Missouri S&T Miners close non-conference slate looking to get back in win column at Tuskegee University

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ROLLA, Missouri  – A pair of 2-1 teams will face off for the first time ever Saturday afternoon as Missouri S&T begins the second half of its four-game road stretch with a trip to Tuskegee, Ala., to face Tuskegee University in its final non-conference game of the year.

The Miners are coming off their first loss of the season as they dropped a 52-12 decision Saturday at Drake, while Tuskegee has won two straight after suffering an opening night loss to Alabama State – who like Drake, hails from the NCAA Division I FCS ranks.  The Golden Tigers rallied for a 24-17 victory at Clark Atlanta to move over the .500 mark on the young season.

Saturday's game is S&T's last non-conference game of the year prior to its Great Lakes Valley Conference opener Sept. 29 at Southwest Baptist and with a win this weekend, the Miners would post a winning record in non-conference play for the first time since 2012.

ABOUT THE MINERS: Missouri S&T was held to 175 yards of total offense and gave up 452 through the air as It lost for the first time this season Saturday at Drake.  The Miners allowed long touchdown passes on each of Drake's first two possessions of the contest as Bulldog quarterback Grant Kraemer finished the game with six scoring passes.

Running back Aaron Moya (Canutillo, TX/Canutillo) scored the Miners' lone offensive touchdown on a three-yard run in the second quarter, while S&T's other score came when Roderick Chapman (Los Angeles, CA/Jefferson) returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown.  The return helped Chapman earn GLVC player of the week honors on special teams as he became the first player in program history to return a kickoff, punt and interception for a touchdown in his career.

Defensively, Chapman leads the GLVC in passes defended with six and has S&T's lone interception on the season, while Tershawn Wharton (University City, MO/University City) heads the conference list in tackles for a loss with five, including 2.5 sacks.  Linebacker Bo Brooks (Canutillo, TX/Canutillo) has a team-high 24 tackles, while Wharton and Landon Compton (Lamar, MO/Lamar) have 20 apiece.

On offense, quarterback Tyler Swart (Dickinson, TX/Dickinson) has completed 64 percent of his passes for 605 yards and seven touchdowns, while Braxton Graham(Seneca, MO/Seneca) leads the GLVC in both receptions with 18 and yards with 216 to go along with three scores.  Josh Brown (Gainesville, FL/North Marion HS) and Justin Vaughn (Houston, TX/George Bush) have 10 catches apiece as well, while Deshawn Jones (Olympia Fields, IL/Rich Central) leads the rushing attack with 155 yards and Moya enters this week's action with 130.



ABOUT TUSKEGEE: The Golden Tigers improved to 2-1 with the win at Clark Atlanta, as they overcame a seven-point deficit heading into the fourth quarter and scored the decisive touchdown midway through the fourth quarter on a 55-yard scoring pass from Ahmad Deramus to Peyton Ramzy.

Deramus, who got the start at quarterback last week, threw three touchdown passes in the win and earned player of the week honors from the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.  He completed 10-of-17 passes for 209 yards and threw five of those completions to Javarrius Cheathum for 105 yards and the two touchdowns.

The Golden Tigers ran for 128 yards in the win -- led by Ivonte Patterson's 62 -- and are averaging 153 yards on the ground over their first three contests of the season.  As a team, Tuskegee is averaging 376.3 yards per game on offense while the defensive unit has given up just 241.7 yards a contest.

Linebacker Ricky Norris leads the Golden Tigers with 16 tackles, while fellow linebacker Davoris Thomas has made 14 stops.  Meanwhile, defensive end Daryl Horne leads Tuskegee with 3.5 tackles for a loss and two of his team's four quarterback sacks.

While the Golden Tigers have had 34 offensive plays that have ended with a loss this season, they have averaged 8.1 yards per play on the other 154 they have ran from scrimmage.



MISSOURI UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS