Football Falls In NEC Opener
Nasir Smith runs for 92 yards and a touchdown in home opener
The Central Connecticut football team had a last-minute drive derailed in the end zone in a Northeast Conference season opening loss, 14-10, to Sacred Heart at Arute Field.
Trailing 14-10, SHU's Kenneth Womack ran for 17 yards where Harold Miles knocked the ball away and Jahlil Brown scooped it up to give the Blue Devils 1-and-10 on the SHU 47 with 6:45 to play.
CCSU drive the ball to the SHU eight, on a Nasir Smith 12-yard run for first and goal. After a Smith three-yard run, Arsheen Jiles stepped in front of a Romelo Williams pass in the endzone to secure the victory for the Pioneers.
GAME INFORMATION
Score: Sacred Heart 14, Central Connecticut 10
Records: CCSU (0-2; 0-1 NEC); Sacred Heart (1-1; 1-0 NEC)
Location: Arute Field | New Britain, CT
KEY MOMENTS
- Malik Grant opened the scoring with a two-yard run with 3:52 to play in the first quarter to put the Pioneers in front, 7-0
- Santana Fonseca's 29-yard field goal capped a 12-play, 4:49 drive for CCSU with 78 seconds left in the first half
- Nas Smith put the Blue Devils in front, 10-7, on a one-yard run, capping a nine-play, 90-yard drive with 2:41 to play in the third
- Rob McCoy used a strong individual effort to score from 14 yards out with 11:41 to play in the fourth, giving SHU a 14-10 advantage
- Harold Miles forced a fumble with 6:45 to play to give the Blue Devils the ball back, down 14-10
BY THE NUMBERS
- Smith rushed for 92 yards, with a long of 24, and scored a touchdown on 21 carries
- The Blue Devils finished with an 18-12 advantage in first downs and a 34:25-25:35 edge in time of possession
- Chizi Umunakwe and Jahlil Brown both recorded 10 tackles in the evening
- The Blue Devils had 5.0 TFL's and a pair of sacks
NUMBER TO KNOW
+1 - The Blue Devils were again on the positive side of the turnover margin, and are +3 through the first two games of the season
