ST. LOUIS – Drake claimed the 2024 Pioneer Football League title outright with a 49-10 victory at Stetson on Saturday and also secured the league’s automatic bid to the 2024 NCAA Division I FCS Championships. San Diego won on the road at Morehead State to finish second in the title race. Presbyterian closed its 2024 effort with a fourth consecutive win, Valparaiso stunned Davidson on the regular season’s final play and St. Thomas eased past Dayton.
PFL Scoreboard: Week 13
Saturday, Nov. 23
Drake 49, Stetson 10
Presbyterian 30, Butler 27
San Diego 37, Morehead State 14
Valparaiso 18, Davidson 17
St. Thomas 32, Dayton 9
PFL Recaps
Drake 49, Stetson 10
DELAND, Fla. – Luke Bailey was nearly flawless at quarterback and led Drake to a 49-10 victory against Presbyterian on Saturday at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium. Bailey threw for three touchdowns and 204 yards while completing 23-of-28 passes with no interceptions. Running back Davion Cherwin ran for 161 yards and scored two touchdowns on 11 carries to complement Bailey’s performance. Drake’s first three touchdowns all came via the ground game, with Luke Woodson scoring from one-yard out before Cherwin broke through for a seven-yard score and then a 91-yard burst to put Drake up 21-7. Bailey’s three touchdowns sandwiched halftime with one before the half and two after the break, extending the lead to 42-10. Trey Clark had Presbyterian’s only touchdown on a 16-yard run in the first quarter.
Presbyterian 30, Butler 27
CLINTON, S.C. – Quante Jenning’s 10-yard touchdown run with 4:43 left in the third quarter put Presbyterian ahead for good as the Blue Hose secured their fourth consecutive victory with a 30-27 win against nationally-ranked Butler on Saturday at Bailey Memorial Stadium. Butler built a 20-14 lead with 10:48 remaining in the third quarter on Reagan Andrew’s 15-yard touchdown pass. But Collin Hurst found Worth Warner for a 17-yard touchdown to tie the game, and then Jennings broke off his go-ahead score. Presbyterian pushed its lead to 30-20 with Peter Lipscombe’s 18-yard field goal with 1:15 left in the game. Butler struck quickly with Andrew finding Ethan Loss for a 42-yard touchdown 36 seconds later, but could not recover the onside kick. Jennings finished the day with 190 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries to pace Presbyterian. Andrew completed 20-of-36 passes for 220 yards and three touchdowns to lead Butler.
San Diego 37, Morehead State 14
MOREHEAD, Ky. – San Diego raced out to a big lead and did not waver en route to a 37-14 victory against Morehead State on Saturday at Jayne Stadium. Wide receiver Christopher Hall opened the scoring with a 33-yard touchdown pass to Bradley Schlom. Quarterback Grant Sergent then provided touchdown passes in the second and third quarters to help the Toreros build a 27-7 lead. Bryce Patterson would narrow the deficit with a 48-yard touchdown pass to Nate Garnett late in the third quarter. However, San Diego’s Isaiah Smith’s 18-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter ended the Eagles’ threat. Sergent completed 18-of-24 passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns to lead San Diego. Patterson completed 6-of-21 passes for 133 yards and a touchdown for Morehead State.
Valparaiso 18, Davidson 17
VALPARAISO, Ind. – Trailing 17-10 with eight seconds remaining, Valparaiso saw Shawn Fester block a punt that was recovered inside the Davidson red zone and the Beacons took advantage scoring a touchdown and converting a two-point pass to escape with an 18-17 victory on Saturday at Brown Field. Davidson led 14-10 at halftime after a Mari Adams eight-yard touchdown with 23 seconds left in the half. The Wildcats extended that lead to 17-10 midway through the fourth on Adam Zouagui’s 39-yard field goal. Later in the fourth, Valparaiso got the ball in Davidson territory after a punt and moved to the edge of the red zone before a Julian Rawlins sack forced a turnover on downs. But a penalty moved the ball inside the red zone and Davidson could not advance the ball, leading to the blocked punt. On the game’s last play, Caron Tyler found Gary Givens for the 18-yard touchdown, and then he connected with senior tight end Jake Vickers for the game-winning two-point conversion.
St. Thomas 32, Dayton 9
ST. PAUL, Minn. – St. Thomas scored 32 unanswered points to down Dayton 32-9 on Saturday at O’Shaughnessy Stadium. Dayton opened the scoring with a 24-yard field goal midway through the first quarter. St. Thomas took the lead later in the first on Hope Adebayo’s 11-yard touchdown run before the Tommies scored 18 second-quarter points to take control, including Ryan Calcagno’s 34-yard scoop-and-score with 11:32 left in the half. Adebayo ran for 123 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries to lead the St. Thomas effort. Drew VanVleet completed 23-of-43 passes for 198 yards and a touchdown for Dayton.