BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Charleston Southern football saw its 2023-24 campaign come to a close on the road at Gardner-Webb Saturday afternoon, falling 34-10 to the hosts.

DIAMOND IN THE RUFF
Charleston Southern running back TJ Ruff had another strong performance Saturday, laying claim to the lone touchdown for the Buccaneers with an eight-yard scamper to cap off an 11-play, 75-yard drive early in the second quarter. That touchdown would bring the contest to within one score for CSU. Ruff would finish the game with 98 net yards and the score on 21 touches.

BABBUSH CONNECTS, AGAIN
The CSU placekicker was able to bounce back after two misses on the road at Robert Morris for the Charleston Southern special teams unit, as he turned in another field goal to add to his strong campaign. A 46-yarder midway through the third quarter brought the Bucs to within two scores, the closest they would be the rest of the way. Babbush was also a perfect one-for-one in PATs to also stay perfect in that category.
 
NUMBERS, NUMBERS AND MORE NUMBERS
The CSU backfield saw Ruff lay claim to most of the workload, finishing with 98 yards on 21 touches and a score. Noah Jennings was the leading receiver with five catches and 58 yards while JD Moore went for 46 yards on three catches. Isaiah Bess was 18-38 through the air for 156 yard.

On the defensive side of the ball, Charleston Southern was led by Malik Barnes, as the linebacker finished with eight stops, six of them being solo tackles to add to two sacks. Trayson Fowler put together a strong showing as well, collecting four total stops and an interception as well as a breakup. Bryce Llewellyn shined as well, picking up two sacks to go along with five total stops.
 
DIFFERENCE ON THE GROUND
The difference in the contest was largely through the air as the Runnin' Bulldogs amassed 308 yards on the ground compared to CSU's 92. Gardner-Webb also recorded three scores on the ground, whereas Charleston Southern recorded just the one. Gardner-Webb also recorded an average of 6.3 yards per touch while CSU's average sat at 3.4.

RECORDS
Charleston Southern: 4-7, 2-4 Big South-OVC
Gardner-Webb: 7-4, 5-1 Big South-OVC

UP NEXT
The Buccaneers see their campaign come to a close with a four-win output in Head Coach Gabe Giardina's first season at the helm of the program. Big wins over Kennesaw State and Tennessee State highlight the season, both coming at home in front of the Buccaneer faithful.