CHARLESTON, Ill. — Terrance West ran in any direction he wanted.
Towson’s junior running back rolled up an FCS playoff-record 354 yards and five touchdowns on 39 carries Friday night as the seventh-seeded Tigers advanced to the FCS semifinals with a 49-39 win over No. 2 Eastern Illinois at snowy O’Brien Field.
Both teams are 12-2, but it’s Towson that will meet the winner of Saturday’s Jacksonville State-Eastern Washington matchup next weekend.
After the Panthers converted a fumble off the second-half kickoff into the tying score on a 1-yard sneak by quarterback Jimmy Garropolo, West peeled off 41 yards on five carries on the Tigers’ next drive. He capped it with a 6-yard run and a 28-21 lead with 9:52 left in the third quarter.
Eastern Illinois kicker Cameron Berra made a 28-yard field goal with 6:20 remaining, chopping the deficit to 28-24. But West rushed six times for 33 yards on the next drive, finishing it with a 5-yard run to make it 35-24 with 1:13 left.
Garropolo’s 39-yard scoring strike to wide receiver Jeff LePak and a two-point pass to wide receiver Erik Lora sliced the margin to 35-32 25 seconds into the fourth quarter.
However, after an exchange of punts gave Towson the ball at the Panthers’ 42-yard line, West raced 37 yards off right end on second down to set up a 3-yard touchdown run by backup running back Darius Victor with 9:53 remaining.
Three plays after the Tigers recovered Garropolo’s fumble at the Eastern Illinois 22, West tacked on a 3-yard run with 7:33 left to seal the win.
Garropolo completed 38 of 50 passes for 321 yards and two touchdowns. Lora caught 18 passes for 129 yards and a score.
Eastern Illinois wasted no time jumping on Towson in the first quarter. Garropolo capped a 17-play, 76-yard drive by hitting Lora with a 3-yard touchdown pass with 10:13 on the clock.
After the Tigers’ first drive went three-and-out, the Panthers quickly went 63 yards in six plays. Garropolo ducked under a couple of pass rushers and covered the last 6 yards for a 14-0 lead with 7:18 left in the quarter.
Towson dominated the second quarter, getting on the board when West scored on a 9-yard run with 12:40 remaining. Backup quarterback Connor Frazier evened the score at 14 on a 4-yard run with 6:21 remaining in the first half.
West ripped off a 63-yard scoring jaunt with 4:39 left in the half, taking advantage of a nice downfield block by wide receiver Derrick Joseph and sprinting the last 30 yards untouched.
NOTES: Eastern Illinois QB Jimmy Garropolo came into Friday night’s game needing five TD passes and 347 yards to hold the FCS season records in each category. … Garropolo and Towson RB Terrance West are two of the three finalists for the 27th Walter Payton Award, the FCS’ version of the Heisman Trophy. … The referee drew some boos from the small crowd when he announced that Eastern Washington, not Eastern Illinois, took a second-quarter timeout.
