BREVARD, N.C. – The Brevard College football team (4-5, 4-2 USA South) celebrated its senior class on Saturday afternoon in a special pre-game ceremony alongside the BC cheerleading team. Following the pre-game festivities, the Tornados fell in their first-ever meeting against Belhaven University (8-1, 6-1 USAS), 20-7, as two blocked punts by the Blazers proved costly to the Tornados.
The first quarter was scoreless as both stout defenses held the respective offenses off the board. Belhaven was able to score 13 points in the matter of a minute and 40 seconds after a touchdown was followed with a blocked-punt return TD, but the Tornados answered back with a touchdown before the halftime intermission to cut the Blazer lead to six points, 13-7.
Belhaven was able to shut out the Tornados in the second half, dominating time-of-possession while adding a touchdown on a two-yard rush following a second blocked punt at the beginning of the third quarter. Both teams went scoreless in the last 28 minutes of action as the Blazers pulled through with the win.
Senior running back Mitchell Yoder put together a successful offensive day for the Nados, catching seven passes for 71 yards and a 28-yard touchdown, while also totaling nine carries for 26 yards on the ground. Senior tight end Jaden O'Leary hauled in five passes as the Tornados deployed a pair of veteran quarterbacks vs. Belhaven. Miles Hayes, a graduate quarterback from North Port, Florida, completed 15 passes for 126 yards and a touchdown. Dalton Cole, a senior from Hendersonville, North Carolina, went 5-for-7 for 41 yards, starting the game and playing the first quarter.
Freshman punter Joe Powell had a 57-yard-long punt and pinned two attempts inside the 20, while Stamati Damalos added a PAT.
Defensively, senior Toby Naylor led the Tornados with 10 tackles, while Jerome Bass added eight with a pair of quarterback hurries. KJ Dagout, Obidiah Grimes, and Tyler Harrison each logged a tackle-for-loss, while Harrison – a senior from Franklin, North Carolina – picked off a pair of passes.
Belhaven totaled 144 rushing yards on 38 carries, as the Blazers featured a heavy dose of runs. Starting QB Tim Johnson went 10-for-24 with 118 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. The Blazer defense was stiff, as Connor Fordham put together an impressive day with 15 tackles (five solo, 10 assist), while also blocking a pair of punts. Luke Fondren and Phazion Locke each added seven tackles, while Eli Webb totaled the game's only sack.
The Blazers held a slim 262-259 overall yard advantage on offense, but the Tornados were able to force a pair of takeaways. Belhaven blocked a pair of punts and held a 144-92 lead on the ground, but BC utilized a 167-118 advantage through the air. Brevard almost doubled BU's time-of-possession total in the first half to keep it a six-point affair, but the Blazers were able to flip the script in the second half. Brevard's defense held the Blazers to a 2-for-11 mark on third down.
The Tornados close out their regular season on the road next weekend as Brevard heads to Buena Vista, Virginia to take on Southern Virginia University on Saturday, November 12 at 1 p.m.
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-BC-