COLUMBIA, S.C. — In a battle of two of the nation's best defenses, the 11th-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne Bears shut down Benedict in the third quarter and rallied with a pair of touchdowns to take a 35-25 victory over the fourth-ranked Benedict College Tigers in the second round of the NCAA Division II football playoffs on Saturday in Charlie W. Johnson Stadium.
After Benedict took a 19-14 lead at the half, thanks to a pair of long touchdown passes from Aeneas Dennis to Reginald Harden, the Bears held the Tigers to zero yards on just nine offensive plays in the third quarter, while scoring a pair of touchdowns to take a 28-19 lead.
Benedict ends its season for the second straight year at 11-1, falling in the second round of the NCAA Division II playoffs for the second year in a row after being the No. 1 seed in the region. Lenoir-Rhyne improves to 12-1 overall and will face 14th-ranked Valdosta State next week in the quarterfinals.
"This team means the world to me," said Benedict head coach Chennis Berry. "I am proud of this football team. We just didn't get it done today. But it's nothing to be disappointed about. We have a great football team and we had a wonderful, magical season."
The Tigers entered the contest allowing opponents just 207.7 yards per game, second best in the nation. But the Bears carved Benedict up for 560 yards. It was the most yards ever allowed by a Chennis Berry coached squad, and the most by a Tiger team since giving up 604 yards to Livingstone in the opening game of the 2015 season, when the Tigers went 0-10. Benedict was holding opponents to 86.4 yards per game on the ground, 12th best in the nation, but the Bears rushed for 250 yards, led by Dwayne McGee with 216 yards on 21 carries. Benedict gave up 310 yards passing, despite entering the contest with the nation's best pass defense.
"I told our football team, listen, we get 60 minutes. You've got to play the whole 60. I thought our guys showed some resiliency through it all," Berry said. "I told them how proud I was of them, and where we've come as a football team. Our mission is to go 1-0 each and every week. We didn't accomplish that mission today. That doesn't mean that we had a failure. We don't lose, we learn. I thought our young men did an amazing job. They competed until the end. We made some plays in all three phases – offense, defense and special teams. We just didn't make enough plays."
The Tigers finished with 441 yards of offense against a Lenoir-Rhyne defense that entered the game ranked fourth in the nation in total defense. Dennis completed 17-of-29 passes for a season-high 376 yards and four touchdowns. Wide receiver Reginald Harden put up huge numbers as he caught six passes for a career-high 230 yards and three touchdowns. He caught touchdown passes of 58, 87 and 36 yards.
Lenoir-Rhyne added another touchdown in the fourth quarter for a 35-19 lead, after McGee got the Bears close with a 56-yard run. Benedict answered with a scoring drive, scoring on a 36-yard pass from Dennis to Harden. Benedict attempted an on-sides kick that failed, and the Bears took over. Benedict held the Bears on a fourth-and-short and drove down the field, but Dennis threw an interception in the end zone with 22 seconds left in the game.