RALEIGH, N.C. – Saint Augustine's University ended the regular season in
thrilling fashion.
Brian Richards
(R-Jr./Waldorf, Md.) caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Alex Munro
(So./Ashburn, Va.) with no time remaining as the Falcons rallied for a 43-42
CIAA football victory over their crosstown nemesis Shaw University before 2,500
fans at Saint Augustine's University Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 3,
2012.
The win snapped a three-game losing streak to the Bears and gave
the Falcons (6-4 overall, 4-3 CIAA) their second winning record in three
seasons. The Falcons also stayed unbeaten at home on campus in three
games.
"It was one heck of a game by all the guys," St. Aug Head Coach
Michael Costa said. "It was about dealing with adversity.
On defense, we lose two starting linebackers and guys stepped up. The
quarterback goes down and the backup steps up. It was a team effort. The most
important thing is we finished."
The Falcons drove nearly the entire
length of the field to snatch victory away from the Bears (4-6, 3-4 CIAA), who
led the entire game until the final score. The game-winning drive started on the
Falcons' 2 with 1:07 remaining in the contest and no timeouts. Aided by two Shaw
penalties and a 50-yard catch by Falcon standout Tyron Laughinghouse (Sr./Greenville, N.C.), the Falcons
were in striking distance.
The Bears were flagged twice more for holding
Laughinghouse on pass plays which put the ball on the Shaw 15 with three seconds
left. Munro, subbing in the fourth quarter for an injured Teddy Bacote (Jr./Hampton, Va.), was cool as a cucumber
under immense pressure on the final play as he found Richards in the end zone.
Richards was draped by a Shaw defender but clamped on to Munro's pass as he fell
in the end zone for the winning score. Seconds later, teammates mobbed him on
turf as the Falcon fans roared in jubilation in the stands. Moments later,
several players doused Head Coach Michael Costa with
water in the traditional victory bath.
"In the end, [Shaw] got fooled,"
Costa said. "They thought we were going to [Laughinghouse] but someone else
stepped up and made the big play."
It was a fitting ending to a wild
game. Both teams provided offensive fireworks as they combined for 911 yards.
The Falcons set season highs in points and total offensive yards (469). Both
Munro and Bacote combined for 307 passing yards and three passing touchdowns
while Laughinghouse had seven catches for 121 yards and a touchdown in his final
regular season game as a Falcon. Roderick Davenport
(Orangeburg, S.C.) rushed for a career high 112 yards and two touchdowns while
Jermaine Jones (R-Jr./Wilmington, N.C.) and Rowdy Batchelor (R-Sr./Jacksonville, N.C.) each scored a
touchdown.
The Falcons relied on an explosive offense to offset the
Bears' passing attack. James Stallons threw for 412 yards and six touchdowns on
27 of 54 passing to keep the Bears ahead until the final play. Nick Jones had
eight receptions for 104 yards, but the Falcons held standout freshman rusher
Marquise Grizzle to minus one yard. The Bears amassed 442 offensive
yards.
Victory appeared to be in the Bears' grasp when Stallons found
David Jordan on a short pass for a 42-30 lead with 3:52 left., the Bears second
12-point lead in the contest. The Falcons answered quickly with a Munro
touchdown pass to Jones with 1:36 left.
Trailing by five points and
needing the ball back, the Falcons forced the Bears to punt on the ensuing
drive. Stallons, who doubled as a punter, pinned the Falcons with a nice punt
near the Falcons' own goal line. Needing a touchdown, the Falcons faced a tough
task with no timeouts but Munro engineered the seven play, 98-yard drive for a
great Falcon win over their rival on Senior Day.
Both Laughinghouse and
defensive end Javarous Faulk
(Jr./Macon, Ga.) achieved milestones during the game. Laughinghouse, the
university's all-time leader in reception yardage, became the school
single-season touchdown leader (16), and Faulk recorded a sack to share the
school single-season mark (13) with former Falcon great Alex Hall.
The
sack capped an outstanding game for Faulk, who is hearing impaired. He tied for
team-high honors with six tackles including two tackles for loss and two
quarterback hurries. Linebacker Carlton Butts
(So./Thomasville, Ga.) also had six tackles in addition to a forced fumble. Both
Chaz Robinson (Jr./Hampton, Va.) and Bryan Jones (R-Jr./Warner Robins, Ga.) each intercepted a
pass. For Shaw, Quintero Long totaled a game-high 12 tackles and Keith Lomon
added 11.
Before the contest, ten football seniors were honored. They
were defensive back Jermaine Browne
(St. Croix, US Virgin Islands), defensive end Romeo Deloatch (Redshirt Jr./Hampton, Va.), offensive
lineman Stedman Gardner (Gastonia, N.C.), wide receiver
Franklin James (Hampton, Va.),center Rory Nixon (Hampton, Va.) defensive end Joe Reed
(Anderson, S.C.), running back Deonte Toliver
(Gaithersburg, Md.), defensive back Derrick Manning
(Waldorf, Md.), Laughinghouse and Batchelor.
COURTESY SAINT AUGUSTINE'S UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION
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