Dortch Rewrites History in 51-20 Win over Towson

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By Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeFB)

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Wide receiver Greg Dortch had three touchdowns, including two from punt returns, and 310 total yards of offense on Saturday as Wake Forest defeated Towson 51-20.

Wake Forest (2-0) used a balanced attack behind Dortch, freshman quarterback Sam Hartman, and running back Cade Carney in the win over Towson (1-1).

Dortch became just the fourth player in ACC history with two punt return touchdowns in a game and totaled the third most all-purpose yards in a single game in school history. He also added an acrobatic touchdown grab in the first quarter.

The Deacons jumped on the board early with a quick drive that resulted in a highlight-reel catch from Alex Bachman. Hartman completed four passes for 51 yards on the drive which was capped off by the one-handed grab in the corner of the end zone by Bachman.

Towson tied the game up at 7-7 on the following drive with a 24-yard pass from Tom Flacco to Sam Gallahan.

Wake Forest responded on the next drive with a 7-yard touchdown pass from Hartman to Dortch. The drive spanned 62 yards in just 1:01 and three plays. Towson committed two penalties on the drive, putting the Deacons into the red zone.

Following a Wake Forest turnover, the Tigers capitalized with an 8-yard touchdown pass from Flacco to Shane Simpson. The first quarter ended with the score knotted up at 14.

At the start of the second quarter, Hartman rushed for his first career touchdown, scoring on a 14-yard run to break the stalemate. Essang Bassey intercepted Flacco on the next drive, putting the Deacons back on offense. Nick Sciba drilled a 35-yard field goal as Wake Forest led 24-14 early in the second frame.

Minutes later, Dortch torched the special teams of Towson with a 70-yard punt return touchdown. The touchdown put Dortch over 200 all-purpose yards for the fourth-straight game, the first Wake Forest player ever to hit that mark.

Dortch returned a 60-yard punt for a touchdown in the waning minutes of the first half to continue his historic pace. Towson scored a touchdown shortly before halftime and missed the two-point conversion as Wake Forest took a 38-20 lead into the locker room.

Sciba added a 27-yard field goal in the third quarter followed by a one-yard touchdown run by Carney in the fourth quarter as Wake Forest led 48-20. Sciba tacked on another 27-yarder in the fourth quarter.

Dortch Lights Up History Books

Following a stellar season debut against Tulane with 200 all-purpose yards, Dortch became the first ever Wake Forest player to record at least 200 all-purpose yards in four straight games. He went over the 200-yard mark against Towson with 9:49 left in the second quarter.
Dortch ended the game with three touchdowns and 310 all-purpose yards which included 94 receiving yards.
He became the first ever Deacon to have two punt return touchdowns in a game since 1927. His 310 all-purpose yards were the third-best mark in school history. Dortch is just the sixth FBS player this century (since 2000) with 70 yards in pass receiving, punt return yards and kickoff return yards in a game.
Dortch is the fourth player in ACC history with two punt return touchdowns in a game joining Devin Hester (Miami) vs. Louisiana Tech in 2004; Ryan Switzer (UNC) vs. Pitt in 2013; Andre Purvis (UNC) vs. Tulane in 1993.
He set an ACC record for punt return average (min. 3 returns) with 44 yards, beating the previous mark of 41.8 yards set by Don Kelly of Clemson vs. Maryland in 1970.

Hartman Continues to Roll

Quarterback Sam Hartman continued to impress with a standout performance on Saturday. Hartman threw for 242 yards, two touchdowns and rushed for his first career touchdown. He also added 64 yards on the ground rushing.

Defensive Notes

The Deacon defense snagged an interception courtesy of Bassey while the team had five sacks. Nate Mays led the team with eight total tackles including five solo. Chuck Wade, Jr. and Bassey added seven each.
Wake Forest did not allow any points in the second half.

Carney the Workhorse

Carney went over 100 yards rushing for the third time in his career and the first since he had 104 rushing yards against Syracuse in 2016. Carney has recorded a touchdown in three-straight games dating back to the Belk Bowl in December. He finished with 130 rushing yards for a career-high.
During Wake Forest's scoring drive in which Carney scored, the running back was featured on 9-of-11 plays and accounted for 89-of-91 yards resulting in his 1-yard touchdown run.

Game Notes

With 38 points at halftime, it was the most points by Wake Forest in the first half since leading Duke 42-0 in 2003.
Wake Forest improves to 2-0 for the for the third straight year.
Head coach Dave Clawson improves to 23-29 in his fifth year at Wake Forest and 113-109 in his 19th year as a head coach.
Wake Forest improves to 14-6 in non-conference games and is 8-2 at home in non-conference games under Clawson. The Demon Deacons are now 34-5 all-time against FCS opponents.
Lightning forced a 1-hour and two-minute delay. Announced attendance was 23,619.

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Team Stats

Kenneth Dicks III

Players Mentioned

Alex Bachman

Essang Bassey

Cade Carney

Greg Dortch

Sam Hartman

Nate Mays

Nick Sciba