Copeland’s 3TDs lead Chattanooga past Western Carolina

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) — Cole Copeland passed for two touchdowns and ran for one of Chattanooga’s four rushing scores as the Mocs beat Western Carolina 45-17 on Saturday.

Chattanooga led 21-3 in the first quarter for its most points in the opening frame since 2017.

Tyrell Price, Gino Appleberry and Ailym Ford each rushed for 70-plus yards and a score for Chattanooga (2-2, 1-0 Southern). Price’s TD went for 57 yards and Ford had a 54-yarder as six rushers combined for 271 yards while WCU was held to 277 total yards.

Ford, who entered with back-to-back 100-yard rushing games, carried it 16 times for 74 yards to become the fastest high-school signee to reach 1,500 career yards rushing in program history.

Both of KeShawn Toney’s catches went for a touchdown, and Telly Plummer, Brandon Dowdell and Jerrell Lawson each made an interception for Chattanooga.

Western Carolina (0-5, 0-2) is still seeking its first victory under first-year head coach Kerwin Bell. The Catamounts had their road losing streak extended to 11 games.

WCU has dropped 11 of the last 12 series meetings – and 15 of the last 18 overall dating to 2006.

___

More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25. Sign up for the AP’s college football newsletter: https://apnews.com/cfbtop25

Copyright © 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.

Federal News Network Logo
Log in to your WTOP account for notifications and alerts customized for you.

Sign up