Wofford runs over Elon for playoff win

Wofford's offense kept it simple to make it difficult for an opponent trying to defend the triple option.

The Terriers rushed for 344 yards and Luke Carter kicked a career-high four field goals as the Terriers beat Elon 19-7 in the first round of the FCS playoffs on Saturday at Gibbs Stadium in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Wofford (9-3) advances to play at No. 4 seed Kennesaw State (10-1), which also runs the triple option, in the second round next Saturday.

"It wasn't always pretty," Wofford first-year coach Josh Conklin said. "We wanted to score more points in the red zone early on and got stopped. As the game went on, we stayed the course and found ways to get it done."

Elon (6-5) hasn't been accustomed to facing the triple option since it left the Southern Conference in 2014, and it was evident against the Terriers, whose No. 5-in-the-FCS rushing offense controlled the ball for more than 37 minutes.

Nathan Walker's 4-yard touchdown run to cap the first possession of the third quarter -- all carries on a nine-play, 75-yard drive -- put Wofford ahead for good 13-7. Carter kicked field goals of 32, 21, 33 and 25 yards.

Walker carried the ball 14 times for a game-high 90 yards. Lennox McAfee added 63 yards, Ryan Lovelace 56, No. 2 quarterback Miller Mosley 42 and Andre Stoddard 40.

Elon fifth-year senior quarterback Daniel Thompson, making his first start since November 2016, completed 20 of 32 passes for 209 yards and an interception. Brelynd Cyphers scored on a 1-yard run in the first minute of the second quarter.

Although it made the playoffs both times, the Phoenix lost their final three games for the second consecutive year.