ELON, N.C. (Interstat) — Elijah Guttman passed for 179 yards and one touchdown, and Elon defeated Maine 43-17 on Saturday in an NCAA Football Championship Division game at Rhodes Stadium. The Phoenix improved to 4-1. The Black Bears fell to 1-4. Elon scored 14 points in the first quarter, 10 in the second, 14 in the third and five in the fourth. Maine scored three points in the first quarter, seven in the second and seven in the third.

Guttman, a 6-foot-2, 193-pound quarterback from Cincinnati, Ohio, completed 11 of 29 passes for 179 yards and one touchdown. He also led an Elon passing attack that finished with 179 yards. Caden Drezek, a 6-foot-2, 225-pound quarterback from Seymour, Connecticut, completed 5 of 12 passes for 60 yards and one touchdown for Maine. Eddie Buehler also played quarterback for the Black Bears and completed 14 of 35 passes for 88 yards while adding six carries for 22 yards.

Rashawn Marshall, a 5-foot-10, 170-pound running back from Newark, New Jersey, powered Maine on the ground with 14 carries for 105 yards and one touchdown, and he added one reception for 11 yards. Nick Laughlin, a 5-foot-10, 200-pound wide receiver from Cape Elizabeth, Maine, ran nine times for 34 yards and caught three passes for 30 yards. Isaiah Jones, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound running back from Orange, Massachusetts, had two carries for six yards, and Aidan Winter had one carry for six yards. Evan Wallace, a 5-foot-11, 186-pound running back from Simsbury, Connecticut, caught two passes for nine yards. Elijah Smalls, a 6-foot-5, 245-pound tight end from Egg Harbor City, New Jersey, caught two passes for 22 yards. Sebastian Ramery added two receptions for 17 yards. Malik McNeely, a 6-foot-4, 190-pound wide receiver from Huntington, West Virginia, had two catches for 16 yards. Jake Kucera, a 5-foot-10, 180-pound defensive back from Downingtown, Pennsylvania, caught one pass for 13 yards and made four tackles. Kevin Jackson caught one pass for eight yards, made two tackles and scored a touchdown. Ty’ee Stephens, a 6-foot-2, 185-pound wide receiver from Richmond, Virginia, and Major Leak, a 6-foot-1, 193-pound wide receiver from Charlotte, North Carolina, each caught one pass for seven yards. Corey Rideout had one reception for five yards. Eli Mahan, a 6-foot-4, 250-pound tight end from Fryeburg, Maine, caught two passes for three yards. Juelz Russell, a 5-foot-10, 187-pound wide receiver from Rochester, New York, returned one kickoff for 12 yards and one punt for one yard.

Defensively for Maine, Jeremiah McGill, a 5-foot-11, 185-pound safety from Broward County, Florida, recorded eight tackles and one interception. Sam Oppenheimer, a 5-foot-11, 206-pound linebacker from Alpharetta, Georgia, had six tackles. Derek Berlitz, a 6-foot-1, 258-pound defender from Catawissa, Pennsylvania, added five tackles. Noah Carpenter, a 6-foot-1, 210-pound quarterback from Greene, Maine, finished with five tackles and one quarterback hurry. Jamaree Gibson, a 6-foot, 182-pound defensive back from Rochester, New York, and Brayden Isaiah, a 6-foot, 175-pound defensive back from Charlotte, North Carolina, each made three tackles. Ronalon Renwick, a 6-foot-4, 198-pound defensive back from Clayton, North Carolina, Amari Mack, a 6-foot, 200-pound defensive back from Raleigh, North Carolina, Ty McLeer and Jayden Brown each had two tackles. Chris Bacon posted one tackle, one sack and one quarterback hurry. Shane Keyes-Wilson, a 6-foot-1, 209-pound linebacker from Toronto, Canada, had one tackle and one quarterback hurry. Dillon White, a 6-foot-4, 265-pound defender from Brewster, Massachusetts, Erv Wiggins Jr., a 5-foot-8, 176-pound defensive back from Rochester, New York, Alex Nash-Lally, a 5-foot-11, 185-pound safety from Harmony, Florida, and Kye Pressley, a 6-foot, 245-pound defender from Pine Hill, New Jersey, each made one tackle.

Elon’s defense was led by Derek Hite, a 6-foot-1, 225-pound linebacker from Loretto, Pennsylvania, with 10 tackles. Brodie Carroll, a 6-foot-1, 240-pound linebacker from Gainesville, Virginia, added nine tackles, and Tony Hart III, a 6-foot-2, 206-pound defensive back from Baltimore, Maryland, had eight. Owen Moreland, a 6-foot, 220-pound linebacker from Beverly, Massachusetts, and Remington Moss each made five tackles. Codey Larkins had two tackles. Landyn Backey, a 5-foot-10, 180-pound wide receiver from Monroe, North Carolina, caught one pass for seven yards and made one tackle. Jaedon Alford caught two passes for 42 yards. Brendan Hester had one reception for 16 yards.

On special teams, Anthony Pecorella, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound punter from Malverne, New York, punted seven times for 299 yards and made one tackle for Maine. Ty Boone, a 5-foot-11, 188-pound wide receiver from Stillwater, Canada, returned two kickoffs for 52 yards. Connor Dunn punted three times for 102 yards for Elon, and Carter Stimson punted four times for 163 yards. Luke Barnes, a 6-foot-6, 220-pound kicker from Greensboro, North Carolina, handled kicking duties for the Phoenix, while Samuel Tremblay, a 5-foot-10, 185-pound kicker from Quebec City, Canada, kicked for the Black Bears. Maine also recorded two punts for zero yards as a team.

Key plays included a 39-yard field goal by Barnes in the first quarter, a missed 22-yard attempt by Barnes, a blocked punt by C. Hector that produced an Elon safety, a 24-yard field goal by Tremblay in the second quarter, a 55-yard touchdown run by K. McDowell-Moore, a 30-yard touchdown run by Marshall in the third quarter, a 6-yard touchdown run by McDowell-Moore, a 34-yard field goal by Barnes, a 39-yard touchdown pass from T. Crews IV to Kenaz McMillian in the fourth quarter, a 1-yard touchdown run by D. Magazu, and an 8-yard touchdown pass from Drezek to Jackson.

Maine opened the season with a win at Towson, then lost at Appalachian State, fell to Merrimack and dropped a road game at Boston College. Elon opened with a win over Glenville State, beat Davidson, lost at Rhode Island and beat Sacred Heart. Maine will next host Sacred Heart before home games against Bryant and Campbell and road matchups at Rhode Island and Albany. Elon will visit New Hampshire, host Wofford, visit Stanford, visit North Carolina A&T, host Hampton, host Campbell and visit Towson.

Elon improved to 4-1 with the win, and Maine dropped to 1-4. The Phoenix scored in every quarter and finished with 43 points, while the Black Bears were limited to 17 points. Guttman’s 179 passing yards led all passers. Marshall’s 105 rushing yards led all rushers.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Elon 36, Maine 29. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Elon with a 75.2 percent probability to win. Maine had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of +5.5. The total score of 60 went under the over/under line of 44.5.