Jayden Whitaker at Edinboro
Matt Durisko
Jayden Whitaker throws to Donell "Tank" Mason (foreground) for game-winning seven-yard touchdown pass
25
Winner Gannon GAN 2-5 , 2-2
21
Edinboro EDI 2-6 , 1-4
Winner
Gannon GAN
2-5 , 2-2
25
Final
21
Edinboro EDI
2-6 , 1-4
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
GAN Gannon 6 0 6 13 25
EDI Edinboro 0 7 7 7 21

Game Recap: Football | | Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

Golden Knights Score in Final Minute to Shock Edinboro 25-21

THE GAME FACTS
Final Score: Gannon 25, Edinboro 21
Records: Gannon (2-5, 2-2 PSAC West) l Edinboro (2-6, 1-4 PSAC West)
Date: Saturday, October 26, 2024
Location: Edinboro, Pa. I Sox Harrison Stadium
 
EDINBORO, Pa. – Donell "Tank" Mason hauled in a short pass from Jayden Whitaker (Brownsburg, Ind./Brownsburg) and scored the winning touchdown with 26 seconds left as Gannon handed Edinboro a 25-21 loss on Saturday afternoon at Sox Harrison Stadium.

A wide-open Mason caught Whitaker's pass in the right flat just short of the goal line, juked a defender and went into the end zone to cap a 10-play, 75-yard drive.

Gannon then halted any comeback hoped the host Fighting Scots may have had as Serrell Curtis (Indianapolis, Ind./Ben Davis) intercepted a Hail Mary pass at the GU 27 with 11 seconds remaining. Gannon has now won four straight meetings against Edinboro.

Questionable throughout the week after suffering an injury at Slippery Rock, Whitaker accounted for all four Gannon touchdowns, the first three coming on runs of nine, six and one yards. In addition, he have had the play of the year when he scrambled late following a bad snap and found Mason deep in Edinboro territory for a 46-yard gain.

Gannon improved to 2-5 overall with its second win in the last three games and is now 2-2 in the PSAC West. Edinboro dipped to 2-6 and 1-4, respectively.

The Golden Knights return home for the first time since hosting Homecoming on October 5 when they host Indiana (Pa.) on Saturday, November 2.

GAMEDAY MEDIA CENTER
Box Score: Click Here

HOW IT HAPPENED
The back-and-forth contest saw four lead changes, the last three occurring in the fourth quarter. The final stanza began with Edinboro clinging to a 14-12 lead, but the Golden Knights regained the lead at 18-14 thanks to a six-play, 67-yard drive. The march ended with Whitaker scoring from a yard out with 11:06 remaining. Whitaker completed a 22-yard pass to Donell "Tank" Mason to start the drive, and three plays later had a career-long 36-yard run to the Boro 2. He scored one play later. The extra point attempt was blocked.

Edinboro responded with a time-consuming 14-play, 75-yard march that ate up 8 minutes, 38 seconds. When Jeremiah Neely caught a five-yard touchdown pass from Isaac Bernard just 2:28 remained in the game. The score was set up by a 29-yard run by Reed Martin on a fake punt on 4th-and-10 at the Boro 25.
  
Gannon regained possession trailing 21-18. Facing a 3rd-and-16 at their own 19-yard line, the Golden Knights found a way to keep the drive alive. A 15-yard hookup from Whitaker to Braeden Soboleski (Erie, Pa./McDowell) made it 4th-and-1, and Whitaker continued the game-winning march with a two-yard run. One play later Whitaker and Mason combined on the play of the game. The redshirt sophomore quarterback had to corral a bad snap that dribbled away. He scrambled to his right and heaved a long pass to Mason, who had gotten behind the Edinboro secondary. The play covered 46 yards to the Boro 18. Facing 3rd-and-8 moments later, he ran for nine yards for a first down to the seven. On the next play he combined again with Mason, this time for the winning touchdown pass. Mason was wide open in the right flat. The junior wide receiver caught the pass just outside the end zone and scored for a 25-21 lead with 26 seconds to play.

Edinboro would complete one pass but on second down from the Boro 34 Matt Carlisle's long Hail Mary pass came down in the hands of Serrell Curtis (Indianapolis, Ind./Ben Davis) at the GU 27. It was Curtis' first career interception.

Gannon opened the scoring thanks to a nine-yard touchdown run by Whitaker, the first of his three TD runs. It capped an 8-play, 50-yard. Bryson Costa's (Windber, Pa./Windber Area) extra point was no good, leaving Gannon with a 6-0 lead with 5:28 left in the first quarter.

Edinboro came back for a 7-6 lead early in the second quarter. The Fighting Scots had another time-consuming drive, using up 6 minutes, 55 seconds on a 72-yard, 12-play drive. Neely caught the first of his two touchdown passes, this one covering 20 yards.
The score remained that way at the half.  The Fighting Scots took advantage of a blocked punt to build the biggest lead of the game at 14-6 early in the third quarter. Taking over at the GU 35 Edinboro needed just five plays to score on Bernard's 15-yard pass to Teagan Brown at 9:02 of the period.

Gannon answered with a 67-yard drive in just six plays on the ensuing possession. Whitaker spearheaded the drive with his right arm, completing five passes for 58 yards. He then pulled Gannon to within 14-12 with 2:48 left in the third quarter thanks to his legs, scoring on a six-yard run. The two-point PAT pass attempt failed.      
     
BY THE NUMBERS
The final statistics were as even as the final score indicated. Gannon finished with 304 total yards, one yard less than Edinboro. The Golden Knights finished with 113 yards rushing and 191 yards passing, while Edinboro was a little more balanced at 131 yards on the ground and 174 through the air.

Edinboro was able to hold a significant edge in time of possession, 33:11 to 26:49. However, the Golden Knights did not commit a turnover while the Fighting Scots had the pickoff at the end of the game.

Jayden Whitaker (Brownsburg, Ind./Brownsburg) accounted for 259 of Gannon's 304 yards and all four touchdowns. The redshirt freshman quarterback scored on runs of nine, six and one yards and threw the game-winning seven-yard TD passes. He completed 15-of-25 passes for 191 yards while adding a career-high 68 yards rushing on 14 carries. He has now had a hand in 12 of Gannon's 14 touchdowns scored this season. He has thrown for seven TDs and run for five.

Whitaker is no stranger to last-minute winning drives. The redshirt freshman came off the bench to lead the winning drive in a 31-28 win at Mercyhurst in his first career game. A week later he led Gannon on a last-minute drive that resulted in a game-winning 51-yard field goal by Eric Scarpino (Waterford, Pa./Fort LeBoeuf) for a 16-15 win at Indiana (Pa.).

Donell "Tank" Mason led all receivers with six receptions for 94 yards, including the game-winning seven-yard TD catch. Former Edinboro receiver Armani Bailey (Lincoln, Pa./Woodland Hills) added three catches for 35 yards.

The defense stepped up with a season-high five sacks after coming into the game with six in the first six games. David Francis Jr. (North Hollywood, Calif./Ulysses S. Grant) led the way with 1.5 sacks, while Zaire Allen (Johnson City, Tenn./Archbishop Spalding (Md.)), Charles Calhoun (Euclid, Ohio/St. Edward), and Sir Jerome Treadwell (Washington, D.C./Archbishop Carroll) had one apiece.

Hayden McDonald (Tigard, Ore./Tigard) paced the unit with 11 tackles, his second game with double-figure tackles this season. Allen added a career-high eight tackles with the sack and a forced fumble. Tyler Tiggs and Keoke Toomer (Indianapolis, Ind./Ben Davis) also had eight hits.

THE RECORD BOOK
Donell "Tank" Mason continued his rise up the Gannon receiving records moving into the top in career receptions. The junior caught six passes for 94 yards, boosting him into sixth place in career catches with 98. He moved up to eighth in career yards receiving with 1,429.

UP NEXT
Gannon returns to McConnell Family Stadium for the first time since October 5 hosting Indiana (Pa.) on Saturday, November 2. Two of Gannon's final three games are at home.   
 
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