With two seconds remaining in the game and trailing 21-20 to The Citadel, Con Chellis nailed a 41-yard field goal to give the Bucs their first conference win of the season.
The Buccaneer football team (2-3, 1-2) defeated The Citadel, 23-21, going 55 yards on 14 plays with 2:40 left in the game to set up Chellis’ field goal.
“I knew Con was going to make that kick,” said head coach Paul Hamilton. “There was no doubt in my mind, if he could get it in the air, he’d make it.”
Getting the ball into the air was the tough part for the Bucs’ kicking game against The Citadel (1-3, 0-2).
Chellis had two kicks blocked, one a 34-yard field goal attempt and the other an extra point after a touchdown pass from quarterback Matt Wilhjelm to wide receiver Cecil Moore.
“They got the first (the field goal attempt) on the outside, I think the alignment was off,” said Chellis, the Summerville, S.C., native who grew up watching The Citadel play. “They got the second from the inside, (the defense) had different schemes and must have seen a weakness.”
Despite having two kicks blocked earlier in the game, Chellis was still confident with the game on the line, even though the Bulldogs tried to rattle him by calling two timeouts before the attempt.
“I was a little tense coming in, but the timeouts helped me relax,” said the Bucs’ senior kicker, who also had a game-winning field goal last season in a 23-21 victory over Furman.
The Bucs set up Chellis’ game-winner with well-timed passes from Wilhjelm, including an 18-yard strike across the middle of the field to Moore on fourth and 13.
“(Matt) did what he was supposed to do, he made plays we needed,” said Moore, who had four catches for 61 yards. “I wanted the ball to come to me.”
Then facing third and 13, Wilhjelm, who completed 10 of 20 passes for 155 yards, hit Corey Carter for 25 yards, gaining the first down and moving the Bucs to The Citadel’s 42-yard line.
Carter, who has been banged up all season, had seven carries for 34 yards and two receptions for 46 yards, helping the Bucs break their two-game losing streak.
“(Corey Carter) had to step up tonight for us to win,” Hamilton said.
The Bucs moved down to The Citadel 26-yard line with four seconds remaining, when Hamilton called one more play to try to get the ball in the middle of the field for Chellis.
The gamble paid off as Scott Carter’s one-yard run took only two seconds off the clock, giving the Bucs enough time to set up for the field goal after an immediate timeout after Carter went down.
“I felt like we had a chance to get the ball in the middle of the field to give Con the best percentage chance (of making the field goal),” Hamilton said.
The Bucs took the lead early at 13-6, when Wilhjelm connected with Moore as 11 seconds remained in the half.
The Citadel came back to tie things up at the start of the third quarter on a 13-yard touchdown run by Nate Mahoney, who had 18 carries for 69 yards.
The Bucs then broke a 13-13 tie on a one-yard touchdown run by Carter with 6:43 to go in the third, making the score 20-13.
The Citadel came back to take its first lead of the game at 21-20 with 12:09 to go, on a one-yard touchdown run by Maurice Murphy, who led The Citadel with 25 carries for 94 yards and two touchdowns, and a two-point conversion.
The Buccaneer offense had a balanced attack with 333 total yards (178 rushing, 155 passing) and Hamilton was pleased with effort of his offensive line.
“I’m proud of the offensive line tonight,” he said. “Our offensive line played tough tonight and competed in the ball game.”
The Bucs also added some life back to their running game, which had been nonexistent.
Andrew Nuckolls led the way on the ground with six carries for 69 yards in the first half, including a 57-yard run that helped set up Moore’s touchdown reception at the end of the half.
Nuckolls, however, was unable to have the same kind of contribution in the second half due to a turf toe injury that has bothered him the last couple weeks.
“This is the most banged up football team I’ve coached,” Hamilton said. “But somehow our football team found a way to win.”
The Bucs will have a chance to get healthy and build on their victory over The Citadel, as they will not have a game next week.
“We have the chance to move forward from this,” Hamilton said. “I’m proud of these guys and we have a big opponent coming up in 16 days.”
The Bucs will next play the Furman Paladins on Oct. 20 in Greenville, S.C.

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