On March 20, ETSU’s football team moved to a 2-1 overall record after capitalizing on multiple turnovers by The Citadel, eventually winning by a score of 28-21. This gave the Bucs their first Southern Conference road win since 2018.

The Bucs took advantage early with defensive back Tyree Robinson (Gainesville, Georgia) recovering a fumble for 27-yards on the opening drive and giving ETSU the first points on the board. This would become the story of the game, as the Bucs would eventually score 21 points off Citadel turnovers.

(Contributed/ETSU Buccaneer Football on Facebook)

A back-and-forth first half saw the Bucs down by a score of 14-7 until evening up the score just before halftime when Bucs quarterback Tyler Riddell (Tampa, Florida) found running back Jacob Saylors (Jasper, Tennessee) on a four-yard pass into the end zone. The possession was made possible by the second turnover by The Citadel. From there, the Bucs did not look back.

After halftime, it did not take Riddell long to connect with wide receiver Will Huzzie (Duluth, Georgia) on a 49-yard touchdown pass, putting the Bucs up 21-14 early into the third quarter.

On the following drive, Citadel’s quarterback Jaylan Adams looked as though he tried to throw the ball away, but the Bucs’ Alijah Huzzie (Franklin, Georgia) had other plans and got the ball back for the Bucs via interception. The Bucs would score again off of the turnover, marking their final score of the game and the third score off of Citadel turnovers.

The fourth quarter saw a strong Bucs defense with an offense that struggled heavily. In the final quarter, the Bucs were negative in yards. Plagued by penalties, the Bucs defense stepped up and closed out the game on a fourth down stop.

Both teams had their share of yellow flags, 10-a-piece that afternoon. Bucs head coach Randy Sanders was not pleased with the penalty struggles.

“We’re going go to work on that immediately…we have to fix it,” Sanders said after the game.

ETSU Buccaneer Football celebrates after defeating the Citadel. (Contributed/ETSU Buccaneer Football on Facebook)

Riddell would end the game throwing for 182 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Huzzie caught six of those passes for 94 yards and one touchdown.

The Bucs will hope to limit the yellow flags March 27 at home when they face the Western Carolina Catamounts for the third Blue Ridge Border Battle. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.

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