Lindenwood’s Jeff Caldwell catches a deep bomb that would go for a touchdown in Saturday’s NCAA Football loss to Gardner-Webb. (Photo courtesy: GWU Athletics)
| NCAA Football | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lindenwood (3-5, 2-2) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 35 |
| Gardner-Webb (2-5, 1-2) | 7 | 21 | 14 | 0 | 42 |
DeMarcus Dixon
Staff Writer
BOILING SPRINGS, NC — Junior wide receiver Jeff Caldwell caught six passes for 174 yards, including a 49-yard touchdown, to pace the Lindenwood offense, but it wasn’t enough, as the Lions couldn’t contain Gardner-Webb’s offense in what proved to be a 42-35 loss.
The high-scoring affair, which saw the teams combined for 948 yards of total offense and featured 11 touchdowns, had several players post huge offensive days.
On the Lindenwood side, not only did Caldwell put up a season-best 174 receiving yards, but quarterback Nate Glantz finished with 244 passing yards and three touchdown passes, and running backs Steve Hall, Robert Giaimo, and Cortezz Jones combined for 168 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Caldwell, who has 34 receptions on the season, now leads the Big South-OVC Football Association with 779 receiving yards, nine receiving touchdowns, and a 22.9 yards per reception average.
Gardner-Webb quarterback Tyler Riddell threw four touchdown passes, while running backs Quasean Holmes and Edward Saydee both had big days. Holmes rushed for 156 yards and a touchdown, and Saydee added 119 yards and a score of his own.
Gardner-Webb scored its first touchdown on the opening drive of the game, but Lindenwood responded on its initial drive, when Glantz hit Reece Thomas for a 21-yard touchdown that made the score 7-7.
The Bulldogs took the lead again early in the second quarter, but the Lions answered again, with a 2-yard touchdown run by Jones. The score was 14-14 midway through the second quarter.
But Gardner-Webb scored twice more in the second to take a 28-14 lead into halftime.
Lindenwood cut into that lead at the beginning of the third, when Glantz hit Caldwell for the 49-yard bomb over the middle. That made the score 28-21, but that was as close as Lindenwood would get.
Gardner-Webb scored its final two touchdowns later in the third to put itself ahead 42-21.
Hall broke free for a 17-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter to keep Lindenwood in the game. Unfortunately though, the Lions could only manage one more score the rest of the game, which came with just 31 seconds left on a 23-yard pass from Glantz to Drew Krobath.
Lindenwood attempted an onside kick to try to get the ball back quickly, but Gardner-Webb recovered and ran out the clock to win the game.
“I appreciated our fight in our guys all the way to the end but unfortunately that’s not enough,” Lindenwood head coach Jed Stugart said. “We must have consistency in our execution week in and week out in all phases of our team. I don’t believe we matched their intensity at the start of this game and these are tough ones to dig out of if you don’t get a good start.”
The loss dropped Lindenwood to 3-5 on the season and 2-2 in conference play. Gardner-Webb is now 2-5 overall and 1-2 in Big South-OVC action.
The Lions will be back home to host their 2024 Homecoming Game, next Saturday, October 26, at Hunter Stadium against Western Illinois. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.
SCORING SUMMARY
| Qtr | Time | Scoring Play | LU | GWU |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 09:45 | GWU – Lowe,Anthony 3 yd pass from Ridell,Tyler (Billingsley,Jay kick) 12 plays, 75 yards, TOP 05:15 | 0 | 7 |
| 1st | 03:31 | LU – Thomas,Reece 21 yd pass from Glantz,Nate (Seibert,Logan kick) 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 06:14 | 7 | 7 |
| 2nd | 14:00 | GWU – Saydee,Edward 13 yd run (Billingsley,Jay kick), 10 plays, 72 yards, TOP 04:21 | 7 | 14 |
| 2nd | 10:50 | LU – Jones,Cortezz 2 yd run (Seibert,Logan kick), 7 plays, 88 yards, TOP 03:01 | 14 | 14 |
| 2nd | 07:11 | GWU – Bly,Jordan 19 yd pass from Ridell,Tyler (Billingsley,Jay kick) 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:39 | 14 | 21 |
| 2nd | 00:22 | GWU – Bly,Jordan 26 yd pass from Ridell,Tyler (Billingsley,Jay kick) 6 plays, 45 yards, TOP 01:23 | 14 | 28 |
| 3rd | 12:06 | LU – Caldwell,Jeff 49 yd pass from Glantz,Nate (Seibert,Logan kick) 7 plays, 74 yards, TOP 02:54 | 21 | 28 |
| 3rd | 09:52 | GWU – Shields,Taylor 11 yd pass from Ridell,Tyler (Billingsley,Jay kick) 6 plays, 69 yards, TOP 02:03 | 21 | 35 |
| 3rd | 02:41 | GWU – Holmes,Quasean 17 yd run (Billingsley,Jay kick), 4 plays, 40 yards, TOP 00:59 | 21 | 42 |
| 4th | 14:55 | LU – Hall,Steve 17 yd run (Seibert,Logan kick), 6 plays, 75 yards, TOP 02:46 | 28 | 42 |
| 4th | 00:31 | LU – Krobath,Drew 23 yd pass from Glantz,Nate (Seibert,Logan kick) 5 plays, 91 yards, TOP 01:23 | 35 | 42 |
2024 LINDENWOOD LIONS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
| Date | Time | At | Opponent | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 26, 2024 (Saturday) | 2:00 p.m. | Home | Western Illinois (Homecoming) | St. Charles, Mo. / Hunter Stadium |
| November 2, 2024 (Saturday) | 1:30 pm | Away | Tennessee Tech | Cookeville, Tenn. |
| November 9, 2024 (Saturday) | 1:00 p.m. | Home | Southeast Missouri State | St. Charles, Mo. / Hunter Stadium |
| November 23, 2024 (Saturday) | 2:00 pm | Away | Tennessee-Martin | Martin, Tenn. |