Football

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The No. 21 Salisbury University football team proved defense wins championships as the Sea Gulls rallied in the second half to defeat Moravian College, 21-17, to capture the 2008 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III Southwest Bowl Championship before 1,023 fans at a frigid Rocco Calvo Field.

This is the third ECAC championship in Salisbury's history in four appearances and the third under the tutelage of SU coach Sherman Wood. The Sea Gulls won the 2006 ECAC South Atlantic and 2005 Southeast Bowl Championships.

Salisbury rallied from a 17-0 halftime deficit to finish the season at 9-2 for a second straight year.

"To be down 17-0 at the half and to come back speaks highly of this team. It is never over to its over," said Wood after the game. "The young kids have learned a lot this season. I am really proud of them."

The third quarter was pivotal as the Sea Gull offense came alive while the defense forced three punts by the Greyhounds (8-3).

SU drove 63 yards on eight plays on the first possession of the second half for the maroon and gold and capped it off with an 8-yard touchdown run by freshman slot back Randal Smedley. The Sea Gull defense held its ground and forced the second 3-and-out series by Moravian. Salisbury then drove 55 yards on five plays and scored a touchdown on sophomore Nick Coates' 8-yard run. The SU touchdown cut the Moravian lead down to three, 17-14, with 6:07 left in the third quarter. The next series for the Greyhounds went the same as the previous two in the second half as the Sea Gull defense only allowed two yards gained on three plays. Moravian turned the tables and forced Salisbury to punt for the sixth time in the game on the next possession.

The next Greyhound drive was the turning point in the game as Moravian had an 8-play, 42-yard drive working to its advantage. Moravian stood at the Salisbury 29-yard line poised to add to its three-point lead a minute into the fourth quarter. Greyhound quarterback Marc Braxmeier (7-for-13, 51 yards) dropped back and his pass was picked off by senior defensive back Greg Miletic at the Salisbury 12-yard line. Miletic returned his second interception of the game back 47 yards into Moravian territory to the Greyhound 41-yard line. On the next play, SU senior quarterback Ronnie Curley (3-for-6, 69 yards) found a wide-open D.J. Nelson at the 14-yard line, waltzed into the end zone for the go-ahead score with 13:54 left in the game.

Curley's touchdown pass is his 16th of his career for Salisbury. The senior signal caller concludes his four-year with 1,768 passing yards and 2,422 rushing yards and 29 rushing touchdowns.

Salisbury's defense kept Moravian punter Michael Voskin busy in the fourth quarter as the Sea Gulls forced three more punts as time ran out on the '08 season.

Sophomore linebacker Justin Chura, who made nine of his game-high 13 tackles in the first half, was named the game's Most Valuable Player. Senior linebacker Matt Barnes was second on the team with 10 tackles. Senior All-American defensive end Jarrell Chandler made four tackles and a sack to close out his career at SU.

Sea Gull sophomore Bryan Woolson led all maroon and gold ball carriers with 65 yards on the ground followed by senior Shelby Fisher's 51 yards. Salisbury, the nation's leading rushing attack, ran for 209 yards on the ground. Moravian rushed for 214 yards behind the career-high game by Ryan Rempe, who ran the ball 41 times for 186 yards and two first half touchdowns. The Greyhounds added a 40-yard field goal in the first quarter to take a 10-0 lead after one quarter of play.

This was the first-ever meeting between the two programs.

Salisbury set several program records in the victory. The 448 total points scored by the Sea Gulls this season is a new program record. Last week, the maroon and gold set the regular-season record for points scored with 427. Both marks surpass the 2007 totals. SU concludes the season with 4,179 rushing yards, an average of 379.9 yards per game. The total rushing yardage breaks the 1986 record of 4,036 set when the Sea Gulls advanced to the national championship game and played in 14 games. The three touchdowns scored by the Gulls give them 62 this season, which is one better than the school record of 61 set in 1985. SU also set the program record for rushing touchdowns with 51 this season, the old record was 48 set in 1986. Finally, SU will take a streak of 64 consecutive games in which the Sea Gulls have scored at least one point in a game into the 2009 campaign. The program record is 65 set from 1983 to 1988. Salisbury's current record started with the start of the 2003 season to present.