#17 Tartans Win Big in 66-0 Shutout Against Bethany

(PITTSBURGH, Pa.) – The Carnegie Mellon University football team, ranked 17th nationally, hosted the Bethany Bison Saturday. The Tartans cruised to another home victory, defeating the Bison by a score of 66-0 to stay perfect on the season.

Game Information
Carnegie Mellon 66, Bethany 0
Records: Carnegie Mellon (3-0, 3-0 PAC), Bethany (0-3, 0-3 PAC)
Location: Pittsburgh, Pa. (Richard M. Lackner Field at Gesling Stadium)

How it Happened

• The Tartans struck first on a 33-yard field goal from junior kicker Justin Caputo, capping an eight-play, 53-yard drive taking 3:09 off the clock to go ahead 3-0 with 11:51 to go in the 1st quarter.
• Following a Bethany three-and-out, Tartan graduate student running back Tre Vasiliades showed off his elusiveness on a zig-zagging 50-yard touchdown run, capping a three-play, 57-yard drive of 1:31 to put the Tartans ahead 10-0 at the 8:02 mark in the 1st.
• Just a few plays later, Tartan graduate student linebacker Thomas Coury delivered a cracking blow to force a fumble at the Bethany 5-yard line, recovered and ran in for a touchdown by senior defensive end Mitchell Stokey to widen the gap to 17-0 at with 7:45 left in the 1st.
• Following an on-side kick recovered by Carnegie Mellon, graduate student quarterback Ben Mills launched a corner strike to sophomore wide receiver Brendan McCullough for the score on a seven-play, 51-yard drive erasing 3:13 to put the Tartans further ahead 24-0 with 4:32 left in the 1st.
• A fumble recovery from Tartan graduate student linebacker Robert Coury at the Bethany 41-yard line set up Carnegie Mellon for a 14-yard touchdown pass from Mills to senior wide receiver Dominic Voiland to finish a five-play, 41-yard, 1:43 drive to increase the lead to 31-0 to close out the 1st quarter.
• Carnegie Mellon tacked on an 8-yard touchdown pass on a screen from Mills to junior running back Willem Bouma, capping a seven-play, 47-yard drive eating up 3:28 to put the Tartans up 38-0 with 9:52 left in the half.
• A Bethany punt blocked by Robert Coury at the six-yard line was recovered at the 11-yard line and ran in for a touchdown by Tartan sophomore DJ Johnson to put the Tartans up 45-0 to close out the half.
• Carnegie Mellon converted its first drive of more than 60 yards into a 2-yard touchdown run by junior quarterback Joey McGinnis IV to wrap up seven plays of 68 yards, using up 3:33 to put the Tartans up 52-0 with 4:08 left in the 3rd quarter.
• The Tartans would find the endzone again behind the legs of sophomore running back Giacomo Valente on a 1-yard scamper to cap an eight-play, 48-yard drive using 3:04 to increase the lead to 59-0 with 14:17 left in the game.
• A long 4th quarter marked by an extensive Carnegie Mellon running game led to a 4-yard goal line scamper by junior running back Rak Agyei to wrap a nine-play, 75-yard drive. The game closed with a score of 66-0.

Stats

• Carnegie Mellon outgained Bethany 519-108 on 74 and 53 plays, respectively. Of Carnegie Mellon's total yards, 301 came in the 1st half.
• The Tartans gained 332 yards on the ground, led by Vasiliades, who tallied 167 yards on 18 carries and a touchdown. Valente and Agyei were among the other significant contributors to the Tartan's ground game with 52 and 43 yards and one touchdown a piece. Both were career-high in yardage.
• The Tartans tallied 197 yards through the air, led by Mills with 150 yards on 13-20 completions for three touchdowns, along with two interceptions. Tartan senior quarterback Brady Hess added the remaining 47 yards on 3-4 completions.
• McCullough and Voiland led the Tartans in receiving, with 65 and 56 yards respectively, as well as a touchdown a piece.
• Bouma contributed on the ground and in the air, with 50 rushing yards, and 12 yards and a touchdown receiving.
• Tartan juniors, linebacker Connor Warren and defensive lineman Avery Campbell, led the Tartans defensively. Warren had a career-high nine tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and a sack while Campbell also tallied a career-best five tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss and a sack.
• The Tartan defense recovered three fumbles, all of which led to touchdowns. Those were recovered by Robert Coury, Stokey (forced by Thomas Coury), and graduate student defensive back Adrian Williams (forced by Robert Coury).

Game Notes

• Carnegie Mellon leads the all-time series with Bethany 40-8, winning 13 of the last 15 contests.
• The Tartans have increased their win streak to 10 games, going back to last season.
• The Tartans now have eight shutouts over the last five seasons, with four coming in the last two.
• The Carnegie Mellon defense set a record for fewest rushing yards allowed in a game holding Bethany to -18 yards on the ground. The previous record was set on November 4, 2023, when the Tartan defense held Westminster to -16 yards rushing.
• Carnegie Mellon has won 19 straight games when scoring a special teams or defensive touchdown.
• Vasiliades has moved into third on the Tartan all-time rushing yards list with 2,938 yards total.
• Thomas Coury moved into fifth on the Tartan all-time tackles list, and needs 14 for fourth.

Thoughts From Head Coach Ryan Larsen

• "I'm really proud of how our guys played in all three phases of the game tonight! Anytime you score on Offense, defense, and special teams - it's due to great effort and attention to detail. We cannot wait to get back to work and prepare for Washington and Jefferson."

Up Next

• Carnegie Mellon will travel to Washington, Pennsylvania, Saturday, September 28 to play the Presidents of Washington & Jefferson College. Kick is set for 2:00 p.m.