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PENSACOLA, Fla. – The UWF football team posted its best total offense game of the year with 378 yards but had four drives stall inside the red zone before settling for field goal attempts, eventually falling to Valdosta State, 30-19, in its Gulf South Conference opener at Blue Wahoos Stadium Saturday.
West Florida (2-1, 0-1) outgained Valdosta 378-300 but fell behind 21-0 early in the second quarter. Sophomore
Mike Beaudry finished the night with a career-high 305 yards on 22-for-42 with one touchdown and one interception.
Junior
Antoine Griffin led all receivers with six receptions for 109 yards, while sophomore
Gage Krull hauled in the only touchdown for the Argos late in the fourth quarter.
Sophomore kicker
Austin Williams had a career night, setting three school records with four field goals, a long of 41 yards and 13 points by a kicker. He connected on field goals from 37, 23 and 41 yards in the final 6:49 of the second quarter to cut the deficit to 21-9 at the half. His 27-yarder 5:29 into the third pulled the Argonauts to within 21-12, but they wouldn't get any closer.
The Blazers ended the 12-0 UWF run midway through the third when Adam Robles connected with Dallas Baldner on a 20-yard completion. Two minutes later VSU blocked a UWF punt through the end zone for a safety to extend the lead to 30-12.
Valdosta State (1-2, 1-1) was held to a season-low 300 yards of total offense with 189 through the air and 111 on the ground. The Blazer defense made a difference, sacking Beaudry six times with three hurries, along with another two tackles for loss. The big play came early in the second quarter when John Marvin intercepted a pass and ran it back 15 yards for a touchdown, putting the visitors ahead 21-0.
Robles was 21-for-38 for 189 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for 21 yards and scored the game's first points on a 6-yard run with 2:07 left in the opening period.
UWF will return to action next week when it travels to face Florida Tech (3-1, 2-0) at Panther Stadium in Melbourne, Fla. Kickoff for the NCAA Division II Game of the Week on ESPN3 is set for 7:00 p.m. Eastern time. The game can also be heard locally in Northwest Florida on Choice 106.9 FM/WRNE 980 AM.
