Eastern quarterback Matt Schabert threw for three touchdowns and running back Vincent Webb ran for 147 yards and a touchdown in the Panthers last game of Ohio Valley Conference play in Birmingham, Ala.

While the Panther offense rolled, Eastern’s defense had another strong performance. The Panthers shut down the Bulldog offense, considering they held their top two offensive producers under their season average. Samford quarterback Ray Nelson, who is fourth in the nation in total yardage a game, averaged 250 yards passing and 72 yards rushing going into the game but was held to 204 yards passing and 19 yards rushing.

“We have the best defensive backs in the conference, and they shut down Effrem (Hill),” Eastern defensive end Kory Lothe said. “Once we did that we focused on Nelson and put pressure on him.”

Bulldog receiver Effrem Hill leads the OVC in receiving yards per game with 90 but was held to just 28 yards. Going into the game Hill needed just 44 yards to have his second straight 1,000-yard season but was held short by the Panthers.

“(Nelson and Hill) were two guys we knew we needed to stop,” Eastern defensive coordinator Roc Bellantoni said. “That’s more than 10 other teams (that Samford played) could do.”

The Bulldogs (4-7, 3-5) ended the game with 304 total yards, 85 yards under their season average.

Schabert was 21 of 25 passing for 217 yards and no interceptions and for the third straight game he connected with 10 or more receivers. Schabert said he laughed after the first game it happened because it’s unusual to hit that many different players then was surprised to repeat the feat two more times.

“We rotate in a lot of receivers who can all make plays,” Schabert said. “You can falter when you lock in on one guy all the time.”

Schabert has confidence in all his receivers and backs, which helps him when he’s reading defenses because he knows he can hit the number three or four option just as easily as the first or second option.

Webb ran for his sixth 100-yard game this season with 147 yards, putting his season total at 1,142 rushing yards, and the Panthers had 237 total yards on the ground.

“Going into the game we figured the best way to win was with a balanced offense,” Schabert said. “Teams who just tried to throw or just tried to run against (Samford) got stopped.”

The Panthers ended the conference season 4-4 and were 5-6 overall, one win better than a year ago.

“It took us 11 games, but everything finally came together,” Bellantoni said. “We were great in every facet of the game.

“It was a great way to end a frustrating season.”