Citadel Rams 34, Apex Vipers 31
Week 6 · Regular season · round 19 · Thursday 5 November 2026
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CTD Citadel Rams | 21 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 34 |
| APX Apex Vipers | 14 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 31 |
Game recap
It came down to the final moments in round 19 of Week 6: the Citadel Rams edged the Apex Vipers 34-31. The decisive score was a 24-yard touchdown pass from Augustin Mercer-Hale to Desmond Ashcroft with 0:08 left in the fourth quarter.
The Rams opened the scoring with a 16-yard touchdown run by Bastien Hargrove with 3:24 left in the first quarter. At the break the Rams were up 24-21. Then came the fourth quarter: a 3-yard touchdown pass from Mason Okafor-Reid to Ravi Castellano for the Vipers (0:37 left, 31-27); a 24-yard touchdown pass from Augustin Mercer-Hale to Desmond Ashcroft for the Rams (0:08 left, 34-31).
The play that tilted the game came with 0:08 left in the fourth quarter: a 24-yard touchdown pass from Augustin Mercer-Hale to Desmond Ashcroft. It moved the Rams' chance of winning from 23% to 100%.
Top performer: Augustin Mercer-Hale (QB, Rams), with 22 of 29 passing for 267 yards, 2 TD; 1 carry for 6 yards and 1 TD. Elsewhere, Mason Okafor-Reid (Vipers) had 21 of 33 passing for 284 yards, 2 TD; 3 carries for 9 yards; Luther Banks (Vipers) had 10 carries for 68 yards and 1 TD; 4 catches for 92 yards and 1 TD; Desmond Ashcroft (Rams) had 7 catches for 119 yards and 1 TD.
Before kickoff, the Vipers' game plan was on offense: attack the zones, stay underneath, target Wendell Garrow; on defense: bracket Desmond Ashcroft (Wendell Garrow finished with 3 catches for 32 yards). Meanwhile, the Rams' game plan was on offense: quick game vs the blitz, attack the zones, throw it more, target Orson Ashford; on defense: bracket Wendell Garrow (Orson Ashford finished with 3 catches for 56 yards).
The Vipers move to 10-9 and the Rams to 7-11-1 this week.
Scoring summary
| Time | Team | Play | CTD-APX |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 3:24 | Rams | A 16-yard touchdown run by Bastien Hargrove (extra point missed) | 6-0 |
| Q1 1:43 | Rams | A 6-yard touchdown run by Augustin Mercer-Hale (2-pt conversion) | 14-0 |
| Q1 1:05 | Vipers | A 43-yard touchdown pass from Mason Okafor-Reid to Luther Banks (extra point) | 14-7 |
| Q1 0:59 | Rams | A 4-yard touchdown pass from Augustin Mercer-Hale to Ivo Yardley (extra point) | 21-7 |
| Q1 0:14 | Vipers | A 3-yard touchdown run by Luther Banks (extra point) | 21-14 |
| Q2 2:41 | Vipers | A 3-yard touchdown run by Fabian Varga (extra point) | 21-21 |
| Q2 0:14 | Rams | A 28-yard field goal by Adrien Garrow | 24-21 |
| Q3 2:24 | Vipers | A 28-yard field goal by Kasimir Eriksen | 24-24 |
| Q3 1:04 | Rams | A 33-yard field goal by Adrien Garrow | 27-24 |
| Q4 0:37 | Vipers | A 3-yard touchdown pass from Mason Okafor-Reid to Ravi Castellano (extra point) | 27-31 |
| Q4 0:08 | Rams | A 24-yard touchdown pass from Augustin Mercer-Hale to Desmond Ashcroft (extra point) | 34-31 |
Team stats
| CTD | APX | |
|---|---|---|
| Total yards | 354 | 414 |
| Passing yards | 267 | 284 |
| Rushing yards | 87 | 130 |
| Completions | 22 of 29 | 21 of 33 |
| Offensive plays | 50 | 60 |
| Third downs | 3 of 8 | 5 of 10 |
| Fourth downs | — | — |
| Turnovers | 0 | 0 |
| Sacks allowed | 4 | 7 |
| Time of possession | 8:16 | 7:44 |
Citadel Rams box score
Passing
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | TD | INT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Augustin Mercer-Hale | 22/29 | 267 | 2 | 0 |
Rushing
| Player | CAR | YDS | TD | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ulric Draven | 12 | 58 | 0 | 13 |
| Bastien Hargrove | 4 | 23 | 1 | 16 |
| Augustin Mercer-Hale | 1 | 6 | 1 | 6 |
Receiving
| Player | REC | YDS | TD | TGT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Desmond Ashcroft | 7 | 119 | 1 | 8 |
| Orson Ashford | 3 | 56 | 0 | 5 |
| Ivo Yardley | 6 | 54 | 1 | 6 |
| Zane Delacroix | 5 | 28 | 0 | 6 |
Defense
| Player | TK | SK | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soren Varga | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Bram Brennan | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ulric Falkner | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Pavel Falkner | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Valen Oyelaran | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cyrus Ingram | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Kicking
| Player | FG | LNG | XP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adrien Garrow | 2/2 | 33 | 2/3 |
Apex Vipers box score
Passing
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | TD | INT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mason Okafor-Reid | 21/33 | 284 | 2 | 0 |
Rushing
| Player | CAR | YDS | TD | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luther Banks | 10 | 68 | 1 | 43 |
| Fabian Varga | 7 | 53 | 1 | 29 |
| Mason Okafor-Reid | 3 | 9 | 0 | 8 |
Receiving
| Player | REC | YDS | TD | TGT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luther Banks | 4 | 92 | 1 | 5 |
| Pavel Garrow | 4 | 66 | 0 | 4 |
| Ravi Castellano | 5 | 54 | 1 | 10 |
| Wendell Garrow | 3 | 32 | 0 | 5 |
Defense
| Player | TK | SK | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soren Falkner | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Matteo Falkner | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Wendell Pellegrini | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jonas Draven | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hector Hargrove | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Matteo Zamora | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Kicking
| Player | FG | LNG | XP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kasimir Eriksen | 1/1 | 28 | 4/4 |
Watch the replay
Every play of this game can be replayed on the big screen, with the play calls, the win probability and the commentary: replay Citadel Rams 34, Apex Vipers 31 on Snapline. More about the teams: Apex Vipers · Citadel Rams.