BARBOURVILLE, Ky. - In a game of big plays, visiting Shorter (Ga.) College has a few more in its arsenal as it handed Union College a 56-41 defeat Saturday.

The Hawks (5-3 overall, 2-1 Mid-South Conference West) pounded the ball for 453 yards rushing on 72 carries and chewed up 38 minutes and 58 seconds off the clock. In all, Shorter outgained Union 470-392 in total offense and had to players gain over 150 yards rushing.

Sophomore quarterback Mike Brinkley (Anthony, Fla.) tied the school record for most touchdown passes in a game with five, but it was not enough as the Bulldogs suffered the 15-point, Homecoming loss.

Brinkley finished the game completing 17-of-24 passes for 278 yards and five scores, marking the second time he accomplished the feat. Coincidentally, he had five touchdown passes last season on Homecoming when the Bulldogs defeated Pikeville (Ky.) College 42-24.

Tied at 28-28 at the half, Shorter took the lead on a Ben Williams 1-yard run with 8:36 to go in the third quarter.

During the next few possessions, mistakes and miscues proved costly for the Bulldogs as the Hawks seized control of the contest.

Trailing 35-28, Union drove the ball deep into Shorter territory. On first and 10 at the Hawk 13, Brinkley overthrew Andrew Smith (Dalton, Ga.) as Drew Elrod was behind him and picked off the pass, giving Shorter the ball at its own 20-yard line.

The Bulldog defense stood strong, forcing the Hawks to go three and out. However, on fourth and 4, Union was called for running into the kicker, and the 5-yard penalty was enough for a Shorter first down. Later, on the same drive, Shorter was forced to punt again, but Bert Brown (Daytona, Fla.) fumbled when trying to fair catch the ball and Shorter recovered it on the Union 18.

Four plays later, Williams scored on a 2-yard run to push the Hawks' lead to 42-35 with 11:22 left in the fourth quarter.

Union countered quickly with a three-play, 65-yard drive. Peanut Manns (Ocala, Fla.) busted through three tackles en route to a 42-yard scoring run to pull the Bulldogs within 42-35 with 9:30 to play. The 42-yard scamper was the longest by any Bulldog player this season.

However, on the ensuing kickoff, Jordan Hazard returned to 70 yards to give Shorter the ball on the Union 27. The Hawks needed only four plays to capitalize on the good field position as Antwon Appleton scored on a 6-yard run to make it a 49-35 contest with 7:17 to play.

Starting on its own 23, Union turned the ball over at its 28 when Spencer Bragg recovered a Rob Brown (Daytona, Fla.) fumble. Shorter then reeled off seven plays and ate 4:10 off the clock before A.J. Cooley scored his third touchdown of the game on a 3-yard run. David Guliford's kick made the score 56-35 with 2:51 to play.

Union responded with a four-play, 78-yard scoring drive that took only 42 seconds off the clock. Brinkley hit Demetrius Davis (Marietta, Ga.) in the back of the end zone for a 7-yard scoring strike. The snap for the extra-point kick was high, and Brinkley tried to run it in for two points but was tackled on the play, leaving the score 56-41 with 1:59 remaining.

The Bulldogs attempted an on-side kick, but the Hawks recovered the ball on the Union 47. Shorter then ran the clock out to wrap up the 56-41 decision.

Cooley paced the Hawks running attack with 205 yards and three touchdown on 40 carries, while Williams ran for 150 yards and four scores on 21 carries. Appleton helped out with 93 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. Williams also completed 2-of-4 passes for 17 yards.

Manns led Union with 62 yards rushing with a score on three carries. Davis was the Bulldogs' leading receiver with five catches for 108 yards and two scores, while P.J. Burrowes (Middlesboro, Ky.) had four catches for 64 yards and a touchdown. Sean Mackey (Reddick, Fla.) had three catches for 56 yards and two touchdowns to go along with 152 kickoff return yards.

Defensively, Chris Bethel (Allensville, Ohio) had a career day with 14 total tackles. Khambrel Simpkins (Lauderhill, Fla.) had eight stops and forced a fumble.

The first quarter was a shootout as the teams combined for 35 total points. Union ended the quarter with a pair of 13-yard scoring passes to Mackey to take a 21-14 lead.

Shorter scored the next two touchdowns. Cooley added a 1-yard scoring plunge with Williams adding a 29-yard scramble to give the Hawks a 28-21 advantage with 6:31 to go in the half.

Burrowes hauled in a 7-yard pass from Brinkley with 1:23 on the clock, tying the game at 28-28.

Union (4-4 overall, 3-2 Mid-South Conference East) returns to action Nov. 7 at Campbellsville (Ky.) University. Game time is set for 1:30 p.m.

Bulldog Notes

• The 97 combined points are the most for a Union football game since a 58-36 (94 points) win over Tusculum (Tenn.) College in 1994.
• Mike Brinkley became the second player in program history to throw 20 touchdown passes in a season twice in a career. Also, he is the second player in program history to amass 50 or more touchdown passes in a career as he now has 52, trailing only Joey Waters, who threw 66.
• Union has scored 40 or more points in a game three times this season, going 2-1 in those games.