Charleston Southern Wins with Two Return Touchdowns
Charleston Southern gained 305 yards. South Carolina State gained 470. The Buccaneers won 49-39 anyway, and two of their touchdowns were returns: a 60-yard punt return from Hakeem Watters and a 98-yard kickoff return from Quay Kindell.
Those two plays were worth 14 points. Take them away and 49 becomes 35, which is four short of the 39 South Carolina State put up. Nobody is going to make that argument to the Bucs, who never trailed. Jared Echols threw a 33-yard touchdown pass to Mehki Larronte Campfield in the first quarter, Watters took a punt back for a touchdown later in the quarter, and it was 14-0 before South Carolina State touched the board.
Kindell's return with 6:40 left in the second quarter made it 28-13, and it was 35-16 at the half after a 13-yard Echols to Campfield score, and 42-16 early in the third when Watters ran 24 yards. South Carolina State fought back in the third quarter with two Josh Shaw touchdown runs and a two-point conversion to reach 42-31, then a safety in the fourth made it 42-33. Maxwell Warren's 15-yard catch from Echols with 7:44 left pushed it to 49-33, and Martavious Collins' 7-yard touchdown with 15 seconds left made the margin look closer than it was.
The giveaways explain the rest. South Carolina State threw two interceptions and lost two fumbles, four turnovers against Charleston Southern's one lost fumble. Ronnie Robinson passed for 279 yards on 13 of 38.
Charleston Southern is 2-2 and South Carolina State is 3-2.