Bulldogs Bested in Homecoming Brush with Mercer, 38-16

Saturday, November 4

Charleston, S.C.

2:00 PM

The Citadel

0-9 , 0-6

Mercer

7-3 , 5-2

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Mercer	7	7	10	14	38
The Citadel	3	7	0	6	16

Photo by: Brian Stone

Bulldogs Bested in Homecoming Brush with Mercer, 38-16

11/4/2023 5:37:00 PM | Football

Box Score

CHARLESTON, S.C. – Despite an energetic start throughout the early-going of the first half, The Citadel (0-9, 0-6 SoCon) faltered down the stretch during the program's Homecoming matchup against SoCon opponent Mercer (7-3, 5-2 SoCon), falling to the Bears via a final 38-16 margin on Saturday, Nov. 4 at Sansom Field at Johnson Hagood Stadium.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: Mercer def. The Citadel, 38-16
Records: Mercer (7-3, 5-2 SoCon), The Citadel (0-9, 0-6 SoCon)
Location: Sansom Field at Johnson Hagood Stadium
Series: The Citadel leads the series 11-9-1

KEY PLAYS & STATS

In spite of an early Graeson Underwood pick-six on the opening drive of the contest, the Bulldogs rallied throughout the first half, surging to their first-ever lead during the opening two quarters behind a two-yard Hi'Keem Elmore rushing touchdown with 8:37 to play in the second. Mercer managed to erase the deficit with 25 seconds remaining in the half, earning an advantage the Bears would never surrender at 14-10.
The Citadel defense held Mercer to the lowest opponent offensive total of the season, surrendering just 302 total yards on 55 plays from scrimmage.
The Bulldog offense also showcased notable improvement, converting 9-of-19 (.473) on third down, their most-ever this season, while finishing a perfect 2-of-2 on fourth down.
Additionally, The Citadel offense continued to effectively utilize a ball control-centric offensive system, topping the Bears in time-of-possession (32:06-to-27:54). For the year, the Bulldogs have only earned a time-of-possession four times, with three of those occasions coming over the past three contests (VMI, Samford and Mercer).
Tyler Cherry impressed in The Citadel receiving corps, pulling down a team season-best five receptions for 54 yards. Defensively, Carson Walter once again led the Bulldogs in tackles, racking up a total seven on the day with four coming solo.
For just the second time this season, The Citadel offense concluded the game perfect inside the red zone, notching two scores on two attempts. The team's previous perfect occasion came against VMI, as the Bulldogs collected three scores on three visits inside the 20.
Finally, the Bulldog defense found ways to consistently pressure the Mercer offensive front, generating a season-high seven tackles-for-loss while matching the program's season-best behind a pair of sacks.

NEXT UP
With Homecoming against the Bears wrapped up, The Citadel aims to hold down the fort one final time this season as in-state foe Wofford visits Johnson Hagood on Saturday, Nov. 11, kickoff set for 2 pm.