The football team enters its first of two bye weeks following its strongest all-around performance of the season in a 30-23 loss at Bucknell on Sept. 27.
SFU is off this weekend before traveling to Pittsburgh for a Northeast Conference game against Duquesne on Saturday, Oct. 11. Kickoff against the Dukes is at 1 p.m. at Art Rooney Field.
The game against Bucknell see-sawed back and forth throughout the night. SFU led, 23-22, on a six-yard touchdown run by Raphael Ekechi with 7:22 remaining in the game. The TD by Ekechi was his second scoring run of the game and capped an 11-play, 81-yard drive.
The Bison responded, however, with a seven-play, 75-yard drive of its own and converted on a two-point conversion to grab a 30-23 lead with a little over five minutes remaining.
The Flash – which outgained Bucknell by more than 100 yards (478-377) – drove from its own 13-yard line down to the BU three, but SFU quarterback Nick Whitfield threw an interception with just seconds remaining and the Bison escaped with the win.
Whitfield played one of his greatest games in an SFU uniform, completing 31-of-44 pass attempts for 377 yards passing, one TD and one interception.
Ekechi ran for 54 yards on 12 carries, with two touchdowns.
Freshmen receiver DJ Maultsby and Peyton Nelson were Whitfield’s favorite target at Bucknell.
Maultsby, a rookie from Melbourne, Florida, made nine receptions for 141 yards. He scored SFU’s second touchdown of the game just before the half, grabbing a one-yard scoring pass from Whitfield.
Nelson, a native of District Heights, Maryland, made 11 catches for 131 yards.
Sophomore safety Colin Douglas made a team-high eight tackles, including five solo stops. Sophomore linebacker Kahmari Cook added a career-best seven tackles.
Senior kicker Mac Plummer booted a 21-yard field goal in the third quarter and converted on both of his point-after attempts at Bucknell.
Following the game against Duquesne on Oct. 11, the Flash will have another bye week before hosting Robert Morris on Oct. 25.
