BOONE (AP) — Todd Centeio accounted for three touchdowns and James Madison scored 22 unanswered points in the second half to beat Appalachian State 32-28.

Centeio scored on a 2-yard run late in the third quarter and then threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Terrance Greene Jr. that pulled James Madison (3-0, 1-0 Sun Belt Conference) to 28-25 early in the fourth.

Kaelon Black’s 4-yard touchdown run for the Dukes capped the scoring with 10:36 remaining. Appalachian State’s (2-2, 1-1) final drive stalled at its 42 when Chase Brice threw an incomplete pass on fourth-and-9 with 49 seconds left.

Centeio was 16-of-28 passing for 204 yards with another 88 yards rushing on 18 carries.

Brice threw for 235 yards and two second-quarter touchdowns. Camerun Peoples and Nate Noel each added a pair of short-yardage scoring runs in the second as the Mountaineers built a 28-10 halftime lead.

James Madison had a come-from-behind, 35-32 win on Sept. 20, 2008 when the teams last met.

Samford rolls over Western Carolina

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Michael Hiers passed for 292 yards and four touchdowns to propel Samford to a 35-12 victory over Western Carolina.

Richard McCollum kicked four field goals for  the Catamounts (2-2) and Carlos Davis completed 29 of 44 passes for 301 yards but he was picked off twice.

NC Central knocks off Virginia Lynchburg

DURHAM (AP) — Davius Richard threw three touchdown passes, Chris Mosley had a 58-yard touchdown run and North Carolina Central defeated Virginia Lynchburg 59-14.

Richard completed 12 of 17 passes for 148 yards and was intercepted twice. Mosley had three carries for 72 yards rushing and his 58-yard run gave the Eagles a 52-7 lead in the fourth quarter.

NC Central (4-0) had 465 total yards, 272 on the ground. Virginia Lynchburg had 176 yards of offense.

In addition to Richard’s two interceptions, the Eagles also lost three fumbles.

David Anderson had 18 carries for 59 yards and a touchdown for the Dragons (0-4). Darryl Nesmith had 11 tackles, seven solo.

NCCAA-member Virginia Lynchburg is playing eight FCS teams this season.

 

South Carolina overpowers Charlotte 56-20

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Marshawn Lloyd ran for a career-high 169 yards and three touchdowns as South Carolina scored on its first eight possessions to put away Charlotte 56-20 on Saturday night.

The win ended a two-game losing streak for the Gamecocks (2-2) — and was a welcome performance for an offense stuck near the bottom of the Southeastern Conference this season.

Lloyd had scoring runs of 25, 14 and 7 yards, the first two that left fans’ jaws dropped and Charlotte defenders in disbelief.

On the first, Lloyd cleanly hurdled safety Wayne Jones in the open field on the way to the end zone. On his second, Lloyd was stood up for what looked like a short gain before breaking free to put South Carolina ahead 28-14.

Lloyd had some help on the last, converting after Gamecocks linebacker Brad Johnson intercepted Charlotte’s Chris Reynolds deep in 49ers territory. Lloyd calmly found the end zone a final time and finished with South Carolina’s most rushing yards since Kevin Harris gained 182 against North Carolina in its 38-21 Duke’s Mayo Bowl victory last New Year’s Eve.

Charlotte (1-4) of Conference USA entered with the country’s 30th best passing attack at 289 yards a game and the one of the worst rushing defenses (129 out of 131) in the NCAA at 243 yards allowed per game. Both were evident at South Carolina.

The Gamecocks picked up 161 yards on the ground to score on all four of their first-half possessions. But the 49ers were largely on target behind sixth-year quarterback Chris Reynolds, converting their first seven third downs and throwing for 132 yards to keep things close at the half, 20-14.

South Carolina finished with a season-best 545 yards of offense.

 

Davidson runs past Presbyterian 56-24

CLINTON, S.C.  (AP) — Freshman TJ Magee set the tone when he returned the opening kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown and Davidson breezed to a 56-24 victory over Presbyterian on Saturday night.

Jayden Waddell completed 6 of 7 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown — a 67-yard second-quarter strike to Clarence Freeman IV — for Davidson (3-1) in a Pioneer Football League opener. Waddell also rushed 16 times for 105 yards, including a 37-yard scoring sprint in the fourth quarter.

Wildcats backup quarterback Luke Durkin threw a 30-yard touchdown pass to Mark McCurdy in the final minute of the first half to give Davidson a 35-10 lead.

Coy Williams rushed for two touchdowns for the Wildcats. Dylan Sparks and McCurdy also ran for scores. Ten different players carried the ball as Davidson piled up 396 yards on the ground.

Freshman Nate Hayden completed 16 of 26 passes for 196 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions for Presbyterian (1-3). Delvecchio Powell II had the TD catch for the Blue Hose.

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