Missed opportunities haunt The Citadel in loss to nationally ranked Mercer
· Yahoo Sports
Oct. 31—MACON, Ga. — For the third time this season, The Citadel held a double-digit first half lead against a Southern Conference opponent. And for the third time, the Bulldogs found a way to squander that advantage despite another gritty effort.
Mercer quarterback JP Pickles threw for 234 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score to lead the 16th-ranked Bears past The Citadel, 28-19, before a crowd of 5,338 at Five Star Stadium on Halloween.
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It was the fourth straight loss for the Bulldogs, who fell to 2-7 overall and 0-5 in the SoCon. Mercer is still in the hunt for an FCS playoffs spot and improved to 7-2 and 4-1.
The Citadel jumped out to a 10-0 lead after Sebastien Boyle's 40-yard TD run on the Bulldogs first offensive possession and Evan Keily's 37-yard field goal on the first play of the second quarter.
From there it was all Bears; they scored 21 unanswered points in the third quarter behind the passing of Pickles to take a 21-10 advantage into the final quarter.
The Citadel closed to within 28-19 on Nick Billoups 18-yard TD run with 2:24 left in regulation, but an extra-point kicked that that would have made it a one-possession game was blocked.
"We can't allow good teams to hang around because they are eventually going to get it together," said The Citadel coach Maurice Drayton.
Key Stats
—The third quarter has been a killer for the Bulldogs of late.
In the last four games against ETSU, Texas A&M, Tennessee Tech and Mercer, the Bulldogs have gained just a total of 158 yards and zero touchdowns.
Their four opponents have 586 yards and have scored five TDs.
—Going into halftime, The Citadel outgained Mercer, 131-45. The Bears had just 20 rushing yards on 15 attempts and 25 passing yards.
Notes
—The Citadel's special teams were a mixed bag of results against Mercer.
The Bulldogs came up with a blocked punt but also had a muffed punt that led to a turnover and had an extra point blocked in the fourth quarter that would have made it a one possession game.
The Bulldogs also missed two makeable field goals in the first half.
—The Citadel quarterback Quentin Hayes, a preseason first-team All-SoCon selection, did not play against the Bears.
UCLA transfer Nick Billoups played most of the game with Xavier Hill playing one series in the opening half.
Billoups completed 12 of 17 passes for 143 yards and rushed for 61 yards and another score.
—The Bulldogs also played without starting running back Gavin Garcia, who is listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury.
Garcia, the Bulldogs top rusher, is fourth in the SoCon with 683 rushing yards and six TDs.
Turning Point
The Bulldogs came out of the locker room at halftime with a 10-0 lead but quickly fell behind after Mercer scored on its first two possessions of the third quarter, including an 80-yard bomb to Brayden Smith that the Bears their first lead of the game, 14-10, midway through the third quarter.
"There's a reason why they are nationally ranked," Drayton said. "They came out ready to play in the third quarter and we didn't match their energy."
Quoteable
"We can't have those self-inflicted wounds. You can't do that against a good opponent. This was another wash and repeat game. We didn't score when we had our opportunities. We missed a couple of field goals and we're not good enough now to overcome those mistakes. It's frustrating for me, the coaching staff and these young men. It starts with me and we're going to continue to look at it and fix those problems we can." The Citadel coach Maurice Drayton.
Next Game
The Citadel will plays its final home game of the 2026 season when in-state rival Furman comes to the Lowcountry on Nov. 7.
Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. at Johnson Hagood Stadium.
The Bulldogs are 0-4 at home this season. The Paladins, who have won five straight, lead the all-time series 65-37-3.
Reach Andrew Miller at 843-937-5599. Follow him on Twitter @APMILLER_PandC