five touchdowns in the
Redbirds 38-37 overtime victory versus Appalachian State. Receivers Tyrone
Walker and
James O'Shaughnessy both caught two touchdown passes and finished with 176 and
78 receiving yards, respectively.
The Sports Network