Gritty Eagles take crucial contest from Catawba 24-16
November 1, 2025

Gritty Eagles take crucial contest from Catawba 24-16

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (6-2, 5-2 South Atlantic Conference) bent but did not break in thwarting Catawba (6-3, 4-3 SAC) 24-16 in a key SAC victory Saturday afternoon at Burke-Tarr Stadium. 

VIDEO: Ashley Ingram Interview

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VIDEO: Isaiah Cane Interview

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VIDEO: Grayson Campbell Interview

VIDEO: Jayden Sullins Interview

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (6-2, 5-2 South Atlantic Conference) bent but did not break in thwarting Catawba (6-3, 4-3 SAC) 24-16 in a key SAC victory Saturday afternoon at Burke-Tarr Stadium. 

The Eagles held the league's top scoring defense 20 points below their season average, while also tamping the Indians down on third downs and in the red zone.  Catawba entered the game tops in the nation in third down offense and eighth in red zone efficiency. C-N held the Indians to a season-low 29 percent conversion rate on third downs and one TD on five red zone trips.

"You can't say enough about the defense," Carson-Newman head football coach Ashley Ingram said. "I put them in a bad spot at the end of the game. I was trying to end the game because they'd used their three time outs. It probably made more sense to punt and make them go 90, but they came through and bailed me out as they've done all year. Isaiah Cane, what a great football player he is, and he makes the play. It was great effort on defense, great execution and a great gameplan from Tyler Almond. Just a great day." 

Carson-Newman led 24-16 with under four minutes to go in the fourth quarter.  C-N ran the ball three times and bled Catawba of their timeouts.  Facing fourth-and-two from the Catawba 44, C-N ran a fourth time but got stuffed, turning the ball over on downs.  Catawba took over with exactly three minutes remaining and drove the ball inside the red zone for a fifth time while converting on a fourth-and-20 play.  On a desperation heave by Catawba QB Preston Brown, C-N's defender Isaiah Cane (Antioch, Tenn.) slipped allowing Nick Venezia to scoop up a dying quail of a pass for a 22-yard gain down to the 19.

One play later, Cane would atone for losing his footing.  He plucked a Brown pass out of the sky on an out route to the left sideline for his second pick of the season to seal the game and keep the Eagles in the hunt for a SAC title. It was just the third interception Brown had thrown on the year.

"This is one of those plays you dream about," Cane said. "To be able to make that play and finish it off, is just incredible. As a whole unit, we had to be locked in because Catawba knows how to execute. We stayed disciplined, bent, but didn't break." 

The win sets up another colossal showdown next week at Setzler Field. Newberry collected a 24-21 win over Anderson Saturday and thus a share of a SAC regular season championship. A C-N win over the Wolves would pull C-N within a half game of Newberry, setting up the Eagles to play for a share of the title in the regular season finale against Tusculum.

Catawba outgained C-N on the day 308-296, but that was in large part due to Carson-Newman playing on short fields. The Eagles average drive start came at their own 39 compared to Catawba, which averaged a drive start at its own 26. 

Punter Grayson Campbell (Lebanon, Tenn.) punted just three times on the day.  However, all three punts covered at least 50 yards, and all three punts pinned Catawba inside their own 20.  Two of the punts had the Indians starting inside their 10. 

Additionally, Cam Ferguson averaged 31.3 yards per kickoff return, starting C-N on the plus side of its 35 on three occasions. 

"I don't know if I've ever seen a better special teams game, in every aspect," Ingram said. "Cam Ferguson returning kicks, the way we punted the ball, the way we kicked off and covered against a very dangerous guy that's scored touchdowns this year. It was just awesome on special teams and you can't say enough about our defense. Coach Almond has those guys and the defensive staff has those guys ready to play. Offensively we did some very good things. We scored some things. Probably left some things out there, a penalty or two here. Overall, we've put ourselves into position to play another very consequential game.

"When three drives start inside the 10 and you win the game by a score, obviously it's huge. Grayson has been awesome. We've made our kicks. Cam Ferguson returning kicks to midfield. It was just a great job by Coach Weiser getting our guys ready and a great job from our guys executing."

Carson-Newman struck first after forcing Catawba off the field with a three-and-out. A beefy 12-play. 47-yard drive later, C-N stalled out down at the two and settled for a 19-yard chip shot field goal from Bennett Smith (Cleveland, Tenn.).  C-N led 3-0 with 6:44 to go in the first.

Catawba would answer the next two times it touched the football.  The Indians toted the ball down inside the Eagles' 10 on their next two possessions.  However, sacks backed the Indians up and Catawba settled for two Bryson Sims field goals on successive possessions.  The first kick, a 20-yarder, tied the game with 1:41 to go in the first, while the second, a 32-yarder, gave the Indians a 6-3 lead with 8:12 to play in the second. 

The teams swapped fumbles on the next two drives, with a Dedrick McClain (Nashville, Tenn.) recovery giving the Eagles the football at the Catawba 43 with 4:15 to go in the opening half. 

C-N paid off the turnover going 43 yards in seven plays.  Jayden Sullins (Cullman, Ala.) plunged into the end zone from three yards out to put C-N up 10-6 headed into the halftime lockerroom.

Sullins led Carson-Newman's ground game with 68 yards on 20 carries.  He became the 22nd all-time 2,000 yard rusher in C-N history for a career with his efforts.

"I'm very excited," Sullins said. "I'm glad the coaches trusted me and the O-line did their jobs. If it wasn't for the o-linemen I couldn't get it done. I'm very blessed. Personal stats don't matter as long as you help the guy next to you, it's a brotherhood. You want to do the best for your brother and I was able to do that today.  Every week they come to play. I feel like we have the best defense in the nation. They get it done every single weekend. Without them, there are some games we wouldn't have won. I'm glad we've got our defense." 

Sullins didn't have a rush longer than nine yards on the day, but pounded his way for 3.4 yards a touch to power C-N's inside running game.

"It's hard rushing yards," Ingram said. "Those guys were keying on him. If we'll run the fullback 20-plus times and we're 5 of 7 throwing the ball, we'll win a lot of football games. Because it tells you how the game is going. We're playing good defense. We're playing good special teams and we're throwing the ball on our terms."

Carson-Newman made it a two-score game on its third possession of the second half. After turnover it over on downs on the previous possession, Catawba was able to saddle C-N with its worst starting field position of the day, pinning the Eagles at their own 14.  It didn't matter. 

Six plays and 86 yards later, Cade Meeks (Ooltewah, Tenn.) snagged his 13th career receiving TD to move into a tie for ninth on the all-time receiving TDs list. Zane Whitson (Kingsport, Tenn.) found him wide open on the left sideline at the five and Meeks calmly strolled the final five yards to complete the 33-yard pitch and catch to finish the 3:28 possession.  C-N led 17-6 after the score. 

Catawba got it back to a one-score game the next drive, but again stalled out inside the Eagles' 10.  The Indians settled for Sims' third field goal of the day, a 26-yarder, to pull back within a score, albeit one requiring a two-point conversion, 17-9. 

The teams exchanged three-and-outs on their first two possessions of the fourth quarter before a Meeks punt return set the Eagles up at the Catawba 41. Nine plays later, James Maddox (Marrieta, Ga.) thundered into the end zone from a yard out to stretch the lead to 24-9 with 6:06 to play. 

Catawba set the final margin on the next drive with a Nick Venezia 15-yard TD catch, the first of his season.  That set the stage for the Eagles to turn it over on downs followed by Cane's pick to seal the game.    

The Eagles outgained Catawba on the ground 188-104, while the Indians had a 204-104 edge through the air.

Brown was 13-of-25 through the air for the Indians. He entered the game third nationally in completion percentage, but was held to his lowest completion percentage of the season (52 percent).  Cane's interception was just the third pick he had thrown all year. 

Venezia was his top target, catching five passes for 92 yards.  C-N limited Catawba's all-time leading pass catcher Bo Pryor to just two catches, albeit for 60 yards. 

Kevin Lalin, who entered the game eighth in the nation in yards per carry with more than 8.0 a touch, was limited to 4.6 a carry. He led Catawba on the ground with 41 yards on nine carries. 

Whitson was 5-of-7 through the air for the Eagles for 108 yards and a score.  He also ran the  ball 16 times for 45 yards.  Eight different rushers accounted for C-N's 52 carries ad 188 yards on the ground. 

Jeremiah Carroll (Atlanta, Ga.) was the lone Eagle with multiple receptions, he caught two passes for 30 yards.  Ferguson also had a 37-yard catch.  Carroll and Ferguson were the only C-N players to register a gain longer than 20 yards offensively.

Jet Jones (Atlanta, Ga.) and Cruz Temple (Abbeville, S.C.) led C-N with seven tackles a piece.  C-N sacked Catawba QBs five times, with five different players registering a sack on the day. 

Braylon Baker led Catawba's defense with 14 tackles. 

"We're in control of our own destiny," Ingram said. "If we win the next two games we would be SAC champs or co-champs, but we'd have all the tiebreakers.  We'll take one at a time. …We have to focus on us and we have to play a little better than we did today, to go on the road. Our guys are fired up, they understand where we're at the situation we're in. And they will be ready to play."

Carson-Newman takes on Newberry Saturday at 1 p.m. to stay in the hunt for a SAC regular season title and an automatic playoff berth.  Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at noon with the AEC Tailgate Show on Joy 620 (WRJZ-AM, Knoxville), MIX 105.5 (WSEV-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live. 

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