Greeneville, TN - Head Coach Todd Knight cemented himself among the greatest coaches in Newberry history on Saturday afternoon as Newberry beat the Tusculum Pioneers 24-19 to give Knight his 73rd win in his time at Newberry which surpasses Harvey Kirkland for most in Newberry Football history. Kirkland, who coached the then Newberry Indians from 1952-1967, won 72 games in his 15 years at the helm. 

The Pioneers got the ball to open the contest and, after a quick first down, was forced to punt by the Wolves defense. Newberry got the ball off the punt deep in their own territory but had to settle for a punt of their own after getting out the shadow of their own goalposts after back to back Mario Anderson five yard runs gave Newberry some breathing room. Tusculum tried to take advantage of the good field position and tried to convert a fourth down from midfield but was denied as Hampton Smith stuffed the run out and Newberry got the ball in Tusculum territory. However, two negative plays would derail the drive as Newberry would be forced to punt again. The Wolves defense was up to the task again as they would force another Pioneer three-and-out and the ensuing punt was blocked by Newberry and Malory Pinkney II would take it two yards into the end zone to give the Scarlet and Gray a 7-0 lead following the Lawson Reel extra point. The teams would again trade punts to close out the first 15 minutes of action.

On their first drive of the second quarter, the Wolves offense was able to find pay dirt for the first time on the back of runs from Mario Anderson and Dre Harris as well as an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty from the Pioneers. The drive was capped with a Harris 12 yard touchdown run and the Reel made it 14-0. On the next Tusculum drive, AJ Valentine forced a fumble that the Pioneers were able to get back on but the drive would stall out. From there both teams would alternate drives ending in punts and the Wolves would go into the break with a two-score lead.

Tusculum would strike first in the second half with a 10 play, 80 yard drive highlighted by a 31 yard pass from Ivan Corbin to Reggie Kellum. Cortney Jackson would cap the drive with a nine yard run and after a missed extra point, the Wolves saw their lead cut to 14-6. Newberry would waste no time in responding, however, as Harris would lead a 9 play, 71 yard drive capped by a Deshun Kitchings 19 yard run to extend the lead back to two scores as we headed to the fourth quarter. 

Newberry would add to their lead late in the 4th as Lawson Reel would hit a 19-yard field goal with just over three minutes left in the game and it seemed as if the Wolves would coast to a comfortable victory. However, Tusculum had other plans as an unsportsmanlike conduct foul on Newberry gave the Pioneers the ball at their own 40 and then they proceeded to take the ball 60 yards in 3 plays with a 45 yard pass to cap it. Tusculum would go for two and not convert and that made it 24-12. Newberry would get the ball with a chance to ice the game with a first down but the Pioneers defense stood strong and forced a three-and-out and with the Pioneers using their timeouts to stop the clock, Tusculum got the ball back to cut the lead back down to one score. The Pioneers would do just that with a 4 play, 86 yard drive that took less than a minute off the clock and suddenly Newberry found themselves back in a dogfight with the score 24-19. However, the ensuing onside kick would be recovered by the Wolves who were able to kneel out the clock to give Coach Knight his milestone victory.

This win moved Newberry to 3-1 and 2-0 in SAC play which puts them in sole possession of first place in the South Atlantic Conference standings as they continue their three-weekend road trip at Mars Hill next Saturday at 1 PM. You can listen to that game, and all Newberry Football games on WKDK.