BLUEFIELD – For half of the first quarter the Bluefield College Rams and Reinhardt University Eagles were engaged in a football game that had the makings of a thriller. However, the visiting Eagles reeled off 66 unanswered points and took an 80-14 win over BC on a soggy Saturday afternoon at Mitchell Stadium.
Reinhardt's Niagel Curtis put the Eagles on the board with a four-yard run. The PAT made it 7-0. Bluefield responded when Marion Harris ripped off a 37 yard touchdown run. Drake Presley's kick tied the game at 7. Only 1:01 later Reinhardt's L.J. Stegall scored on a 31-yard run to make it 14-7. Bluefield responded quickly, 1:10 seconds later when Cason Whitt connected with Adrian Pope on a screen pass. Pope took it 73 yards to the house and the game was tied at 14 halfway through the opening period.
Reinhardt, who came into the game with NAIA's top rushing offense at 333 yards a game, turned its offense into high gear and never looked back. The Eagles had eclipsed their season average by halftime and finished the game with 590 rushing yards on 69 attempts. The Eagles led 59-14 at the intermission.
Bluefield finished the game with 229 yards rushing and 99 passing. Harris led the way with 79 on the ground and Shane Milhorne added 64. Whitt completed 4-of-9 passes for 93 yards.
Reinhardt's Curtis was the game's rushing leader with 116 yards and three TDs. Johnathan Abrams had 108 with two scores.
The No. 14 Eagles improved to 5-0 and will take on No. 1 Lindsey Wilson next Saturday. Bluefield drops to 0-6 on the year and welcomes Georgetown (Ky.) to Mitchell Stadium next Saturday for a 1:30 kickoff.
