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VMI Gridders Earn First Win
Virginia Military Institute used a blocked kick, a forced fumble and a game-sealing interception Saturday to catapult the Keydets to a 21-17 home victory over Southern Conference rival Furman at Foster Stadium in Lexington. The victory was the Keydets’ first of the 2024 season.
VMI (1-8 overall, 1-4 Southern Conference) went 3-for-3 in the red zone as the defense sacked Furman (2-6, 1-3) four times for 29 yards and the special teams unit blocked a field goal.
Hunter Rice, who rushed for 52 yards and a TD for the Keydets, passed Sean Mizzer and Floyd Allen to move into second place all-time at VMI with 28 career rushing touchdowns.
VMI redshirt freshman quarterback Chandler Wilson went 9-for-16 with 135 yards and a TD, finding Egypt Nelson for a career-long 51-yard reception. Also stepping up for VMI was Ethen Horne with four catches for 59 yards and a score.
For VMI’s defense, Shamus Jones recorded 13 tackles, one breakup and an interception with less than two minutes left that sealed the win. Kouri Crump had 13 tackles and two breakups.
Eric Rankin totaled 12 tackles for the Keydets and forced and recovered a Furman fumble to lead to the win.
“We’re really excited,” said VMI head coach Danny Rocco. “These guys have worked really hard. We’ve been through a lot of adversity. The team has really come together. Our senior leadership has been really good. They made a conscious decision that they were going to keep fighting and we found ourselves in a dogfight today. … I’m just glad for our players that we can celebrate a victory.”
The Keydets will continue SoCon action on Saturday when they play host to Mercer (8-1, 5-1) at 1:30 p.m. at Foster Stadium. For the Keydets’ schedule and updates, visit www. vmikeydets.com.
