ATLANTA, Ga. - Under a cloud-covered Atlanta skyline, the 10th-ranked UWG Football team used a stifling defense and strong second half effort to defeat the Morehouse Maroon Tigers, 42-0, on Saturday evening.
West Georgia (2-0) had just 39 passing yards in the opening half, and led 7-0, but a 28-point third quarter was the difference as the Wolves got a defensive touchdown and had 190 yards of offense in the period to put the game out of reach early.
"I was so proud of our defense," said head coach David Dean. "I told them at halftime the reason we were in the game was how well they were playing."
For the game, the UWG defense held Morehouse (0-2) to less than two yards per play, giving up just 115 yards of offense and pitching the 30th shutout in program history and the second in as many years against Morehouse.
As for the offense, a pesky rain in the opening quarter made things difficult to move the ball against the Morehouse defense.
Despite a Zion Custis return to the Morehouse eight-yard line on the game's opening kickoff, West Georgia couldn't get points on the opening drive as the Wolves turned it over on downs.
It was Custis, however, who provided the only first half points for either team as he scored from four yards out with 58 seconds left in the first quarter.
But once the rain stopped falling and the teams went to the locker room, it was all UWG on both sides of the ball.
"We finally settled down offensively. We let the weather get to us and finally we had a chance to settle them down and started playing good football," Dean added.
After the defense forced a three-and-out on the opening drive of the second half, Harrison Frost found Zay Britt for a big gain that set up a four-yard TD by Jaxton Carson to make it 14-0. Frost found Terrill Cole on a fade route for a 13-yard score on the next drive, and then the UWG defense got in on the scoring party.
Deontae Overstreet picked off a pass on the ensuing Morehouse drive and took it 41 yards for the score, giving UWG their first pick six since the 2019 Valdosta State game.
"You could tell that play kind of broke their back," Dean said of the Overstreet touchdown. "What a great play, too. They floated it in the air and he made a great break, and I told him he looked like a running back going into the end zone breaking all those tackles."
Rajaez Mosley then added another third-quarter TD as he went untouched from 31 yards out to make it 35-0, and Ben Whitlock connected with Jerry Mays in the fourth quarter for the game's final score. IT was the first touchdown in both Whitlock's and Mays' careers.
Malcolm Mercer led UWG's impressive defensive performance with seven tackles and 2.5 sacks. Amos Dahn also had six tackles while Mason Huntley chipped in with five that included 1.5 sacks.
Offensively, UWG got 88 rushing yards from Custis and 81 from Carson with each scoring touchdowns on a night where UWG rushed for 249 yards. Harrison Frost threw for 151 yards and one touchdown and became the seventh passer in UWG history to eclipse the 4,000 career yard mark.
West Georgia was whistled for 16 penalties for 121 yards.
"Way too many penalties, and it was penalties that we could correct, thank goodness," Dean said.
The win gives David Dean 36 in his UWG career and ties him with Charlie Fisher for the most all-time wins by a head coach in program history.
The Wolves now have 14 days until their next action as the Wolves have a week three bye next Saturday.
"You know, I hate having an off week this early, but I think we need it," Dean concluded. "Especially our defensive line, they need some healing up, but we'll go out and have a few days of practice and start working on West Alabama."
The Gulf South Conference opener at West Alabama is UWG's next action, which is scheduled for September 24 at Tiger Stadium in Livingston, Alabama. Kickoff is slated for 3 p.m. EST.
