JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — Quay Holmes scored two touchdowns and ran for 125 yards and East Tennessee overcame a slow start to beat Samford 24-17 on Saturday in the spring opener for both teams.
Tyler Riddell threw a 59-yard touchdown pass to Juliun Lane-Price who beat his defender on an outside route. The diving defender was left helpless and Lane-Price outran a pursuing defender for the go-ahead score with 5:28 remaining to play.
On Samford’s final drive, Donovan Manuel intercepted Chris Oladokun’s desperation pass attempt that was deflected as he flushed to the right by pressure from ETSU.
Samford established immediate control using a 17-play, 88-yard scoring drive when Oladokun threw a 5-yard scoring pass to Dakota Chapman to make it 7-0. The Buccaneers coughed up the ball nine plays into their opening drive which led to a 10-play, 76-yard scoring drive for the Bulldogs. Jay Stanton ran it in from a yard out for a 14-0 advantage.
Following a punt, ETSU fumbled it away again, but the Bucs defense settled in and picked off Oladokun then forced three straight punts by the Bulldogs before halftime.
Holmes scored on a pair of runs from a yard out, the first with five seconds to go before halftime and the second with 9:18 left in the third to tie it at 14.
Oladokun threw for 222 yards for Samford.
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