Mercer off after tough non-conference road loss

The Mercer Bears will have some extra time to think about their first loss of the season and their first non-conference loss of the Bobby Lamb era.

Mercer suffered a 29-22 loss to Tennessee Tech to fall to 2-1 this season and 11-1 in non-conference games. The Bears are off this week before opening Southern Conference play against Wofford on Oct. 3.

Mercer fell behind early 21-6 but rallied to take a 22-21 lead before Tennessee Tech scored late for the win. The Bears reached the red zone five times but scored only two touchdowns.

Tee Mitchell led the Bears with a career-high 130 yards on 19 carries as the Bears rushed for 261 yards. Zach Jackson led the defense with six tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss, and the defense allowed just 56 yards rushing.

ACC OPENER

Georgia Tech dropped to 2-1, losing its road opener against Notre Dame in a 30-22 decision.

The Yellow Jackets stay on the road Saturday for their ACC opener as they face Duke, which also suffered its first loss in a 19-10 defeat to Northwestern.

Georgia Tech leads the series 50-31-1, but Duke won 31-25 last year, snapping a 10-game losing streak in the series.

TWO STRAIGHT WINS

Fort Valley State controlled Clark Atlanta 35-13 to improve to 2-1 and 2-0 in the SIAC. Travis Richmond had one touchdown running and another one receiving to lead the Wildcats.

FVSU hosts Benedict on Saturday in another SIAC contest.

SUN BELT OPENER

Georgia Southern blasted its way to its second straight non-conference win 48-13 over The Citadel to improve to 2-1.

The Eagles open Sun Belt Conference play Saturday as they travel to Idaho. Georgia Southern won the Sun Belt title last with an 8-0 record in its first season in the conference.

LOSS AT HOME

DuPage got off to a good start and maintained control en route to a 39-12 win Saturday over host GMC.

The visitors’ defense forced several early three-and-outs by the Bulldogs, who had surrendered 21 points before getting a field goal from Evan Pantels.

DuPage converted an interception into a touchdown and 31-3 lead, still in the first half.

The Bulldogs are off until hosting Nassau on Oct. 3.

This story was originally published September 21, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Mercer off after tough non-conference road loss ."