Pikeville, KY – The Patriots hit the road for the first time this season and utilized a 24-point unanswered run to take down the Bears 27-20 Saturday night. UC came with a balanced attack garnering 177 rushing yards and 140 yards through the air. This marks the third straight season that Cumberlands has started the year 2-0.
 
Head Coach Shan Housekeeper was pleased with his team's overall performance saying, "It's a great team win, all phases had impacts throughout the game. Offensively we really ran the ball well tonight."
 
Jay Roberts nearly doubled his passing yards from a week ago, throwing for 140 yards and two touchdowns on 12-21 passing. Darius James continued to impress, scoring two touchdowns for the second game in a row. James rushed for 96 yards and a score while also catching a pair of passes, one for a TD. DK Edwards got in on the fun with a receiving score while Eli Evans led all receivers with 38 yards.
 
UC's defense came up with multiple big stops throughout the game. Reagan Cherry led the way with an interception and a team-high six tackles. Damon Byrnes-Mitchell followed close behind with five tackles himself, including two TFLs. The defense held the Bears to just 71 yards rushing and came away with one sack from Major Newman.
 
The Patriots won the toss and decided to kick. UPIKE took advantage, scoring on their opening possession of the game. UC would respond with over a six-minute drive that led to a Job Matossian 37-yard field goal to make it 7-3. That possession Roberts came up with a big QB run of 32 yards on third down to put the Pats in field goal range.
 
The second quarter started with another Pikeville touchdown to give them the 14-3 lead. The Patriots next defensive possession ended with a three-and out, giving UC good field possession with 9:02 left in the half. They went to the ground as James and Devin Jones picked up solid yardage. Roberts connected with Elijah Howard to get to Pikeville's 29 yard line and went right back to him, forcing a defensive pass interference call to get into the redzone. The drive was capped off with a 12 yard reception from James, who broke several tackles before a diving effort into the pylon brought the Pats back within striking distance.  
 
Another strong effort from the defense forced the Bears to punt with 1:29 left in the half. UC's special teams came up huge, taking advantage of a bad snap and getting the ball back on UPIKES own 21 yard line. The Roberts - James connection stayed strong as the duo found another 10-yard gain to put Cumberlands in field goal range with three seconds on the clock. Matossian would come in and make a 28-yarder to make it a one-point game, 14-13, after two quarters of play.
 
Cumberlands got the ball to start the second half and moved the ball down field quickly behind a great 38-yard catch from Eli Evans to get the Pats in the redzone once again. Jones took a handoff for a gain of five followed by a DK Edwards catch in the back of the endzone for 6. After the made PAT, UC took their first lead of the game 20-14. With all the momentum on their side, the defense came up with yet another three-and-out series, putting the ball back in UC's possession. The RB duo of James and Jones continued to fight for yardage, moving the ball downfield. A nice 16-yard catch from Curtis Leflore Jr. put the Pats close, and the drive was completed by Darius James's second TD of the game to increase their lead to 13, scoring 24 unanswered points.
 
The defense continued to shine as the first play of UPIKE's next possession ended in an interception from Reagan Cherry. This gave UC the ball in great field position, but they couldn't capitalize as the Bears would block the field goal attempt to end the third quarter. The final quarter saw both teams trade possessions before Pikeville scored to make it 27-20 with 7:40 left to play. The Pats were forced to punt with just over four minutes on the clock, but the defense held strong, getting the ball back without giving up a first-down. UC would pick up a big first-down forcing all three of UPIKE's timeouts and drew the Bears defense offsides on 4^th and 4 to solidify the victory.
 
"Our kids competed really hard tonight," said Housekeeper. "They believed and stuck to the plan and proved they can find ways to win against tough competition."
 
The Patriots will face off against the Bulldogs of Union College next week in the Battle for the Brass Lantern. Gametime is set for 7 PM in Barbourville, KY.
 
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