NMSU avoids scare against Pine Bluff

Photo: The Golden Lion defense gives NMSU more problems than anticipated.

By Teddy Feinberg/Las Cruces Sun-News

LAS CRUCES — The New Mexico State Aggies avoided a major scare on Saturday night.

Still questions remain about the team heading into the second half of the season.

NMSU (3-2) squeaked by Arkansas-Pine Bluff 20-17 behind a Paul Young 37-yard field goal with .7-seconds remaining in regulation. Pine Bluff (1-4), a Division 1-AA program, came in as serious underdogs but gave the Aggies all they could handle and then some. It was the Golden Lions first Division 1 game for a program that has existed for over 100 years.

"They came in here and we let them stay in the game with us and they took it," Mumme said. "They made plays."

There are concerns following Saturday's game that go beyond the final score however. Quarterback Chase Holbrook took a vicious shot midway through the fourth quarter that forced him to come out for an extended period of time. Holbrook eventually did return to lead the team downfield on the game winning drive, but was noticeably shook up throughout the closing minutes of the contest.

Mumme said that Holbrook injured his ribs and that his status is uncertain at this point.

"They're looking at him," Mumme said of Holbrook and the medical staff. "It's his ribs."

Another red flag was just how badly NMSU struggled against the Golden Lions. NMSU's vaunted offense outgained UAPB by just 70 yards (297-367), and the Aggies secondary gave up 234-yards passing. Pine Bluff's feature runner Martell Mallet ran for 87 yards on 18 carries and gave NMSU fits throughout.

"We made some mistakes," Floyd said. "Some people got blocked, some people were out of position at times and sometimes we were in the right positions and missed some tackles."

After taking a 10-0 lead early on and eventually a 17-7 advantage, NMSU let the Golden Lions back in the game.

After kicking a field goal at the halftime horn to cut the lead down to seven, Pine Bluff came out in the second half and drove immediately downfield. Two third-down plays highlighted the scoring march. The first one came on third-and-22 from midfield, when quarterback Johnathan Moore dumped it off to Mallett near the line of scrimmage. Mallett gutted the middle of the Aggie defense, breaking tackles and barreling his way down to the NMSU 27 for the first down.

Three plays later, facing a third-and-10, Moore felt pressure and lobbed a ball down towards the goalline. Jason Jones came down with it, outleaping cornerback Chris Woods at the 1 before falling to the ground. Mallett took it in on a pitch-right two plays later. The extra point tied things at 17.

"It just seemed like we were flat even during warmups," safety Derrick Richardson said. "They definitely were better than we thought they were."

The score remained deadlocked at 17 until late in the fourth quarter with Pine Bluff threatening. With the ball at the NMSU 28 on third-and-5, Moore went for the endzone. The ball was tipped by Alex Bernard and picked by Richardson, who fell to the ground for the touchback with 2:30 remaining in regulation.

Two plays later, backup quarterback J.J. McDermott threw a fade down the right sideline for Chris Williams, who was bumped by cornerback Jermaine Clemmons while going up for the ball. The officials threw the flag, calling a pass interference penalty on the play, a 15-yard infraction.

"It was definitely a good call," Williams said. "I went up and he ran right into me."

Holbrook re-entered the game and helped move the ball down the Pine Bluff 20. Holbrook hit wide receiver Wes Neiman on third-and-6 from the Pine Bluff 47 for an 18 yard pickup with just under a minute remaining.

The Aggies got the ball down to the 20 when Young lined up for his 37-yarder.

"I'd thought he'd make it," Mumme said. "I'm pretty optimistic all the time."

15,329 fans came out for Saturday night's game, highlighted by the

Tough Enough to Wear Pink fundraiser. Mumme's wife June led the charge as part of a breast cancer awareness movement. Thousands of fans came out dressed in pink in support of the cause. Over $225,000 was generated coming into the evening, with donations still expected to come.

UAPB Golden Lions go to wire with NMSU

By Mike Marzelli/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF

LAS CRUCES, N.M. — Oliver Stone couldn’t have penned a more stunning script than the one that very nearly unfolded Saturday evening.
In almost completing a turnaround that could have easily been ripped from a Hollywood movie, an Arkansas-Pine Bluff team that couldn’t have been more down and out after a humbling 55-point loss just seven days ago waltzed into New Mexico State and outplayed what was supposed to be the most difficult opponent in school history, but fell just short when Paul Young booted a game-winning 37-yard field goal on the last play from scrimmage to allow the Aggies to escape with a 20-17 win before 15,329 pink-clad fans.

State was put in position for its final drive after UAPB (1-4 1-2 Southwestern Athletic Conference) squandered a golden opportunity to grab the lead when quarterback Johnathan Moore was intercepted in the end zone by the Aggies’ Derrick Richardson with 2:36 to play after the Lions had driven down to the 28-yard line.

NMSU (3-2) backup quarterback J.J. McDermott opened the game-winning drive under center after starting quarterback Chase Holbrook was knocked from the game on the previous series, but Holbrook returned after McDermott moved the ball to his own 45-yard line and completed the 11-play, 60-yard drive to set up Young on the right hash mark of UAPB 20-yard line. The end-over-end kick was right down the middle and set off fireworks and a stadium-wide celebration.

“I thought our kids accepted the challenge and we took it down to the wire, we just came up short,” said UAPB head coach Mo Forte, who coached the game from the press box. “ Our defense played really well and our offense finally generated some yards and we put it all together and had some chances, we just didn’t finish it off.”

UAPB showed a renewed sense of confidence and a far better execution in racking up 297 total yards. Moore played his best game of the season, completing 16-of-34 for 234 yards and a touchdown, while wide receiver Jason Jones caught five passes for 64 yards and Raymond Webber hauled in three for 32 yards and a touchdown.

The passing game was sparked by a modest yet much-improved running game, led by Martell Mallett’s 84 yards and a touchdown, but the biggest improvement came up front, where UAPB’s offensive line put together an effort that easily surpassed anything it had shown to date.

“We knew that if their quarterback got hot they could really cause us some problems but their offensive line really surprised us,” New Mexico State coach Hal Mumme said. “We didn’t underestimate them because we knew they have athletes, my hat just goes off to coach Forte because his team played great.”

The Golden Lions played equally well on defense, holding one of the NCAA’s top offenses to 367 yards and limiting Holbrook, who has been mentioned as a dark horse Heisman Trophy candidate, to 246 yards and an interception just one week after giving up 58 points to Southern Illinois.

“Last week was just an off week and we were embarrassed,” UAPB defensive end Ledarius Anthony said. “This week the defense came together and the offense played its best game all year and we had the game in our hands, it just slipped away from us.”

Down 10-7 after 30 minutes, the overwhelming underdogs from Pine Bluff could have called it a night after first half and left with a moral victory. Instead, they showed that they meant business on the first drive of the third quarter, converting a 3rd-and-11 from the State 27-yard line with a 26-yard pass to Jones and tying the game two plays later on a 1-yard Mallett touchdown run. The 11-play drive covered 70 yards in 5:05, yet more than anything it signified that the contest was far from over.

The teams traded blanks for the next 30 minutes of the game, with a missed 42-yard field goal from Heflin and a botched 34-yard attempt by State’s Paul Young the only serious threats during the stretch until the final second.

“Our guys were confident even after last week and they played that way,” Forte said. “We knew we could play with these guys and we hung around the whole way.”

The Golden Lions fell behind 10-0 right off the bat, but unlike last week they refused to fold. After consecutive three-and-outs to open the game, UAPB’s offense bounced back from the deficit with an 8-play, 89-yard drive in just 2:55, culminating with a 17-yard touchdown from Moore to Webber at the 3:04 mark of the first quarter.

Things could have gotten even closer midway through the second quarter when defensive linemen Kenneth Leichman forced Tonny Glynn fumble and cornerback Menall Webster fell on it at the Aggie 39-yard line, but UAPB’s drive stalled at the 14-yard line when Mallett was stuffed on a 4th-and-1.

New Mexico State rallied around the defensive stand, turned around and drove 85 yards in 10 plays to take a 17-7, however that did not put a stop to the Lions’ furious charge, as they marched right back down the field and got a 43-yard Brodie Heflin field goal on the final play of the first half to head into the locker room down 17-10.

UAPB could have gotten more out of the drive but twice let more than 20 seconds run off the game clock without calling time out despite the fact that they had all three time outs remaining.

The Golden Lions will be off this week before returning to SWAC play on Oct. 13 when they will face Grambling State in the Delta Classic for Literacy Little Rock.

NCCU Eagles' tough 'D' has its work cut out today

ON THE AIR: NCCU vs. Presbyterian College, 2 p.m., Internet TV: http://www.jarvistv.com/nccu/index.asp

By MIKE POTTER, The Herald-Sun

N.C. Central has been making plenty of history on the football field over the last couple of seasons, and the Eagles will be making some more today no matter whether they win or lose.

Mose Rison's 4-1 Eagles will carry the state's longest active college football winning streak into the game today at 2 p.m., when they host 1-3 Presbyterian at O'Kelly-Riddick Stadium. It will be the schools' first meeting in football.

The game is historic because it marks the first time that NCCU, which is in its first season as a member of the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly NCAA Division I-AA), will face a fellow FCS team at home.

In fact the Eagles and the Blue Hose are the only two teams in their first season in the FCS, thus the easy idea of beginning a home-and-home series.

"They're going to find out where they are and we're going to find out where we are," said Rison, a career veteran of the college assistant-coaching ranks who is in his first season at the Eagles' helm.

Presbyterian coach Bobby Bentley also is in his first season at the helm after a long career as a successful high school coach in South Carolina.

"It's been an experience so far," said Bentley, whose team's losses have come to established FCS teams in Furman, Samford and Western Carolina. "I think we're hanging in there. Our guys are playing hard. And in the Samford and Western Carolina games we've been in the game into the fourth quarter."

This could be the best team NCCU has played this season, as the first four games were against Division II teams and Saturday's win at N.C. A&T stretched the FCS-level Aggies' losing streak to 20 games.

And it should be a major contrast in styles. While the Eagles have won with defense, the Blue Hose -- who before this season were members of the Division II South Atlantic Conference -- have rolled up the offensive yardage.

The Eagles are averaging 215 yards total offense and allowing 263, while Presbyterian is producing 462.2 yards per game and allowing 418.2.

"This is a very, very good football team we're playing," Rison said. "They have an extremely talented quarterback [junior Grayson Mullins] and they love to throw the football. And they have played a very tough schedule."

Mullins has completed 66 of 123 passes for 960 yards with nine touchdowns and five interceptions. With a more conservative-type attack NCCU's Stadford Brown has completed 58 of 115 for 604 yards with seven touchdowns and three interceptions.

Presbyterian's sophomore running back S.J. Worrell has 215 rushing yards on 42 carries, and has caught 16 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns.

The Eagles have had a solid 1-2 junior punch at the wideout spots, as Wayne Blackwell has 16 catches for 201 yards and three touchdowns while Will Scott has 11 catches for 203 yards and three TDs.

And each team has a big-play defensive back. NCCU senior cornerback Craig Amos has three interceptions, five breakups, three fumble recoveries and two blocked kicks. Presbyterian's junior strong safety Anthony McKnight has four tackles-for-losses, an interception and four deflected passes.

NOTES -- NCCU schedule for this season includes five Division II opponents, four FCS members and one team (Western Kentucky) that is transitioning from the FCS to the Football Bowl Subdivision. Presbyterian's 11-game slate has eight FCS opponents (all on the road), two Division II teams and NAIA member Pikeville College. The only common opponent is Division II North Greenville, which will play at Presbyterian next weekend and then be the Eagles' homecoming opponent on Oct. 13.

KEYS TO THE GAME

Can the Eagles slow down Presbyterian's offense?

The Blue Hose start with the aerial show off the arm of junior QB Grayson Mullins, and the team averages 342.5 yards through the air. NCCU has 10 interceptions and has allowed one passing touchdown in five games, so when the visitors have the ball it's going to be strength on strength and should be fun to watch. The Eagles are going to need a couple of interceptions, and a sack or two wouldn't hurt.

Will the NCCU offense continue to get better?

NCCU isn't flashy with the ball, but can some up with the occasional big play. And QB Stadford Brown, with a more limited array of weapons than last season, has shown plenty of patience. Freshman RB Tim Shankle is starting to show flashes of brilliance along with freshman WR Deshawn Spears. And freshman Taylor Gray's kicks are improving.

Will the Eagles be able to focus?

Football fans around the area who rarely pay attention to NCCU are still talking about the fight that happened after the close victory over N.C. A&T. But the folks from Presbyterian don't care. It's not a rivalry now, but these are the only teams in their first season in Division I (Football Championship Subdivision). This is NCCU's biggest challenge to date.

THE PICK

N.C. Central 27, Presbyterian 21

Howard's offense is expected to keep WSSU occupied

Photo: Senior QB BRIAN JOHNSON #13, (53 of 85, 537 yards, 6 TD; 49 carries, 236 yards) hands ball off to #28 Frank Berchie.

ON THE AIR: Internet TV broadcast, www.howard-bison.com/ or http://www.broadcasturban.net/player/hubison/player.htm (direct link)

WSSU: Radio, WSNC 90.5 with Maurice "Big Mo" Stanfield.

Game Time: 1:00 p.m. today, Greene Stadium, Washington, DC.

By John Dell, JOURNAL REPORTER

Winston-Salem State’s long and winding road trip will continue today at Howard.

The Rams (2-2) will play their fourth straight road game in a string of six, taking on the Bison (0-3) at 1 p.m. at Greene Stadium in Washington.

Howard, under first-year coach Carey Bailey, has lost to Hampton, Florida A&M and Eastern Michigan, but Coach Kermit Blount of WSSU doesn’t want his team to take the Bison lightly.

“Our players have to know it’s still a four-quarter game,” said Blount, who was once an assistant at Howard. “We’ve got to play four quarters no matter who we’re playing.”

The defense has kept the Rams in games all season, and it will have another challenge today with Howard’s Brian Johnson, one of the most versatile quarterbacks in the MEAC.

Johnson, a 6-0, 190-pound senior and junior-college transfer, took over as the starter late last season and guided the Bison to four wins in their last five games. This season, he is second in the MEAC in passing with an average of 179 yards and second in total offense with an average of 258 yards. He has completed 53 of 85 passes for 537 yards and six touchdowns, with two interceptions, and has rushed for 236 yards.

“We have to contain him and not let him get outside the pocket,” Blount said. “Our ends (William Hayes and Michael Moore) have to contain him and try to put a little heat on him. We have to try to put some pressure on him and force him to make some errant throws and kind of frustrate him a little bit.”

Blount said that his offense needs to be more consistent and sustain some long drives, something it hasn’t done since a season-opening win against N.C. A&T. The Rams’ defense has been on the field often in the last three games.

Quarterback Monte Purvis, who suffered a sprained left shoulder in last week’s 20-7 loss to S.C. State, has missed a lot of practice time this week and is listed as probable. If he can’t go, Jarrett Dunston will make his first start.

“If Monte’s not at least 90 percent healthy by the end of the week, then he won’t play,” Blount said.

No matter who the quarterback is, finding some kind of flow would be helpful.

“The thing we’ve talked about is throwing the football more on first down and getting some completions,” Blount said. “We want to stay out of third and long and get out of that cycle. We really need to do that if we want to keep moving the ball.”

Blount said that playing six straight road games isn’t ideal but that it isn’t a reason to make excuses.

“I don’t want to blame it on anything like that,” Blount said of last week’s loss. “We’ll be on the road for our fourth straight road game, and I’m not going to say the kids are tired or the coaches are tired. The bottom line is we didn’t execute, and we jumped offsides in that last drive against South Carolina State and kind of shot ourselves in the foot.”

WSSU forced four turnovers against S.C. State, but the offense failed to take advantage.

“We need to get our offense consistent,” Blount said. “That’s something we’ve been working on all season. One thing I can’t complain about is this team’s effort. I think it’s one of the hardest-working teams we’ve ever had here.”

Notes: Linebacker Thad Griffin leads the Rams in tackles with 41. He has been the leading tackler the last two seasons…. Howard is ranked sixth in the MEAC in scoring (18.7 ppg) and eight in points allowed (33 ppg)…. Blount has a 1-2 record against Howard, with the win coming last season at Bowman Gray Stadium, 12-0.

UAPB faces another difficult assignment

BY BECK CROSS, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

LAS CRUCES, N. M. — Arkansas-Pine Bluff Coach Mo Forte insists he’s not looking for any moral victories when the Golden Lions take on New Mexico State tonight at Aggie Memorial Stadium.

“No, I won’t be led down that road,” Forte said. “The bottom line for me is winning, and that’s the way it’s always going to be.”

Pulling off a victory against New Mexico State could be a far-fetched notion for even the staunchest optimist.

The Golden Lions (1-3 ) are coming off a 58-3 loss last week at Southern Illinois, marking its worst rout in four seasons under Forte and the program’s worst since a 63-0 loss to Mississippi Valley State in 1983.

UAPB’s defense, which had been top-ranked in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, gave up almost 600 yards in total offense to the Salukis.

“Any time you get beat like we got beat, the kids come back to practice more enthused,” UAPB defensive coordinator Monte Coleman said “They [players ] were embarrassed, and we [coaches ] were embarrassed. We don’t want to have that happen again, so they came back and had a good week of practice.”

Offensively, it’s been a struggle from the beginning. UAPB, which last year boasted the top-ranked offense in the SWAC, has scored only 10. 8 points per game. The Golden Lions’ average of 222. 8 yards a game in total offense ranks ninth in the SWAC.

Against Southern Illinois, UAPB had only 51 yards of total offense in the first half and trailed 30-0 at halftime.

“The same thing that plagued us last week is the same thing that’s bothered us all year,” Forte said. “We just haven’t been able to generate any offense on a consistent basis.” On paper, New Mexico State’s offense is even more talented than Southern Illinois’. New Mexico State ranks seventh in the nation in passing offense with 363. 8 yards per game and is 16 th nationally in total offense with 487. 2 yards a game. Junior quarterback Chase Holbrook is eighth nationally

ense (355. 8 yards per game ) and 21 st in passing efficiency (152. 7 ). Junior wide receiver Chris Williams had 109 yards in receiving last week against Auburn to mark his third consecutive 100-yard game. New Mexico State led Auburn 20-14 last week on the road late in the second quarter before losing 42-20.

“I knew this was a tough schedule going into the season,” Forte said. “But you want to have tough games because your team is never going to know how good they are unless they play tough teams.

“ We’re playing a very talented Division I team and that’s going to be good for us in the long run.” Arkansas-Pine Bluff vs. New Mexico St. WHEN 7 p. m. Central today WHERE Aggie Memorial Stadium, Las Cruces, N. M. RECORDS UAPB 1-3; New Mexico State 2-2 COACHES Maurice “Mo” Forte (18-18 in fourth season at UAPB, 66-86-1 in 14 th season overall ); Hal Mumme (6-22 in third season at New Mexico State, 103-86-1 in 17 th season overall ) SERIES First meeting RADIO KUAP-FM, 89. 7, in Pine Bluff

DSU faces big test at Hampton

By KRISTIAN POPE, The News Journal

Win would give Hornets significant boost in chase for MEAC title

DOVER -- A conversation this week between a Delaware State assistant football coach and a Hornets player ended with a rather urgent statement, considering it is still September.

"He said if we don't win this game," junior fullback Adam Shrewsbury said of today's game at No. 13 Hampton, "then our season is over."

While no DSU coaches were willing to make that statement publicly, it hit home with guys like Shrewsbury, who feel the program's push to win a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship.

Photo: DSU Coach Al Lavan Hornets are ready for Hampton.

Is today's game DSU's most important of the season?

"That's what it is," Shrewsbury said. "But every game is going to be like that. We're not promised anything. It's the biggest game of the season, but every game will be the biggest from this point."

Just three games into the season, and with virtually the entire schedule of league games remaining, here's how the postseason looks for DSU (2-1, 1-0 MEAC) heading into today's game:

Hampton, while not the overwhelming power it was last season, appears to be the best team in the MEAC. The Pirates are 3-0, with all their wins over MEAC teams.

If the Hornets lose today, they would need Hampton to lose twice in MEAC play in order to have a chance at the regular-season championship and automatic berth in the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs.

South Carolina State (2-2, 2-0 MEAC), the preseason favorite, travels to Hampton on Oct. 20 and plays host to DSU on Oct. 27. Either one of those games could determine the champion.

"Every game [from] here out is for the MEAC championship," DSU senior defensive lineman Kelly Rouse said. "But they're [Hampton] the champs. You got to knock off the champs."

Beating Hampton on its own turf hasn't been easy for DSU. The last time it happened was 1969, when coach Arnold Jeter led DSU to a 20-0 win.

The teams didn't meet from 1971 to 1994. Since the series resumed in 1995, Hampton has gone 11-1 against the Hornets.

QUICKSLANTS: Grambling vs. Prairie View

By Nick Deriso, The News Star

First-year Grambling coach Rod Broadway isn’t in an overconfident mood, despite an emotional win over the league’s reigning champ last week — and the Tigers’ recent success against Prairie View.
“I hope our guys can get ready to play,” Broadway said. “Our goal is to improve weekly. The team that continues to improve is the one with a pretty good record at the end of the year.”

GSU hasn’t lost to Prairie View since 1986.

FIXING ‘A LOT OF STUFF’
Alabama A&M coach Anthony Jones said he is starting over after a 31-6 drubbing at Grambling.

Asked during the league’s Monday coaches teleconference if he saw adjustments that needed to be made on offense, which had been averaging 45 points a game, Jones answered simply: “Yes.”

Asked to elaborate, at first he only said: “A lot of stuff. … a lot of stuff.”

Jones summed up the Grambling game like this: “They have a very good football team,” he said. “They’re talented; they’ve got size; they’ve got strength. They’ve got some kids who love to play football and they play it with passion.”

The Bulldogs have never won consecutive games over Grambling. Up next is Texas Southern, a team that pulled off a stunning upset in 2005 as A&M advanced to the first of two consecutive SWAC title matches.

FINALLY, A SCORE
Clyde Edwards notched a receiving touchdown against A&M last week, something the Grambling senior had somehow failed to do over four previous meetings.

“They blitz us, sending everybody they possibly can,” Edwards said. “A lot times that leaves the slot man (Henry Tolbert, in the past) open. That meant I had decent games, but I just hadn’t scored against them yet.”

He had five catches for 51 yards, giving Edwards 20 career receptions for 290 yards against A&M.


ENEMY LINES: PRAIRIE VIEW A&M
Prairie View’s bye week couldn’t have come at a better time for its passing game.

The Panthers (2-1 overall; 1-1 in the SWAC) have no touchdown passes versus five picks so far in ’07, and were held scoreless in their most recent game — a 12-2 loss to Southern.

“We are throwing the ball around, but we are still a work in progress,” said Prairie View coach Henry Frazier. “It’s a combination of protecting quarterback, and getting that chemistry down.”

The Panthers, ranked No. 10 after Week 3 in the Sheridan Broadcasting Network poll, sit at the bottom of the SWAC with four offensive touchdowns so far in 2007, but rank No. 7 overall with 259 yards a game.

Versatile Prairie View quarterback Chris Gibson’s 60 rushing yards a night have made him the No. 6 rusher in the SWAC. (Only four running backs have more touchdowns.) But Gibson’s 104 passing yards a game rank at the bottom among starters in the SWAC, and only one quarterback has a worse completion percentage.

Frazier admits that Prairie View recognizes the challenge ahead against a remade GSU defense. Grambling knocked A&M off a league-leading pace for offensive yards and points in a 25-point win last week.

“Watching Grambling’s defense, that was very impressive,” said Frazier, who is 0-3 against GSU. “We’ve got our work cut for us this week.”

Longtime ex-Grambling assistant Heishma Northern leads a rapidly improving Prairie View defense ranked No. 3 in the 10-team league for yards and touchdowns surrendered. No SWAC unit has been better in the red zone so far this season, as the Panthers have allowed just 11 points per game.

Grambling, however, has averaged 51 points a game over the past five wins at the State Fair Classic.

SWAC ATTACK
DOUBLE THE FUN
Two surprising teams, Southern and Alabama State, meet in a battle of undefeated teams on Saturday.

“You say ‘surprising,’ but look at our league,” said Jaguars coach Pete Richardson. “We have a couple of teams with experience coming back. Other teams are going through a transition because of injury.”

Richardson, coming off a pair of first-ever losing seasons in Baton Rouge, heads a maturing and finally healthy team.

He recognizes the challenge ahead of him: Both are at 4-0 overall, with Southern at 2-0 and first-year coach Reggie Barlow’s ASU at 3-0 in Southwestern Athletic Conference play.

“Alabama State has a very young, energetic coach,” Richardson said. “They are buying into his system. The more they play, the more confidence they receive.”

JSU JUST ROLLING
Jackson State cruised to an easy 50-16 victory over Mississippi Valley, before an announced crowd of 11,700 at Rice-Totten Stadium. That’s now 13 straight for JSU.