ODU hangs on to defeat Hampton 41-28

NORFOLK, Virginia -- (WAVY) – Old Dominion opened the 2014 season with a 41 to 28 win over nearby Hampton University.

The Pirates were playing their first game under new head coach Connell Maynor and they were hanging tough with ODU which is playing its first season as a member of the FBS.

The Monarchs took a 28 to 14 lead into the locker room at the half, but Hampton kept things close throughout the second half.

Quarterback Jaylian Williamson, who went Oscar Smith, outplayed ODU’s heralded signal caller Taylor Heinicke. Williamson was 32 of 45 and threw three touchdowns and one interception.

Heinicke was 29 of 49 for 281 yards, three TD’s and two interceptions. Two of Heinicke’s touchdowns were to Zach Pascal.

Both of his interceptions were by former ODU basketball player Breon Key.

ODU used a ground attack led by sophomore Gerard Johnson to help move the offense. He rushed the ball 22 times for 137 yards and a touchdown.



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Sam Houston tops Alabama State 51-20

BOX SCORE

HUNTSVILLE, Texas – Sophomore quarterback Jared Johnson passed for 386 yards and three touchdowns to lead FCS No. 14 ranked Sam Houston to a 51-20 victory over Alabama State Saturday at Elliott T. Bowers Stadium.

Johnson threw touchdown passes of nine yards to Rickey Smith, 48 yards to Jeffrey Thomas and 68 yards to Keshawn Hill. Hill also scored on a four-yard run.

“I thought we did some good things offensively. Defensively we were a little spotty and gave up too many big plays. That’s going to be the key for us, if we can learn to stop giving up the big plays I think we can be a pretty good football team,” K.C. Keeler said following his first win as Sam Houston head coach.

A pair of transfer running backs led the Bearkats in rushing with 83 yards each. Jalen Overstreet, a transfer running back from Texas, had 11 carries for 83 yards and Donavan Williams, a junior transfer from ASA Junior College, added 83 yards on 12 carries including a one-yard score.

LaDarius Brown led the Bearkats in receiving with six catches for 65 yards. Smith had six catches for 53 yards and Thomas had five for 78 yards. 11 different players caught a pass in the ballgame.

The Bearkats ramped up the offense and ran 104 plays in the game, more than in any game last season. Sam Houston totaled 685 yards of offense and dominated time of possession, keeping the ball for just over 40 minutes.

Hornet quarterback Daniel Duhart led Alabama State completing 17 of 32 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns.

Sam Houston now stands 1-1 for the year while the game was Alabama State’s season opener.

The win extended Sam Houston’s home winning streak to 23 games, which stands as the nation’s longest active home winning streak.

“I wasn’t part of the 22 wins but I am now part of number 23. It really is special to be part of something like that. It’s really exciting to see a great home crowd come out enjoy what we did,” Keeler said.

The Bearkats will hit the road next week and play nationally-ranked LSU in Baton Rouge, La.



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SU Notebook: Eligibility questions delay Jaguars’ arrival

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana  -- Southern waited as long as it could, but it couldn’t bring its whole team to the season opener.

The Jaguars didn’t arrive at Cajun Field until 5:15 p.m. Saturday for the 6 p.m. kickoff against the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The departure from campus was scheduled for 2:15 p.m. but was delayed nearly two hours while the university tried to certify the academic eligibility of several players.

Five starters were left behind because their certification wasn’t completed: linebacker Daniel Brown, running backMalcolm Crockett, defensive back Renaldo Thomas, offensive lineman Reginald Redding and offensive lineman Terrell Lee.

Dorsey Bindon, a redshirt junior from Capitol High, replaced ...

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ULL Cajuns dodge raindrops to drop Southern 45-6

LAFAYETTE, Louisiana — Day long rain held down the crowd at Cajun Field, but that shouldn’t have dampened the enthusiasm surrounding the Louisiana-Lafayette football program.

The Ragin’ Cajuns were hoping a record crowd would show up Saturday to see the preseason pick to win the Sun Belt Conference open the season against defending Southwestern Athletic Conference champion Southern. A nice but not sellout crowd of 36,170 entered the stadium amid steady rain and endured sporadic showers during UL-Lafayette’s 45-6 victory.

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They saw Terrance Broadway throw two touchdown passes to help build a 24-0 lead and finish 20-of-32 for 237 yards and three touchdowns. The only blemish on his stat sheet was a pair of interceptions, which were a rare bright spot for Southern as they were made by true freshmen — Bryan Anderson of Edna Karr and Danny Johnson of East Feliciana.

The third-largest crowd in UL-Lafayette history saw running backs Alonzo Harris and Elijah McGuire and receiver Jamal Robinson demonstrate why they were preseason all-conference first-team picks.

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East Carolina blasts North Carolina Central Eagles in Opener

GREENVILLE, North Carolina -- There were few surprises inside Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium on a stuffy Saturday opening night, and little magic from the visiting North Carolina Central football team despite it sparking an upset-worthy first few minutes.

The Eagles swooped and scored on a first quarter fumble by host East Carolina, but the Pirates didn’t allow another point in their 52-7 thrashing of NCCU in the teams’ first-ever meeting.

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The physical mismatches between the Pirates (1-0) and the Eagles (0-1) became increasingly more exaggerated as the game wore on, and an ECU team with great expectations delivered the drama-free drubbing that was expected.

“I think the only expectations we need to worry about are the ones we have,” said fifth-year ECU head coach Ruffin McNeill, whose team moves on to play at South Carolina this Saturday and at Virginia Tech the following week. “My expectations were met tonight by our kids because I know how hard first games are.

“I think everybody thought we were going to have some magical beginning,” McNeill said of the team’s slow start. “I want my guys to play their best game in their last game.”

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MVSU Delta Devils kick off 2014 season, Comegy era with win

ITTA BENA, Mississippi  -- The Rick Comegy era at Mississippi Valley State started off on the right track Saturday.

The Delta Devils upended University of Faith 32-8 at Rice-Totten Stadium to kickoff the 2014 season, giving the first-year head coach a win in his first game at the helm. Comegy, however, made sure to give credit to his assistants for a job well done.

"I take my hat off to coach (Shawn) Gregory, the offensive coordinator, for bringing those guys back, giving us a comfortable lead," said Comegy. "And also take my hat off to coach (Darrin) Hayes, the defensive coordinator, and the staff for what they did defensively."

The game started off sloppy for both teams with raining pouring down for nearly the entire first half. The Glory Eagles (0-2) were the first to get on the scoreboard with a 1-yard touchdown run following a MVSU fumble, but the Delta Devils (1-0) answered the bell and racked up 32 straight points.

Jerrell Moore, who made the switch from receiver to running back, made a huge splash with 116 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries. He had a 52-yard run and a 38-yard scamper for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

While Moore made the highlight plays in the backfield, All-SWAC performer Julian Stafford took care of the receiving highlights. The Memphis, Tenn. native led Valley with three receptions for 104 yards and two touchdowns. Patrick Ivy connected with Stafford on a 50-yard strike in the second quarter and again in the fourth quarter on a 17-yard pass.

Ivy, who split time with senior Carl Davis at quarterback, finished 7-of-20 for 130 yards and two touchdowns.

"I think we started off slow, but as the game progressed we picked it up as a whole," said Ivy. "The offensive line really stepped up for us....Skill positions, as a unit, we have to back them up."

While the offense made a host of big plays throughout the game, it was the Valley defense that came through in the clutch time after time. The Delta Devils limited the Glory Eagles to just 50 total yards, including negative 32 on the ground.

MVSU defensive tackle Jeremiah Russell forced two safeties and had six solo tackles. Valley had three sacks on the night - Davon Jones, Khalil Young and Nelson Hale each had one apiece.

"The defensive line controlled the tempo, they set the tone," said MVSU cornerback Avery Boykin.

MVSU will be on the road next week at Illinois State.

Box Score

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South Carolina State Bulldogs Shut Out Benedict Tigers, 63-0

Box Score

COLUMBIA, South Carolina — Redshirt sophomore Adrian Kollock, Jr. completed 15-of-18 for 160 yards leading the Bulldogs air attack to a, 63-0, routing of Benedict on Saturday in the Palmetto Capital City Classic at Charlie W. Johnson Stadium.
 
Kollock also had 39-yard touchdown scamper on the day, which earned him MVP honors. The victory was its seventh consecutive against Benedict dating back to 2002.
 
Junior running back Jalen Simmons returned this season in rare form after missing the 2013 campaign with shoulder injuries.  Simmons had 78 yards on 12 carries to lead the Bulldogs rushing attack, which amassed 381 yards on the ground and had four players gain 50 yards or more.
 
Junior running back Dondre Lewis-Freeman added 60 yards on five carries and two touchdowns, while sophomore Justin Taylor had eight rushes for 53 yards and a touchdown.
 
The Bulldogs defense was equally efficient, holding Benedict to only 228 yards of total offense and just 14 first downs. Senior All-American defensive end Alex Gloverspearheaded the attack with six solo tackles, one sack and three tackles for loss.
 
The highlight of the day from the Bulldog defense was the forced fumble and 61-yard touchdown run by junior defensive lineman Javon Hargrave. Junior defensive backAntonio Hamilton posted a solid performance with four solo tackles, while senior linebacker Justin Hughes added three tackles, one sack and a tackles for loss on the night.
 
"It was a good win for us but we still have a lot of work to do on both sides of the ball," said SC State head coach Buddy Pough. "We have some young guys out there still trying to find their way but as we move forward I am sure things will fall into place."
 
South Carolina State returns to action on Saturday (Sept. 6) against ACC foe Clemson University in Death Valley. Kick-off is 12:30 p.m.


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