Game recaps and notes from around the South Atlantic Conference:

CARSON-NEWMAN – The No. 7 Carson-Newman Eagles started the 2005 season on a high note as they defeated Shaw 45-24 Saturday afternoon in Raleigh ... The Bears, the defending CIAA champions, cut the C-N lead to 14 points on two different occasions but the Eagles scored each time to push the lead back to 21 points ... The Eagles veer option offense was in high gear as C-N rushed for 476 yards and finished the game with 535 yards of total offense. The Eagles’ defense limited the Bears to only 65 rushing yards on 30 attempts ... Jeremy Arrington and J.J. Chatmon each rushed for 100 yards in the game. Arrington carried the ball 14 times for 145 yards and one score and averaged 10.4 yards per rush. Chatmon rushed for 102 yards and a score ... Eric Rice led the Eagles defense with seven tackles. Brandon Mott started the scoring with a 23-yard field goal in the first quarter ... The first C-N touchdown came on a defensive play as Deonte Bolden picked off a Shaw pass and returned it 71 yards for a touchdown. Chatom gave C-N a 17-0 lead with a scored late in the second quarter. That would be the final score of the half ... C-N opened the second half with a 28-yard scamper by Arrington ... After the Bears had cut the lead to 24-10 early in the four quarter, the Eagles reeled off 21 points in the final 15 minutes of play. Roniae Maye scored on a 59-yard run, Joey King scored from 21 yards out and Kiel Angry capped the scoring with a 32-yard touchdown run ... With the win, the Eagles improve to 21-4-1 in season-openers under head coach Ken Sparks ... Carson-Newman will have a short week as they travel to Rome, Georgia on Thursday night to face the Braves of West Georgia. The game, which kicks off at 7 p.m., will be aired live on CSS.

CATAWBA - Catawba rallied for 20 fourth quarter points to knock off Winston-Salem State 20-10 and pick up its 11th straight opening day win ... The Indians trailed 10-0 entering the fourth quarter, but put up 20 unanswered points to take the victory ... Broad Roach, who threw for 232 yards, completed 11-of-14 tosses in the final quarter to guide the offense ... Mario Crowe and Kory Fisher each had five-yard scoring runs and Rush Rollins added a pair of field goals ... Rollins put the Tribe on the board at the 13:38 mark with a 37-yard boot ... Crowe tied the game with 7:31 left after Roach had connected on six straight passes to the WSSU five ... The winning points came on the next Tribe possession with 5:16 to go ... The Rams had just 10 total yards in the fourth quarter and only 193 for the game ... Darryl Locklear record 13 tackles with three for losses, while Brian Biggs and Pierre Deshauteurs were each in on two sacks and nine total tackles ... Catawba ran for just 80 yards with Fisher gaining 64 on six carries ... Roach was 20-of-39 through the air for the game ... Corey Ready caught six passes, while Fisher and Rod Tenor each had five grabs ... The Indians will host Livingstone in their home opener on Saturday at Shuford Stadium.

LENOIR-RHYNE - The Lenoir-Rhyne Bears open the 2005 season Saturday when the travel to Franfurt, Ky., to face the Kentucky State Thorobreds. Kickoff is 7:30 p.m.

MARS HILL - Mars Hill will open the 2005 campaign by playing at NCAA Division I-AA rival Western Carolina University on Thursday, September 1 ... Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. ... The WCU Catamounts lead the series 11-0 ... Their first meeting was in 1964 ... WCU won that contest 28-0 ... The last time these teams met was in 2001 when WCU escaped with a 15-6 victory ... MHC enters the season with 19 starters and 48 lettermen returning from last season ... MHC was 6-4 overall last year while the Catamounts finished the 2004 season with a 4-7 overall record.

NEWBERRY - The Newberry Indians cancelled their originally-scheduled season opener with Webber International. In its place, the Indians played an intersquad scrimmage. Newberry will open the 2005 season at home against Virginia Intermont. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

PRESBYTERIAN - Presbyterian College forced five turnovers and rolled up 359 yards of total offense to defeat the University of West Georgia 48-13 in NCAA Division II football action Saturday afternoon at Bailey Memorial Stadium. The contest was the season opener for both schools and PC’s first season opening win since 1999 when the Blue Hose defeated the same West Georgia Braves 41-40 ... The Blue Hose (1-0) defense set the tone for the game, forcing a pair of interceptions on the Braves first two possessions, the first pick by junior safety Chad Burgess (Kingstree, S.C.) which set up a five-yard TD run by redshirt junior Corey Fidler (Savannah, Ga.) at the 12:40 mark. PC’s junior corner Derrell Doe (Allendale, S.C.) picked off the second Brave pass on their next possession and returned it 31 yards to the West Georgia 13 yardline. PC’s senior quarterback Zach Ellis (Tifton, Ga.) found sophomore wideout Justin Durant (Florence, S.C.) four plays later for a three-yard TD strike to give the Blue Hose a 13-0 lead with 8:39 left in the first quarter ... Later in the first quarter, the Blue Hose put together a 12-play, 81-yard drive that ended with Ellis finding Durant for a 35-yard touchdown to push the lead to 20-0. On West Georgia’s second possession of the second quarter, PC’s Burgess recovered a fumble by the Braves’ junior tailback Abe Felix (Memphis, Tenn.) and returned it to the West Georgia seven yardline. Three plays later, Ellis found Durant for third TD reception of the half and increased the Blue Hose lead to 27-0 ... The Blue Hose opened the second half with a nine-play,76-yard drive which culminated with Fidler scoring from seven yards out to push the lead to 34-0. West Georgia failed to get a first down on the next possession and gave the Blue Hose the ball at the PC 35-yardline. The Blue Hose marched 65 yards on eight plays as Ellis found freshman wideout Terrance Butler (Surfside Beach, S.C.) for a 12-yard TD strike, Ellis’ fourth of the game and the lead bulged to 41-0 ... West Georgia (0-1) got on the board in the fourth quarter as backup quarterback, junior Keats Baldwin (Flowood, MS) found junior tight end Brandon Coon (Marietta, Ga.) for a 29-yard TD strike which capped an 11-play, 84 yard drive. The Braves trimmed the lead to 41-13 on their next possession as Baldwin found junior wideout Johnny Williams (LaGrange, Ga.) for a 41-yard TD strike with 7:30 left in the game ... PC put the final touches on the game as Burgess intercepted Baldwin and returned it 78 yards for a touchdown and the final score of 48-13. On the day, the Blue Hose scored 27 points off Brave turnovers while not committing a turnover themselves ... Burgess and redshirt freshman linebacker Antwan Thomas (Hawkinsville, Ga) led the Blue Hose defense with nine total stops while Burgess added a pair of interceptions and one forced fumble. West Georgia was led on defense by junior linebacker John Perkins (Rome, Ga.) who tallied a game-high 10 total stops ... Offensively, PC was led by Ellis who completed 24-of-33 passes for 251 yards and four touchdowns while Durant caught seven passes for a career-high 88 yards and three TD’s. On the ground, Fidler rushed for 29 yards and two TD’s on 14 carries ... West Georgia was led on offense by Baldwin who completed 20-of-38 passes for two TD’s and one interception while senior tailback Javari Taylor (Decatur, Ga.) rushed for 44 yards on 10 carries ... The Blue Hose return to action next Saturday, September 3 at 3:00 pm when they host the Broncos of Fayetteville State University.

TUSCULUM - The Tusculum College football team opened the 2005 season with a 21-0 victory over visiting Concord University… It was the Pioneers first shutout since Sep. 21, 2002 when TC blanked Morehead State 42-0… That season, TC also shut out North Greenville 44-0, marking the last time TC recorded a shutout in a season opener… Tusculum head coach Frankie DeBusk is now an impressive 7-1 in season openers… The Pioneer defense dominated the contest as TC didn’t allow the Mountain Lions to cross midfield the entire contest… TC forced six turnovers (3 fumbles and 3 interceptions)… Concord’s deepest penetration was to its own 44 yard line, coming early in the fourth quarter… In his first collegiate start, junior quarterback Cody Baugh passed for 181 yards and a touchdown… Tusculum amassed 304 yards offensively, while holding Concord to 124 yards, including 22 rushing yards… Darren Jackson led TC defensively as he posted seven tackles, including two for loss and an interception, which set up Tusculum’s second touchdown of the night… The rookie rushing duo of Phillip McGee and Randy Williams each found the end zone… McGee led all rushers with 83 yards, including a touchdown… Williams tallied 32 yards and a score… Senior punter Austin Hunter shined in his first start as he averaged 41.1 yards on his eight punts, including a 59-yarder and a pair inside the 20-yard line… Justin Kelly led Tusculum’s receiving corps with a pair of catches for 78 yards, including a 57-yard reception… TC has never played a football game in the state of Alabama in the program’s history… Tusculum’s next two games will be in Alabama, beginning with a trip to North Alabama… It will be the second meeting between Tusculum and UNA… The Lions posted a 28-7 win over Tusculum last season… On Sep. 17, TC returns to the Heart of Dixie as they meet Miles College in the first-ever meeting between the two schools.

WINGATE - The Wingate University football team compiled 533 yards total offense with an equal distribution of 42 running plays and 42 passing plays as the Bulldogs defeated West Virginia Wesleyan College 51-10 at Irwin Belk Stadium and John R. Martin Field on the Wingate campus. Wingate has won six games in a row at home, dating to last season ... The contest was the season opener for both teams. Wingate visits Webber International (Fla.) University Saturday for a 1 p.m. contest. West Virginia Wesleyan entertains Mansfield (Pa.) University Saturday. Kick-off is slated for 1 p.m. ... The Bulldogs eclipsed the half-century mark in points for the first time in eight years. The last time Wingate notched 50+ points was October 25, 1997, when the home-standing Bulldogs topped SAC foe Tusculum College 51-13 at Walter Bickett Stadium in Monroe, N.C. ... Wingate netted 270 yards passing and 263 yards rushing. The Bulldogs used three quarterbacks and each signal-caller threw a touchdown pass. Senior starter Brandon Boone (Boiling Springs, N.C.) completed nine-of-18 passes for 131 yards and two touchdowns ... Redshirt junior quarterback Anthony Metzelaars (Charlotte, N.C.) connected on 10-of-18 passes for 99 yards and one score. Redshirt freshman signal-caller JD Moore (Mt. Holly, N.C.) saw his first action as a Bulldog, completing three-of-six passes for 40 yards and one TD ... Twelve Bulldogs ran the ball. Senior running back Rip Smith (Union, S.C.) was tops on the Wingate rushing charts with 12 carries for 90 yards. Boone, Metzelaars and Moore combined to rush for 78 yards ... Wingate intercepted four WVWC passes and recovered a Bobcat fumble. Bulldog senior linebacker Travis Knight (Rockingham, N.C.) pounced on a Bobcat fumble in the first quarter, setting up the hosts’ first score ... Boone led a 78-yard, eight-play drive to put the Bulldogs on the board when he connected with redshirt sophomore wide receiver Bobo Thompson (Rock Hill, S.C.) for a five-yard touchdown pass. Redshirt sophomore place kicker Jonathan Beford (Charlotte, N.C.) added the first of his six extra points to give Wingate a 7-0 lead with 9:44 remaining in the first frame ... Thompson was one of four different Wingate receivers to catch touchdown passes. Junior wideout Dan Brooks (Monroe, N.C.) caught seven passes for 104 yards and one score. Brooks had six touchdown catches in 2004 ... Wingate took a 31-0 lead with 1:22 left in the second quarter when senior defensive back Donald Brown (Morganton, N.C.) concluded Wingate’s first half scoring with a 63-yard punt return for a touchdown. Brown returned four punts for 89 yards. In addition, he had four tackles and one pass interception ... West Virginia Wesleyan got on the board with 35 seconds left in the first half when senior quarterback Marc Kimes hit sophomore wide receiver Bryan Overton with a 28-yard TD pass. Bobcat sophomore place kicker Mike Hibbert added the PAT to make the score 31-7 Wingate at intermission ... Kimes completed 15-of-39 passes for 219 yards and one score. He threw four interceptions. Kimes passed for 2928 yards in 2004. Overton and sophomore wide receiver Alex Puente caught four balls each for the Bobcats ... With the win, Wingate improves to 16-4 overall in senior college season openers. The Bulldogs have won 12 of their last 13 home openers. In addition, Wingate improves its record against West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) opponents to 14-2 overall. The Bulldogs have faced five different WVIAC foes since revitalizing football in 1986.