Rusty Taylor goes out on a high note
By Michael Dailey
Charleston Daily Mail
The University of Charleston football squad said goodbye to five seniors on Senior Day at University of Charleston Stadium on Saturday.
And those five seniors said goodbye to a bitter two-game losing streak against Glenville State, in a surprisingly easy 49-28 season-ending win over the Pioneers.
Unfortunately for seniors Preston Higdon, Rusty Taylor, Mike Williams, Corey Richards and Kasey Teegardin, Saturday's win in front of 2,424 fans was not enough to help the Golden Eagles slide into a NCAA Division II playoff spot.
Charleston (8-3 overall, 6-2 WVC) entered the contest ranked 10th in the Northeast Region, with the top six teams advancing to the postseason.
The win kept alive a glimmer of playoff hope that officially ended when the playoff bracket was announced on Sunday morning.
Still, the win was satisfying for Golden Eagles, who equaled the 2005 team's 8-3 mark as the best single-season record since the program's rebirth in 2003.
"It's great to come out here and get this win, especially since Glenville beat us 35-0 last year," said Taylor, a former Riverside High standout. "We take every game that we go into as a big game, but we just came out focused and we came out hard and then we stayed in it the whole time."
Taylor finished his career with a pair of catches, including a 15-yard touchdown pass from quarterback DeRante Hunter.
Charleston racked up 471 total yards, including 378 on the ground against the Pioneers' quickly tiring defense.
Former Nitro standout Josh Culbertson led UC with 135 yards on 19 carries, while Hunter tallied 13 carries for 119 yards.
Culbertson scored on carries of 2 and 1 yards, while Hunter slipped in from 10 yards out.
"I just don't think they matched up with us very well today," said Taylor. "We threw a couple different things at them. Our coaches put us in position to get the win."
Williams, a defensive back and special teams standout, also had a memorable ending to a day that began in a not so memorable way.
Williams muffed a first quarter punt that was recovered by Glenville at the Golden Eagles' 3.
Three plays later, the Pioneers scored a game-tying touchdown.
But he quickly atoned for his mistake with 40-yard return for a score on the final play of the quarter.
"The first punt I just misjudged it," said Williams. "But on the second one, I just tried to make it up to the team. I knew that if I could just get under it and catch it, I had a good chance to take it back."
For third-year UC Coach Tony DeMeo, the win eased the sting of the prior week's home loss to West Liberty, and propelled the program into what appears to be a bright future.
"This was an important game because we didn't play well last week," said DeMeo of the loss to West Liberty. "This week we came out and we were pretty darn sharp offensively.
"We only have five seniors out of 103 players, so the future is bright for us."
Charleston Daily Mail
The University of Charleston football squad said goodbye to five seniors on Senior Day at University of Charleston Stadium on Saturday.
And those five seniors said goodbye to a bitter two-game losing streak against Glenville State, in a surprisingly easy 49-28 season-ending win over the Pioneers.
Unfortunately for seniors Preston Higdon, Rusty Taylor, Mike Williams, Corey Richards and Kasey Teegardin, Saturday's win in front of 2,424 fans was not enough to help the Golden Eagles slide into a NCAA Division II playoff spot.
Charleston (8-3 overall, 6-2 WVC) entered the contest ranked 10th in the Northeast Region, with the top six teams advancing to the postseason.
The win kept alive a glimmer of playoff hope that officially ended when the playoff bracket was announced on Sunday morning.
Still, the win was satisfying for Golden Eagles, who equaled the 2005 team's 8-3 mark as the best single-season record since the program's rebirth in 2003.
"It's great to come out here and get this win, especially since Glenville beat us 35-0 last year," said Taylor, a former Riverside High standout. "We take every game that we go into as a big game, but we just came out focused and we came out hard and then we stayed in it the whole time."
Taylor finished his career with a pair of catches, including a 15-yard touchdown pass from quarterback DeRante Hunter.
Charleston racked up 471 total yards, including 378 on the ground against the Pioneers' quickly tiring defense.
Former Nitro standout Josh Culbertson led UC with 135 yards on 19 carries, while Hunter tallied 13 carries for 119 yards.
Culbertson scored on carries of 2 and 1 yards, while Hunter slipped in from 10 yards out.
"I just don't think they matched up with us very well today," said Taylor. "We threw a couple different things at them. Our coaches put us in position to get the win."
Williams, a defensive back and special teams standout, also had a memorable ending to a day that began in a not so memorable way.
Williams muffed a first quarter punt that was recovered by Glenville at the Golden Eagles' 3.
Three plays later, the Pioneers scored a game-tying touchdown.
But he quickly atoned for his mistake with 40-yard return for a score on the final play of the quarter.
"The first punt I just misjudged it," said Williams. "But on the second one, I just tried to make it up to the team. I knew that if I could just get under it and catch it, I had a good chance to take it back."
For third-year UC Coach Tony DeMeo, the win eased the sting of the prior week's home loss to West Liberty, and propelled the program into what appears to be a bright future.
"This was an important game because we didn't play well last week," said DeMeo of the loss to West Liberty. "This week we came out and we were pretty darn sharp offensively.
"We only have five seniors out of 103 players, so the future is bright for us."