November 29th, 2025 5:00pm
From Newberry sports information:
The #3 seed and #16 ranked Newberry College Wolves (11-1) made history by winning their ninth consecutive game and advanced to the NCAA Division 2 regional final with a 24-17 road victory at #2 regional seed and #9 nationally ranked West Florida in the second round of the NCAA Division 2 playoffs in Pensacola, Fla.
Wolves quarterback Reed Charpia completed 27 of 44 passes for 416 yards and two touchdowns including an 83-yard touchdown pass to Quez Spells on the first play from scrimmage to give the Wolves a 7-0 lead and a 22-yard scoring pass to Keith Desaussure with 4:55 remaining to give Newberry the victory.
The Wolves defense stopped West Florida on fourth down at the Newberry 28-yard line with 45 seconds remaining to seal the victory.
The win improved the Wolves record in one score games to 7-0.
The 11 wins are the most in school history, surpassing the previous record of 10 wins in 2021.
Desaussure led Newberry with seven catches for 107 yards, Spells had two grabs for 90 yards, De'Andre Coleman had five catches for 75 yards, Will Young V had four catches for 59 yards and Rico Dorsey Jr. had five catches for 44 yards.
Devron Williams and Mikey Blandin each had nine total tackles, seven solo to lead the Wolves defense.
Newberry finished with 464 total yards while West Florida had 473 yards.
Newberry, just like it did in its first-round game victory over Kentucky State, never trailed, jumping out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter.
Charpia spotted Spells on the far sideline all alone, got him the ball and Spells outran the entire Argonaut defense for the score.
It was the fourth time this season that Spells scored on a play of 80-yards or better and the second on a pass reception to go along with his kickoff return and run from scrimmage of over 80 yards earlier this year.
Avery McFadden intercepted a West Florida pass on their first possession to give the Wolves the ball at the Argonaut 33-yard line.
Newberry could not cash it into points as a bad snap led to a missed field goal attempt.
Despite that, the Wolves defense forced a three and out and Newberry took over at the Wolves 35-yard line.
On the 12th play of the drive Jonah Norris scored his fourth postseason touchdown in two weeks on a one-yard run to give the Wolves a 14-0 lead with 3:43 left in the first quarter.
Charpia completed three critical passes on the drive including a 13-yard connection to Desaussure on third down, and a 34-yard pass to Dorsey that set the Wolves up at the Argonaut 15-yard line.
After a 5-yard pass to Dorsey, Norris ran the ball five consecutive times to get the Wolves into the end zone.
West Florida scored a touchdown with 6:40 left in the half, but Newberry responded by driving 71 yards to the Argonaut nine-yard line before Burke Nettles kicked a 26-yard field goal to give the Wolves a 17-7 lead.
West Florida kicked a 41-yard field goal with 1:15 left in the half and the Wolves took a 17-10 advantage into halftime.
The Argonauts had the ball to start the second half and drove 81 yards and scored to tie the game at 17 just four minutes into the third quarter.
Newberry nearly took the lead on their next possession, driving to the Argonaut 6-yard line before turning the ball over.
West Florida fought right back and drove to the Wolves 28-yard line, but Santory Jones picked off a pass on fourth down and returned it 32 yards to the Newberry 42-yard line to stop the drive.
But three plays later Newberry turned the ball over again and West Florida took over at the Wolves 43-yard line.
West Florida drove to the Wolves one-yard, but a five-yard penalty and run stops by McFadden and Cody Jones forced the Argonauts to attempt a 20-yard field goal which was plagued by a bad snap and missed wide.
Newberry drove to the West Florida 33-yard line on its next possession, but a penalty eventually forced the Wolves to punt.
The Wolves defense came up big again, forcing a three and out and Newberry took over at its own 39-yard line.
After a short gain on a running play, Charpia hit Coleman on a 25-yard connection down the near sideline and followed up with a 12-yard pass to Coleman, this time over the middle to give the Wolves a first down at the Argonaut 22-yard line.
Charpia then let go of a pass just before being hit and connected with Desaussure in the far corner of the end zone for the winning score.
West Florida's last chance started at their own 35-yard line and had first down at the Wolves 36-yard line, but Newberry turned them back on fourth down to end the game.