By Craig T. Greenlee, SPECIAL TO THE JOURNAL
Photo: Jed Bines (1) gets a crushing block from WSSU teammate Roderick Fluellen.
During Winston-Salem State’s walk-through before last night’s season opener against rival N.C. A&T, quarterback Monte Purvis was asked to take stock of his supporting cast. Offensive coordinator Nick Calcutta reminded Purvis that he had sufficient help and wouldn’t have to serve as a one-man show in order for the Rams to win.
It didn’t take long for Purvis to discover that Calcutta’s observations were on target. Purvis got all the help he needed as WSSU delivered the offensive balance that it has been seeking during pre-season drills.
Purvis scored on a quarterback sneak and threw two touchdown passes as the Rams beat the Aggies 28-7 in front of a sellout crowd of 22,000 at Bowman Gray Stadium.
The game was also the MEAC opener for both teams, but the game won’t count in the standings for Winston-Salem State, which will not eligible to compete for a league title until 2010. Even so, that fact didn’t curb any enthusiasm on Winston-Salem State’s part.
“It felt great to be able to air it out a little bit,” said Purvis, who completed 9 of 15 passes for 96 yards. “Coach Calcutta pulled me to the side and explained that I need to consider all the (offensive) weapons we have this year. Looking around at who we have, there’s no reason for me to feel like everything is on my back.”
Purvis’ passing stats weren’t eye-catching, but efficient and effective. He connected with seven different receivers, which adds to the Rams’ offensive diversity. It also helped that the running game operated smoothly as Jed Bines and Brandon McRae combined to rush for more than 200 yards.
“It’s good to get that first win right out of the box to start the season,” Blount said. “Our running game opened things up for the pass. When you can be two-fold in how you attack offensively, you have a chance to be a very good football team.”
Bines, a fifth-year senior who was ruled academically ineligible for the ’06 season, didn’t display much rust from his long layoff. He ran for 125 yards on 16 carries, and McRae, his counterpart, scored on a 30-yard run and finished with 85 yards.
“I was happy to get to see Jed run again after missing him all of last season,” Blount said. “There’s going to be some very good competition between them this year. Hopefully, we can keep both of them healthy.”
Bines was elated to return to the lineup. “I just tried to do the best I was capable of doing,” he said. “Our offensive line opened some holes and I just ran through them.”
WSSU linebacker Thaddeus Griffin deflated A&T with two drive-killing interceptions that led to scores for Winston-Salem State. Griffin’s 22-yard interception return in the first quarter put the ball on A&T’s 23-yard line, which set up the Rams’ first score of the game on Purvis’ 1-yard run. WSSU added to its lead in the next quarter on an eight-play, 92-yard drive that culminated in a 19-yard scoring pass from Purvis to Bryant Bane.
Griffin got his second interception in the third quarter and the Rams seized the opportunity and went up 21-0 on McRae’s touchdown run. Purvis finished off the Aggies with a 16-yard touchdown pass to Brent Thomas on a post pattern early in the fourth quarter. The Rams drove 80 yards in five plays.
A&T answered with its only score of the evening midway through the third quarter. David Irizarry of WSSU fumbled on a punt return and A&T’s Joseph Taylor recovered on WSSU’s 26-yard line. Three plays later, Herb Miller threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Curtis Wall.
After stopping the Rams on downs, The Aggies put together another promising drive and had a second-and-goal from the WSSU 8. The Rams’ defense, however, delivered another key stop when Reginald Johnson intercepted Miller’s pass in the end zone.
“We really worked hard all during pre-season camp and it paid off tonight,” said Griffin, who recorded a team-high 10 tackles. “Our aim is to play hard and get 11 hats to the ball on every play.”
For A&T, Miller hit on 10 of 23 passes for 73 yards and a touchdown, but was intercepted three times.
“He (Miller) tried to make something happen when it wasn’t there,” Coach Lee Fobbs of the Aggies said.
N.C. A&T ran for 143 yards. Michael Ferguson led the way with 72 yards.
N.C. A&T 0 0 7 0 - 7
WSSU 7 7 7 7 - 28
First Quarter
WSSU-Purvis 1 run (M.Mitchell kick), 6:02.
Second Quarter
WSSU-Bayne 19 pass from Purvis (M.Mitchell kick), 13:16.
Third Quarter
WSSU-McRae 30 run (M.Mitchell kick), 10:53.
NCAT-Walls 21 pass from Miller (Houston kick), 7:46.
Fourth Quarter
WSSU-Thomas 16 pass from Purvis (M.Mitchell kick), 12:19.
Attendance-22,000.
TEAM STATISTICS
NCAT WSSU
First downs 11 20
Rushes-yards 38-143 47-286
Passing 73 96
Comp-Att-Int 10-21-3 9-15-0
Return Yards 33 51
Punts-Avg. 7-36.0 7-35.7
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 2-1
Penalties-Yards 6-56 6-66
Possession 28:54 31:06
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING-N.C A&T, Ferguson 16-64, Robinson 10-33, Miller 7-28, Chancellor 3-17, McNair 2-1. WSSU, Bines 16-125, McRae 15-85, Purvis 15-63, Harris 1-13.
PASSING-N.C. A&T, Miller 10-21-3-73. WSSU, Purvis 9-15-0-96.
RECEIVING-N.C. A&T, Walls 3-31, Robinson 2-(minus 5), C.Dawson 1-21, Caldwell 1-15, Lowrance 1-14, Ferguson 1-4, Chancellor 1-(minus 7). WSSU, Bayne 3-23, Thomas 1-16, Reaves 1-15, Scarborough 1-15, Hubbard 1-12, Kinzer 1-10, Fluellen 1-5.
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