Garcia Ground Attack, Kiely Heroics Pace The Citadel past No. 12 SC State, 34-31

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Buoyed by a vintage performance from Quentin Hayes plus yet-another standout three-touchdown showcase courtesy of Gavin Garcia, The Citadel (2-3, 0-2 SoCon) managed to orchestrate the program’s first ranked victory since 2022 against regional rival No. 15/12 South Carolina State (5-1, 0-0 MEAC), edging past the host Bulldogs in a back-and-forth slugfest behind a 34-31 margin on Saturday afternoon at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium.

Notably, Evan Kiely drilled a 31-yard field goal as time expired to clinch the win, good for his second of the game. The Citadel last topped a ranked adversary in 2022, outlasting then-No. 8/9 ETSU via a 20-17 mark within the friendly confines of Johnson Hagood Stadium; further, the Bulldogs’ most recent ranked victory on the road came back in 2015 at then-No. 9 Coastal Carolina, ousting the Chanticleers behind a 41-38 decision in the opening round of the FCS Playoffs.

KEY NOTES
— The Citadel outgained SC State for the game via a 448-to-346 margin; notably, the former compiled a balanced attack on the ground and through the air, finishing with 244 rushing yards for a pair of touchdowns plus 204 passing and another two scores
— On the ground, Garcia set the tone with a season-high 167 yards on just 18 carries, scoring a pair of TDs and breaking off his longest rush of the year — a 44-yard bounce outside — in a critical moment on the final drive of the game to set up the eventual Kiely game-winning field goal; Hayes contributed 56 yards on 11 carries as well, including a 60-yard sprint up the seam to position The Citadel for the team’s first touchdown of the day midway through the first quarter
— Through the air, Hayes finished 7-of-12 passing for 127 yards and two scores; Nick Billoups tacked on 2-of-3 for for 56 yards as well, highlighted by a 34-yard dime to Michael Lorino up the right side late during the game-winning drive
— For the receiving corps, six different wideouts pulled down catches on the day with Damir Abdullah headlining the group behind a three-reception, 84-yard performance, notably plucking a 55-yard toss from Hayes out of the air for his first touchdown catch of the season; Whit Hobgood and Lorino added a pair of receptions each for 59 and 36 yards, respectively; finally, Garcia notched one catch on the day, dodging and weaving his way for eight yards and a score late in the second quarter
— Defensively, The Citadel managed to hold the nation’s fifth best offense and second best rushing attack to just 346 total yards, stuffing the ground game to the tune of 91 yards in the process; entering the contest, the host Bulldogs averaged 478.4 total yards per game as well as 280.6 rushing yards per game, not to mention an FCS-best 47.0 points per game
— Individually, Zyion Brown led the way once again with 8.0 total tackles, including 1.5 tackles-for-loss with 1.0 logged as a sack; Khaleb Bridges and DK McGruder contributed 6.0 tackles apiece as well while J’hair Mosley and Jalen Wright each added 5.0 tackles, including another 1.5 tackles-for-loss for the latter
— For the special teams, Jack Weil posted a 48.0 yards per punt average on five attempts, sending two kicks over 50 yards — including a season-long 56-yarder — while pinning South Carolina State twice inside the 20-yard line; Kiely, meanwhile, concluded the day a perfect 4-for-4 on PATs plus a 2-for-2 mark on field goals, hitting from 30 and 31 yards