Mercer football leads the Southern Conference with a 5-1 record in the conference and 8-1 record on the season after a 37-31 homecoming win over No. 23 East Tennessee State University.
The team was led by quarterback DJ Smith ‘26 to start the game. Smith, who was leading the SoCon in passing yards, completion percentage and touchdown passes when he went down with an injury four weeks ago against Wofford College, was sacked twice and removed from the game in favor of Whitt Newbauer ‘28.
The true freshman quarterback has risen in the pecking order at Mercer after starting the season as the third-string passer. Since outdueling Hess Horne ‘25, Newbauer started in place of an injured DJ Smith ‘26 last week against Western Carolina University.
The Bears’ second drive of the game ended in a field goal, knocked in by kicker Reice Griffith ‘27 from 36 yards out. The drive was set up by Dainsus Miller’s ‘26 interception at ETSU’s 26-yard line. The interception was one of three in the game for the Bears, and one of four total turnovers Mercer's defense forced.
The Buccaneers answered with quarterback Jaylen King connecting with wide receiver Hakeem Megget on a 68-yard pass to make the score 7-3. The one-play drive was not the first time that Mercer’s secondary was exposed to a deep pass through the middle of the field. A similar play occurred three weeks ago against Princeton, but the Tigers’ receiver dropped the pass.
Before the first quarter would end, the Buccaneers found the end zone again with a 1-yard run from their fifth year quarterback, Gino English, to make the score 14-3.
Mercer’s defense took over in the second quarter, scoring on back-to-back ETSU drives early in the quarter to put the Bears ahead for good. Following a Mercer punt that was downed at the Buccaneers’ 1-yard line, ETSU’s running back Bryson Irby fumbled the ball in the end zone. Brayden Manley ‘27, who leads the team in sacks this season with 6, recovered the ball for his first collegiate touchdown.
On the ensuing Buccaneer drive, Mercer linebacker Marques Thomas ‘25 picked off ETSU after Brayden Dudley ‘27 registered a quarterback hit, and returned the interception 25 yards for his first collegiate touchdown. Mercer’s defense continues to lead the SoCon in touchdowns scored, with their two on Saturday bringing their total against SoCon teams to four. In all competitions, they have six.
The Bears' first drive of the second half ended with a highlight play as Kelin Parsons ‘25 hauled in a 34-yard, back-shoulder pass from Newbauer. It was Parsons’ first touchdown catch since the second game of the season, bringing his total to three on the season as he leads the team in reception yardage.
Mic Wasson ‘26, a backup linebacker, recorded his second career touchdown with a 20-yard return on a blocked punt deep in Buccaneer territory. The punt was blocked by Tripp Slaton ‘27, who has been a special teams player for the Bears this season. Last week, Slaton registered a career-high two tackles against WCU.
The scoring drought for ETSU ended with a 18-yard pass from English to wide receiver AJ Johnson making it a 10 point game with 2:40 left in the third quarter. During the last quarter of the game, the Bears scored again with two field goals from kicker Griffith ‘27, the first from 36 yards out and the other from 31 yards out. Griffith won SoCon Special Teams Player of the Week honors for his performance Saturday.
A 5-play, 79-yard touchdown drive from the Buccaneers, followed by a 4-play, 49-yard field goal in the final two minutes of the game gave the Bears a scare, but a failed ETSU onside kick sealed the game in Mercer’s favor.
Heading into next week, the Bears will look to improve their beleaguered offense that mustered just one touchdown in the game. The team went 1-for-16 on third down conversions, an issue that has persisted throughout the season. The team went 3-for-3 in the red zone, but each of those drives ended with a field goal.
Next week, the Bears will be on the road for the first time since Oct. 19 to take on the Virginia Military Institute. The Keydets are 1-4 against SoCon schools this year and are coming off their first win of the season last Saturday, against Furman University. Mercer is 7-3 in all competitions against VMI, dating back to 2014, and has not lost to the Keydets since 2021.
