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On Friday, September 5th, the Troy Trojans traveled to face the South Williamsport Mountaineers — and left no doubt about who owned the night. Powered by quarterback Mason Smith’s explosive four-touchdown performance, the Trojans dominated from start to finish, securing a commanding 42-13 victory.

The opening quarter started as a defensive stalemate, with both teams trading stops. Late in the first, South Williamsport threatened inside the red zone, but the Trojan defense stood tall, forcing a critical turnover on downs to keep the game scoreless.

Moments later, Smith made his presence known. On a second-and-seven from Troy’s own 11-yard line, he faked the handoff, kept the ball himself, and blazed 89 yards to the end zone. Gavin Lykon-Leffler’s extra point was good, giving Troy an early 7-0 lead.

With seven minutes left in the second quarter, Smith struck again on a quarterback option, slicing through the Mountaineer defense for another score. After the PAT, Troy extended its advantage to 14-0.

South Williamsport finally answered back. Quarterback Cole Gerber dropped back and delivered a deep strike to the corner of the end zone, where Levi Butler hauled it in for the Mountaineers’ first touchdown. A missed extra point kept the score 14-6.

The Trojans wasted no time responding. Just before halftime, Smith broke free on the outside for his third touchdown of the night, putting Troy comfortably ahead 21-6 heading into the locker room.

The second half was all Troy. Opening the third quarter from their own 39, Smith followed lead blocker Kael Millard deep into Mountaineer territory. Two plays later, Smith faked the handoff and sprinted untouched for his fourth touchdown, extending the lead to 28-6.

Then came the turning point. With five minutes left in the third, South Williamsport threatened again, but Spencer Martin read Gerber’s pass perfectly and came down with a momentum-swinging interception. On the very next play, Smith launched a dart under pressure to Josiah Pesesky, who hauled it in for another Trojan touchdown, making it 35-6.

In the fourth quarter, Troy added one more score when Smith found Trey Teribury on the outside, who fought his way into the end zone. South Williamsport managed one final touchdown drive, capped by Cade Lusk’s goal-line plunge, but it was too little, too late.

With the 42-13 victory, the Trojans improve to 2-1 and look every bit like a team on a mission. They’ll be back on the road Friday, September 12th, as they take on the Athens Wildcats in another key matchup.