The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Owls’ Bohannon earns 50th win
Backup QB shines as offense starts slow in first conference game of the season.
KENNESAW — Jonathan Murphy didn’t start Saturday’s game against Charleston Southern under center. The Kennesaw State backup quarterback still managed to lead his team to a 24-19 victory at Fifth Third Bank Stadium. He had career-high 108 passing yards and another 113 yards on the ground.
Murphy, a left-handed sophomore from Los Angeles, played in only four games last season. On Saturday, he replaced starting quarterback Tommy Bryant in the second quarter. Coach Brian Bohannon said Bryant was sick.
With the Owls’ win, Bohannon reached 50 wins in the fewest games coached in Big South Conference history. It was his 65th time on the Kennesaw State sideline. Coastal Carolina’s David Bennett, who ranks second, needed 78 games. Few Division I coaches in Georgia have fared better. Paul Johnson, formerly of Georgia Southern, Navy and Georgia Tech, reached 50 wins in just 58 games with the Eagles. Georgia coach Kirby Smart reached 50 wins in 64 games.
For the second game in a row, Kennesaw State’s offense hemmed and hawed early on, averaging 2.9 yards per play in the first quarter with Bryant. The Owls didn’t have a rush of more than 9 yards until the third quarter.
Slow and steady drives have worked for Kennesaw State in the past. But even when Bryant led his team to the Charleston Southern 29-yard line on its second drive, Owls kicker Nathan Robertson missed a 46-yard fieldgoal attempt short and wide right.
Murphy’s big day — he completed 4 of 5 passes for 108 yards, an average of 27 yards — made up for other deficiencies.
“We’re still growing a little bit in some areas,” Bohannon said. “They did a nice job of putting those guys in there, shooting the gap and creating a lot of penetration. We got to be a little more consistent at what we’re doing, in maintaining blocks and getting more surge at the line of scrimmage. Everything is getting stalemated.”
The Buccaneers (0-1, 0-1 Big South) struck first with an 18-yard passing touchdown to Cayden Jordan on their first drive of the second quarter. They didn’t score again until the middle of the fourth quarter, when quarterback Jack Chambers punched it in on an 18-yard rush. The junior added another rushing touchdown with 1:47 left in the game, but the Owls (2-0, 1-0) thwarted the subsequent 2-point and onside-kick attempts. Chambers finished with 48 rushing yards and was 14-of-23 passing for 160 yards.
“We got to play harder late in the game,” said Owls linebacker Bryson Armstrong, who had five solo tackles, 11/2 sacks and 21/2 tackles for loss. “I don’t know if guys were tired or what. It was a little unacceptable at the end. But I would say overall, as a defense, we were a little better this week.
I thought their quarterback did well scrambling and getting his receivers open.”
Kennesaw State led 10-7 at halftime after a strange sequence of events gave the Owls a lead they wouldn’t lose. First, Owls free safety Jeremiah Compton blocked a punt to set up a short drive with 45 seconds left. Murphy then completed a screen pass to Caleb O’Neal, who shook off his defender and ran along the field’s edge to the 5-yard line.
Things got weird on the next play. Running back Isaac Foster couldn’t find a referee to give the ball to after a short rush. Kennesaw State had no timeouts, so the clock ticked and Foster urgently spotted the ball himself. Foster — more talented as a football player than a referee — gave himself a few more yards than he deserved. The referees finally stopped the clock and moved the ball back before the Owls spiked it. Bohannon said Foster should have found an official sooner.
Robertson, however, finished the half on a happy note, knocking in a 25-yard field goal as the clock hit zero.
The Owls face Dixie State at home March 20 in their second and final nonconference game of the spring season. All games are streamed on ESPN-Plus.