ROME, Ga. – Looking to build upon their victory over Allen University last weekend, Shorter (1-10, 0-8 Gulf South) headed south to Melbourne, Florida. On Saturday afternoon, Florida Tech (5-6, 3-5 Gulf South) spoiled the Hawks plans with a 42-3 final score.
 
The Panthers jumped out to a 35-0 start before Nicholas Pope got the Hawks on the board with a 27-yard field goal in the closing seconds of the first half.
 
The Hawks defense remained strong in the second half with Florida Tech's only score coming off of a fumble recovery in the end zone. Terrance Snellings recorded four tackles, including two sacks to boost the Hawks defense. With eight tackles, Xavier Robinson led the team with Nehemiah Reddish right behind him with seven tackles. The defense forced four fumbles in the game with Snellings, Andrew Barnes, Dacorius Jones, and Kaleb Bailey each getting credit for a forced fumble.
 
The Hawks looked to run the ball throughout the game.  When the Hawks did drop back to pass, they were fairly unsuccessful - completing just one of nine pass attempts from three different quarterbacks. The Hawks had four players with at least 25 rushing yards in the game – Tupac Lanier, Gregory Fields Jr., Trevor Smith, and Aeneas Dennis.
 
The Florida Tech game marks the final contest of the season for the Shorter Hawks. The season finishes as the most successful campaign in Shorter football since 2015.