by Ryan Bartels

GRAYSON, Ky. - Faulkner (1-0) started its season off in explosive fashion racking up 429 yards of total offense en route to a 63-8 knockout of Mid-South Conference foe Kentucky Christian (0-1) here in this afternoon's non-divisional opener.

The Eagles struck early and often, posting figures on the scoreboard in every quarter.

After kicker Ryan Curran pinned the Knights inside the 5-yard line on the opening boot, the defense ignited the board just 40 seconds into play when senior linebacker Daniel Johnson picked off Darius Strickland and returned it seven yards for the score. Johnson finished the game with three tackles, two fumble reccoveries, a forced fumble and a half sack as well.

The Faulkner defense was nothing short of stellar holding the home team to 193 total yards. The Eagles obliterated the Knights up front with seven sacks while allowing just 13 rushing yards in the outing.

KCU didn't find the end zone until early in the fourth quarter when backup quarterback Justin Smith found Anton Wheeler on a two-yard strike. The Knights added a two-point conversion to solidify their scoring total for the day.

Hunter Reid led the Faulkner defense with nine tackles while Kameron Ricks and Tyran Stevens had eight each.

Alex Dawson added a second interception to the Eagles' stat sheet.

Sixty percent of Faulkner's offense was generated on the ground with senior running back Joe Jones leading the way with 76 yards and a pair of touchdowns on nine touches.

Josh Gaines and Dee Williams contributed 47 and 43 yards, respectively, and Williams scored.

While the rushing package accounted for the bulk of the attack, a pair of Eagles posted notable numbers in the pocket as well.

Starting quarterback Clayton Nicholas was 11-for-13 with 134 yards and two touchdowns.

Sophomore Mason Blocker, a double-threat quarterback out of Jones County Community College, was 6-for-13 with 54 yards in the air, but was also the team's second-leading rusher with 72 yards and three touchdowns on five carries.

Wide receiver Reagan Amos was a favorite target recording 44 yards on five catches, but newcomer Jacob McCrary proved the most potent weapon down field booking 59 yards and two touchdowns on just two grabs.

"I thought we played really well," said head coach Charlie Boren, "and a big part of that really isn't the score. To be honest, we really didn't know for sure what to expect going into today. We still have a few guys out with injuries and there are with so many new faces on defense that we wanted to see how things came together. I think today shows what we are capable of doing moving forward.

"That first win is very important," he added. "It gives you confidence and we'll need that going into the next two weeks. We have two ranked opponents coming in and this is a great opportunity for us to make an impact early in order to get where we're trying to go."

Faulkner will next host No. 21 Georgetown College (Ky.) on Saturday at Billy D. Hilyer Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m.