Coastal Carolina-Gardner-Webb Matchup Preview

Coastal Carolina (7-1, 2-1 Big South) vs. Gardner-Webb (3-5, 2-2)

When: 3:30 p.m. Saturday

Where: Brooks Stadium, Conway

TV: American Sports Network (WWMB in Myrtle Beach)

Radio: WSEA-FM 100.3

Weather Forecast: 79 degrees and partly cloudy with a 15 percent chance of rain

Series History: Coastal Carolina leads the all-time series 10-2.

Last Meeting: The Chants won 38-14 in Boiling Springs, N.C., last year led by a huge game from quarterback Alex Ross. He was 29-of-43 passing for 351 yards and two touchdowns. Bruce Mapp had nine catches for 101 yards and Tyrell Blanks caught five passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns.

Chanticleers Breakdown

Coastal Carolina is coming off its first loss of the season, a 33-25 setback at Charleston Southern that highlighted many of the flaws the Chants had been able to overcome to that point. Particularly, the defense struggled mightily in the first half, and the coaches were frank this week that they would consider some personnel changes in the lineup. While the Chants are still ranked in the top-10 of the FCS polls, there’s no guarantee they can take another loss and still make the playoffs so it’s must-win mode over the final three games.

Runnin’ Bulldogs Breakdown

Gardner-Webb has been a tough team to read this season. The Runnin’ Bulldogs have a nice 34-20 win over Liberty on their resume, but they’ve also been shutout twice this fall (including a 34-0 loss to Charleston Southern). They rank among the worst passing offenses in the country, averaging just 81.1 yards per game through the air, but sophomore quarterback Tyrell Maxwell is a threat nonetheless as the team’s leading rusher with 602 yards. Overall, the Runnin’ Bulldogs are next-to-last in the Big South in averaging just 13 points per game, but they rank third in the league in holding teams to an average of 19.4 points and 307 yards per game.

Key Matchup

Gardner-Webb quarterback Tyrell Maxwell vs. Coastal Carolina’s defensive front: The Runnin’ Bulldogs are so dependent on Maxwell’s ability to create yards on the ground, and if the Chants can keep him mostly contained they should be able to seize control of the game.

Spotlight Players

Coastal Carolina quarterback Alex Ross: The senior is playing through an aggravated ankle injury so it’s unknown what his mobility will be. But he’s always played exceptionally well against Gardner-Webb. Overall, Ross comes into this game with 1,798 passing yards, 10 touchdowns and three interceptions.

Coastal Carolina running back De’Angelo Henderson: “Hop” kept his streak going last week and has now scored a touchdown in 22 straight games. Overall, he ranks eighth in the FCS with 939 rushing yards, along with 300 receiving yards and 12 total touchdowns.

Coastal Carolina defensive end Roderick Holder: The senior leads the Chants with 8 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks and will be key to slowing down Gardner-Webb’s quarterback run game.

Gardner-Webb nose guard O.J. Mau: The 6-foot-3, 319-pound senior is regarded by many as the best defensive lineman in the Big South. He has 9 tackles for los, 2 sacks and 42 total tackles this fall.

Gardner-Webb quarterback Tyrell Maxwell: The sophomore has completed just 49 percent of his passes this season for 615 yards, five touchdowns and seven interceptions, but he has averaged 4.6 yards per carry while rushing for a team-high 602 yards.

Gardner-Webb linebacker Chad Geter: The junior ranks third in the conference with 75 total tackles and has 22.5 tackles for loss in his last 22 games played. He has been named the Big South Defensive Player of the Week twice this fall.

Scouting Reports

Coastal Carolina offensive coordinator Dave Patenaude: “Their front seven is probably the best we’ve played. They’re really athletic and the nose guard is probably the best defensive player in the league. He’s the best guy we’ve seen so far. You’re not going to be able to totally take him out of the game, but you have to be aware of where he is. And they’ve got a bunch of guys who run around and fit their gaps well. … Their numbers are good, their defensive stats are really good. We’ll be ready to go, but it’s a good challenge.”

Coastal Carolina defensive coordinator Clayton Carlin: “[Their quarterback] is a phenomenal player. He’s tough to tackle and he can make you miss, he can shake you down. So he’s a really, really, really good player. He hasn’t thrown for a lot of yards, but he appears to make the critical throws at the critical times. He gets the ball out fast so he’s tough to blitz, but he’s a really dynamic player. We’ll have our hands full with him.”

Notes

▪ The coaches have expressed no concerns about quarterback Alex Ross’ injured ankle after he was briefly forced out of the game last Saturday when a defender tackled him low.

“He’s been great. They rolled him up pretty good and got him in a little bit of a crocodile roll at the end. He responded well at the end of the game there and then he’s been fine this week,” offensive coordinator Dave Patenaude said. “He hasn’t looked any worse than he has the last few weeks.”

Patenaude said senior slot receiver Tyrell Blanks (concussion) “probably will not play” for a second straight week and senior wide receiver John Israel (knee) will be a game-time decision after sitting out last week.

▪ Coastal Carolina will induct two former Chants into the Sasser Athletics Hall of Fame prior to the game Saturday.

Former Coastal Carolina golf standout Zack Byrd and former men’s basketball star Joseph Harris will join the Hall of Fame and also be recognized during the football game.

▪ There will be a postgame fireworks show inside Brooks Stadium for fans.

By The Numbers

25 | Coastal Carolina has been ranked in the top-10 of the two major FCS national polls for 25 straight weeks.

27.0 | The Chants have won their last three meetings with Gardner-Webb by an average margin of 27.0 points while averaging 45.0 points per game.

32-11 | The Chants are the Big South’s winningest team in November, going 32-11 all-time in the month.

33.9 | Coastal Carolina’s scoring average of 33.9 points per game is more than Gardner-Webb has scored in all but one game.

10,206 | Alex Ross is up to 10,206 yards of total offense for his career – 8,707 passing and 1,499 rushing – and trails Big South record-holder Collin Drafts (10,571) by only 365 yards.

Prediction

Coastal Carolina 42-17. The Chants are going to be especially fired up to bounce back from their only loss, and they have typically dominated against Gardner-Webb in coach Joe Moglia’s tenure.

This story was originally published November 6, 2015 at 6:32 PM with the headline "Coastal Carolina-Gardner-Webb Matchup Preview."