Grayson, KY – An explosive second half pushed UC football to its best start since 2013 with a 40-10 routing of the Knights of Kentucky Christian University. The Patriots tallied nearly 300 yards of offense in the second half on their way to victory. With the victory, UC improves to 5-0 overall entering MSC Appalachian Division play next weekend.
 
The Knights would begin the game with the ball and would score their only points of the half in the opening drive. Aided by two crucial UC penalties that resulted in first downs, the Knights would settle for a 24 yard field goal by Eric Parra Curiel to give KCU an early 3-0 lead. Cumberlands would immediately answer as Zalon Reynolds would return the ensuing kickoff 63 yards to the KCU 25-yard line. There, Josiah Robbins would hook up with Joronnie Hinton for a 25 yard TD pass. The PAT by Devon McMillin was good as UC would push ahead 7-3.
 
The Knights would push into Patriot territory on their next drive, but the drive would be cut short as Jug Smith's pass to Germaine Williams was intercepted Jamaria Patterson at the UC 42 yard line. Cumberlands would go three and out on their next drive, but their defense would continue to dominate. The Knights would be forced to punt it back to the Patriots, but this time Demarius Smith would come off the edge and block the punt through the back of the end zone for a safety, increasing UC's lead to 9-3 entering the second quarter.
 
After trading possessions early in the second quarter, Cumberlands would find pay dirt once again. The Pats would put together a ten-play drive capped off by a three-yard TD pass from Robbins to Hinton, their second hookup of the contest. The extra point by McMillin was good as the Patriots pushed their lead out to 16-3 entering halftime.
 
The second half seemed to be a new story written by the same authors. The Patriots would have possession to start the third but would come up empty on their opening drive. UC's defense would then force a three and out by the Knights on their first drive of the second half. With their next possession starting on their own 21-yard line, Cumberlands would turn to ground game that seemed somewhat stagnant in the first half. Robbins would utilize the read option perfectly as he would scamper 39 yards down field for a Patriots touchdown. McMillin's PAT was good as UC's lead grew to 23-3. KCU would show signs of life in the third. De'Anta Sipp would find his way into the end zone from a yard out, scoring the Knights' only touchdown of the contest. The extra point by Parra Curiel was good as Kentucky Christian would cut UC's lead down to 23-10 entering the final quarter.
 
The fourth quarter was where Cumberlands' offense would begin to flourish. The Patriots would continue a drive from the third that would end in a 32-yard field goal off the foot of McMillin, extending the lead to 26-10. After a three and out by the Knights, KCU's Parra Curiel would punt it away as his punt would roll out of bounds at the UC 48-yard line. Milton Shelton would quickly make the Knights pay as he scurried 52 yards on the opening play of the drive for a Pats' touchdown. McMillin's PAT was good as the lead grew to 33-10. After another stalled KCU drive, the Patriots would take over at midfield. After a heavy dose of running by Shelton, it was Robbins punching it into the end zone with his legs for a second time, this one from one yard out, for UC's final score. The point after by McMillin was good as UC would come away with the 30-point win.
 
Robbins did a solid job managing the game, going 11-23 for 117 yards through the air with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He added 75 yards on the ground on 10 carries with two more scores. Shelton used a strong second half performance to tally 150 yards on 16 carries with a touchdown. Hinton had another big game as he caught five passes for 87 yards and two scores. He also carried the ball three times for 24 yards. Austin Ysidro showed his versatility in the contest he rushed for 37 yards on four carries, caught one pass for 14 yards, and completed a pass for 43 yards. UC totaled 447 yards in the game with 23 first downs.
 
Defensively, the Patriots hounded the Knights throughout the game led by Tyler Pendleton with nine total tackles (two solo) including 1.5 tackles for loss. Cameron Baxley added eight total tackles (four solo), two tackles for loss, and a forced fumble while Adam Johnson chipped in eight total tackles (two solo) and 2.5 tackles for loss. Four members of the UC secondary came away with interceptions on the night including Patterson, Zeke Moore, Jay Woods, and Jacobie Elkins. As a unit, the Patriots tallied 11 tackles for loss, one sack, two forced fumbles, four interceptions, seven pass breakups, and a blocked punt. They also held KCU to just 169 yards of offense including -39 yards on the ground.
 
This now sets up a big NAIA top 25 matchup to open up MSC Appalachian Division play next Saturday, September 29^th. The Patriots will host NAIA #8 Reinhardt University with kickoff slated for 7:00 pm. Last season, the Eagles upended the Patriots 53-7 in Waleska on their way to a 2017 NAIA National Championship runner up finish. Live video of Saturdays game will be available on the UC Sports Network.
 
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