Gardner-Webb will host Campbell on Saturday night, October 9, at 6:00 pm in the inaugural N.C. East/West BBQ Bowl. The rivalry game, complete with a trophy, was announced in September. The two schools will play for the trophy, bragging rights and a full stomach each season. The winning school will keep the trophy for the following year and the losing school will provide a BBQ meal to the winning squad. Red Bridges BBQ of Shelby, NC, is the restaurant of choice for Gardner-Webb and White Swan BBQ of Smithfield, NC, is the restaurant of choice for Campbell. North Carolina culinary expert Bob Garner will be on hand Saturday to present the trophy to the winning team. Garner has written three books on North Carolina BBQ and has appeared on the Food Network, ABC's "Good Morning America" and the Travel Channel's "Road Trip". He also produces specials for PBS North Carolina.
WATCH & LISTEN
Saturday's game will stream live on ESPN+, with Phil Constantino and former University of Maryland and Carolina Panther standout Al Wallace on the call. The radio call will originate from Spangler Stadium as well and will air live on WGNC 1450 AM / 101.1 FM (TuneIn Radio app) with Dave Friedman and former Penn State standout Reginald Walker, Jr., calling the action.
SERIES NOTES
Gardner-Webb and Campbell have met only twice as senior colleges, with both coming as Big South members in 2018 and 2019. Each squad won on the other's home turf, with Gardner-Webb taking a 35-7 win over the Fighting Camels on October 27, 2018. Campbell returned the favor with a heartbreaking 49-47 triple overtime defeat of the Runnin' Bulldogs on October 26, 2019. Gardner-Webb held a two-touchdown lead in that game with less than two minutes to play in regulation. The bulk of the two teams' history came during the junior colleg era, with the first meeting coming in Buies Creek, N.C., on September 16, 1929. Campbell leads the overall series 5-4-3. Gardner-Webb has played home games in the series in Shelby, N.C. (0-0-2), Gaffney, S.C. (0-0-1) and Boiling Springs, N.C. (1-2-0). The lone victory in Boiling Springs for Gardner-Webb in the series came on November 12, 1949 – a 35-0 decision – under coach Wayne Bradburn
* Gardner-Webb head coach Tre Lamb (32, September 16, 1989) is the second youngest head coach in the FCS ranks
currently, with only new Austin Peay skipper Scotty Walden (31, November 15, 1989) slightly younger.
* Gardner-Webb's full-time coaching staff is the youngest in the Division I ranks, with an average of 28.9 years
old per man.
* Gardner-Webb's 56-0 shutout of Division II Lincoln (Pa.) on September 18 was its first since blanking Division II
Benedict (45-0) on October 1, 2016.
* Gardner-Webb is 43-12 when limiting opponents to less than 100 yards rushing. The 'Dogs have accomplished the
feat three times in just five home games under current defensive coordinator Josh Reardon.
* Gardner-Webb has 15 graduate students on its 2021 active roster.
* Gardner-Webb topped the 400-yard mark offensively against an FBS program for the first time ever in its
30-25 loss at Georgia Southern. The Runnin' Bulldogs struck for 415 yards on the night.
* Three current players on Gardner-Webb's roster were State Players of the Year as seniors. Quarterback
Bailey Fisher (Rabun County HS, Ga.) earned Class 2A Offensive State Player of the Year honors in 2017. Defensive
back Jamari Brown (Eastside HS, Ga.) was named Class 4A Defensive State Player of the Year in 2018. Running
back Donovan Jones (Champagnat Catholic, Fla.) was the Class 2A Offensive State Player of the Year in 2020.
* Defensive end Kyndall Clark (6-2, 234, Gr.) had two sacks and a forced fumble in the win over Western Carolina.
Both came in the decisive second half rally for the Runnin' Bulldogs.
THE HEAD COACHES
Gardner-Webb head coach Tre Lamb is the second-youngest skipper in Division I football at age 32, celebrating his birthday on September 16. Lamb is 4-5 in his brief tenure, with two of those losses coming to 85-scholarship FBS programs. Former Carolina Panther safety Mike Minter is in his ninth season in charge of the Campbell program and has forged a 38-48 record during that time.
AGAINST THE OLD NORTH STATE
Gardner-Webb is 5-1 in its last five meetings against Division I FCS programs from its home state. The lone loss came in triple overtime at home to Campbell in 2019. GWU rolled past #24 Elon by a 42-20 score this past spring at home. That win marked Gardner-Webb's second win in a row over the Phoenix. Saturday marks the second of three FCS meetings for GWU this season against in-state foes, following a 52-34 win over Western Carolina on September 25. GWU will also visit North Carolina on November 20 to close out the regular season
5K
Quarterback Bailey Fisher (5-11, 207, Jr.) crossed the 5,000-yard passing mark in Gardner-Webb's September 11 loss at FBS Charlotte and has now passed for 5,564 yards during his 30 games as a Division I starter at Tennessee Tech and now GWU. The Clayton, Ga., native passed for nearly 10,000 yards as a high school signal caller at Rabun County (Ga.) High and went on to earn 2018 OVC Freshman of the Year honors as well as 2019 second-team All-OVC honors. Fisher became the first Gardner-Webb quarterback to top 300 yards in his Gardner-Webb debut on September 4 at Georgia Southern, dicing up the Eagles' secondary for 315 yards and three toucdhowns in a 30-25 loss. Fisher played sparingly in Gardner-Webb's blowout of Division II Lincoln (Pa.), passing for 104 yards and two touchdowns and running for two more scores. He has accounted for 10 touchdowns through five games with the Runnin' Bulldogs
PARLEZ-VOUS-FRANCAIS
Gardner-Webb's coaching staff knew it had a jewel when Ty French (6-3, 230, So.) enrolled in the fall of 2020. The former Colquitt County (Ga.) High star was a three-star recruit with a high motor, great character and sterling work ethic. The undersized label was erased when he quickly adjusted to the college weight room and packed on nearly 20 pounds. His performance this past spring raised eyebrows – as he ranked in the national top-10 in sacks (4.0) and tackles for loss (8.0), while adding 10 quarterback hurries in just four games. His dominance earned first-team All-Big South honors, Freshman All-America honors from Hero Sports and the 2020/21 Big South Conference Defensive Freshman of the Year award. French has continued to improve, and came out of the game with nine tackles in the season opener at Georgia Southern. He has 26 total tackles, 5.0 tackles for loss and six pressures so far through five games.
HOME EDGE
Gardner-Webb has gone 4-1 over the past two seasons under head coach Tre Lamb, dating back to the spring campaign. The Runnin' Bulldogs have averaged 40.0 points per game during that stretch and have topped 400 yards of total offense four times – and 500 yards twice. GWU is averaging 54.0 ppg in two home wins so far this season.
A STREAK THAT MUST END
Gardner-Webb has dropped eight Big South games in a row, dating back to the end of the 2019 season. That streak is the longest the Runnin' Bulldogs have endured since joining the league in 2002. The previous mark for futility was six games, set during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.
LONG DISTANCE DUDES
Gardner-Webb has four different ball carriers who have at least one carry of 40 yards or more this season. Narii Gaither (40 yards), Donovan Jones (79 yards, TD), Jalin Graham (73 yards, TD) and Dexter Brown (47, TD). Jones been efficient, totaling 91 of his 182 rushing yards this season on three touchdown runs.
QUICKNESS
Gardner-Webb has 12 scoring drives of 70 yards or more this season. Nine of those drives have been of the quick strike variety and resulted in touchdowns, lasting no longer than 2:30 to find the end zone.
FULL HOUSE FOR BIG SOUTH
The Big South is celebrating its 20th season of sponsoring football in 2021, and the league mem- bership is at an all-time high of nine members. New Big South full member North Carolina A&T began its affiliation July 1, while associate member Robert Morris is playing its first full Big South schedule this season after competing during the league's abbreviated 2021 Spring campaign.
TEAM AND FAMILY
Defensive tackle Kendall Bailey (6-4, 275, Gr.) will honor classmate and close friend Carter Francis on Saturday by wearing Francis' jersey number 66 instead of his usual 95 top. Francis, Gardner-Webb's starting center, was injured on the first play at Monmouth and will not play this weekend against Campbell. Both men played their high school football in tradition-rich Cobb (Ga.) County, with Bailey starring at Kell (Ga.) High and Francis starring at Allatoona (Ga.) High. Both also finished their undergraduate degrees at Gardner-Webb this past May and are pursuing master's degrees in Boiling Springs.
ON THE AIR AGAIN
Gardner-Webb football will have a broadcast presence on a commercial radio station again this fall. All regular season games, along with any postseason games, will air live on WGNC (1450 AM / 101.1 FM) in Gastonia, N.C. Veteran play-by-play man Dave Friedman and color analyst Reginald Walker, Jr. will serve as talent. Walker is a former collegiate player at Penn State and veteran of the television industry. The station is available online via the TuneIn app.
THE STREAM TEAM
Each of Gardner-Webb's home games will stream live on ESPN+ ($4.99 per month subscription), with Penn State graduate Phil Constantino, Gardner-Webb's Director of Broadcasting, serving as play-by-play voice. He will be joined this season by former Carolina Panther and University of Maryland star Al Wallace, along with several other voices in the booth.
THE TRE LAMB SHOW
Gardner-Webb has an off-campus football coaches show this fall, beginning on Wednesday, September 1 in Shelby, N.C. The Tre Lamb Coaches Show will originate live from the Cleveland Country Club at 7:30 pm and will air live on WGNC 1450 AM / 101.1 FM and the TuneIn Radio app. Dave Friedman will serve as host and will be joined on the air by head coach Tre Lamb each Wednesday during the season. Fans are invited to attend the live show.
FUTURE SCHEDULE NOTES
Gardner-Webb has its slate of FBS opponents almost complete for the next few seasons, with dates at Coastal Carolina (2022), Liberty (2022), Appalachian State (2023), East Carolina (2023), Charlotte (2024) and Georgia Tech (2025) and Liberty (2026) on tap.
SECOND HALF STALWARTS
Through five games this season, despite playing two against 85-scholarship FBS programs, Gardner-Webb's defense has allowed just 11.0 points per game in the second half combined – and is allowing just 4.0 ppg in the fourth quarter. Both are marked improvements over 2019, the team's last full season.
LOCAL FLAVOR
Gardner-Webb has 27 student-athletes on its current roster who played high school football within an hour of campus. Boiling Springs, N.C., is located in football-rich Cleveland County, home to state championship programs at Burns, Crest, Shelby and Kings Mountain. The campus is also situated just 15 minutes north of Palmetto State powerhouse Gaffney High and is within an hour drive of several perennial state contenders in Charlotte, N.C., and Spartanburg, S.C.
RETURN IT
Gardner-Webb's return game has produced well through five games, with the kick return unit averaging 25.1 yards per chance and the punt return unit averaging 14.8 yards per return. It isn't a solo effort, as the 'Dogs have four men who have at least one 30-yard kickoff return or longer. GWU also has two different punt return men with at least one return of 25 yards or more.
THE FLIP SIDE
Gardner-Webb's coverage units on kickoffs and punts have also been solid. The punt unit has not allowed a single return yard in four of its five games this season, and is giving up an average of just 8.5 yards per return overall (four chances). Opposing teams are averaging just 16.8 yards per kickoff return this season, aided by eight touchbacks from freshman kickoff specialist Dominik Sojat (6-2, 220).
HITTING 400 IN SEPTEMBER
Gardner-Webb's offense topped 400 yards of total offense three times in the month of September for the first time since 2005. GWU also accomplished the feat three times in September in 2005, topping 500 yards in games against Union (Ky.), Belhaven (Miss.) and UT-Martin. The 'Dogs also did so in 2003 vs. Webber International (Fla.) and Chattanooga. GWU did so twice – against Jacksonville and Tennessee Tech – in 2006.
TWO-WAY STAR
In addition to his excellence under center, quarterback Bailey Fisher has shown off a strong leg as an occasional punter. Fisher leads the Big South Conference with an average of 46.8 yards per attempt (four attempts), including a booming 57-yarder vs. Western Carolina on September 25. Two of his four kicks have been downed inside the 20-yard line and two have gone longer than 50 yards.
UP NEXT
Open Date on October 16. Gardner-Webb will return to the turf on Saturday, October 23 against Robert Morris. Kickoff is set for 1:30 pm as part of Homecoming Weekend festivities. The game will stream on ESPN+, but will also air on the Nexstar network – with local affiliates to be announced closer to game week. The game will also air live on WGNC radio (1450 AM / 101.1 FM / TuneIn Radio app).
https://gwusports.com/news/2021/10/6/football-game-notes-dogs-hosts-camels-saturday-night-in-first-n-c-east-west-bbq-bowl.aspx
2021-10-07 02:42:23Z
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