ASU Hornets win first game of the season

HOUSTON, Texas -- After 67 text messages, Alabama State University interim head coach Donald Hill-Eley was able to sit back and relax after watching the Hornets come-from-behind for a 23-16 victory over Texas Southern University at BBVA Compass Stadium Saturday afternoon.

"It's been a long week," Eley said. "It's been a long week, we are drained. The players responded when we got down 14 points, and you get the feeling of here we go again. But the kids kept fighting and fighting, and they found a way to win. It was good to see them playing for them, and it was good to see them win going into the bye week."

Alabama State (1-5, 1-2 SWAC) trailed for much of the first half, before Darryl Pearson, Jr. lofted a ball to Willis White over the middle for a 67-yard touchdown pass to give Alabama State a 20-16 lead with just six seconds left in the third quarter.

After a Hunter Hanson 40-yard field goal extended the lead to 23-16 with 4:14 remaining in the contest, it was the Hornet defense that came up big in the final seconds. Ronnie Scott knocked the ball out at the last second on third down, it was TJ Presley who intercepted the ball at the goal line to end the contest.

"It was a big kick," Eley said. "The kid has a strong leg and a strong leg for this division, and we know he can kick it. He came to me before the game started and said he could make it from 51, and I told him I didn't ask him how far you could drive. But he went out there and knocked it through."

BOX SCORE

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The momentum of the game swung when the Hornets called a fake punt in the third quarter, when Chett LeVay took the snap and ran around right end for 47 yards. That led to a Hanson 28-yard field goal that trimmed the lead to 16-13, and set the stage for the rest of the game.

Pearson came off the bench to throw for 126 yards on 9-of-11 passing, while running for 22 yards. The duo of Pearson and Kobie Jones connected with 11 different receivers, with six different players each catching a pair of passes.

Alabama State outgained Texas Southern 264-261 on the day, led by a defense that forced two turnovers and recorded five sacks on the day. Malik Bridgers led Alabama State with eight tackles, while Darron Johnson had seven. The defense recorded 11 tackles for loss on the day.

Alabama State returns to action October 28 against Alabama A&M at the Magic City Classic.

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ALABAMA STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS

MEAC Preview: Morgan State, Todd Bozeman to return to the dance?

HEAD COACH TODD BOZEMAN
MORGAN STATE MEN'S BASKETBALL

BALTIMORE, Maryland -- Over the course of the last five years, Levelle Moton has built North Carolina Central into the flagship program of the MEAC.

The Eagles have won the league’s regular season title in four of the last five years and reached the NCAA tournament twice during that stretch, including last season. And who knows, maybe Moton will be able to work his magic with this group again, but considering that all five starters and seven of the eight players from NC Central’s rotation last season graduated this summer, it’s hard to imagine the Eagles repeating as league champs.

On paper, the favorite this year looks to be Morgan State. The Bears not only return the best 1-2 punch in the conference, but that duo – wing Tiwian Kendley and big man Philip Carr – also happen to be the only two returning first-team all-conference players. With just a single rotation player out the door due to graduation, Todd Bozeman has a team that should make a run at returning to the NCAA tournament.

Losing Jonathan Wade is a major blow for Norfolk State, who finished a game off of the league title pace a season ago, but Zaynah Robinson is a sparkplug at the point and should finish this season as a first-team all-league player, if not the best lead guard in the conference.

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Wiley Wildcats Top LSU-Alexandria in Double Overtime Thriller

MARSHALL, Texas -- In last season's Red River Athletic Conference championship game defeat, the Wiley College men's soccer team allowed a late goal. On Thursday, the roles were reversed. Tevin Peters (SR/Chaguanas, Trinidad&Tobago) headed a ball in the 109th minute to lift the Wildcats to a 1-0 victory over Louisiana State University-Alexandria.

Tevin Peters scored the game-winner on a header.
COURTESY: WILEY WILDCATS ATHLETICS

"It's a great joy to score the game-winner," Peters said. "No matter what happened I know I needed to get the ball into the back of the net. My teammates played with great effort. I give my teammates credit for my goal."

"We were fortunate to have Abraham Castilla (SO/Edcouch, Texas) serve the ball perfectly," head coach Demetrio Hernandez said. "Tevin Peters came in from the back, made a diving header and put the ball right into the net. It was a beautiful goal."

With the victory, Wiley College snapped a two-game losing streak. It tied the series against the Generals. The Wildcats remain unbeaten at home. The goal was Peters second this season. Abraham Castilla, who leads the Red River Athletic Conference in assists, set up Peters on a free kick for his sixth assist.

The Wildcats (7-4, 3-2 in RRAC) dominated the first half, as it out-shot the Generals 8-2. Wiley College was awarded six corner kicks. LSU-Alexandria put more pressure on the Wildcats' defense in the second half with four shots and two on goal. Each team had two shots in overtime. Wiley College out-shot the LSU-Alexandria 16-8.

Erik Reyes (SR/Fort Worth, TX) stopped all five shots to earn his fourth shutout and improve to 5-3. The Wildcats defended against one corner kick.

"Defensively, we are playing better every game," Reyes said.

Wiley College continues its homestand Saturday against LSU-Shreveport. It will be the first time the teams have met since 2012.

FULL STATS

WILEY WILDCATS SPORTS INFORMATION

HBCU Football Judgement Day Schedule - Week 7

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2017

OVC
Austin Peay at Tennessee State, 7 PM, TV: OVCN

MEAC
Savannah State at Morgan State, 1 PM, ESPN3
Hampton at Norfolk State, 2 PM  Battle of the Bay, ESPN3
Howard at Delaware State, 2 PM
Gardner-Webb at North Carolina Central, 2 PM
North Carolina A&T at Florida A&M, 3 PM
South Carolina State at Bethune-Cookman, 4 PM

SWAC
Alabama State at Texas Southern, 3 PM
Prairie View at Alcorn State, 3 PM
Central State (OH) at Arkansas Pine Bluff, 3:30 PM
Mississippi Valley at Alabama A&M, 4 PM5
Tuskegee vs. Jackson State at Mobile, AL, 7 PM, 5th Quarter Classic



CIAA
Chowan at Virginia Union, 1 PM
Livingstone at Shaw, 1 PM
Fayetteville State at Johnson C. Smith, 1 PM
Winston-Salem State at Saint Augustine's, 1 PM
Lincoln (PA) at Elizabeth City State, 1:30 PM
Bowie State at Virginia State, 2 PM, Clash of the Titans,  TV: ASPIRE Network

OTHER CONF.
Edward Waters at Webber International, 1 PM
West Virginia State at Concord, 1 PM
Shippensburg at Cheyney, 1 PM
Texas College vs. Langston at Tulsa, OK, 3 PM, Black Wall Street Classic
Missouri S&T at Lincoln (MO) 4:30 PM

SIAC
Morehouse at Albany State, 2 PM.  Live Video  ESPN3
Lane College at Fort Valley State, 2 PM. Live Video  
Kentucky State at Miles, 2 PM
Clark Atlanta at Benedict, 2 PM.  Live Video 
Central State (OH) at Arkansas Pine Bluff, 3:30 PM
Jackson State vs. Tuskegee at Mobile, AL, 7 PM, 5th Quarter Classic

ALL GAME TIMES ARE STATED IN EASTERN STANDARD TIME ZONE

Langston University Lions Moves to No. 8 in NAIA Coaches Top 25

LANGSTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS

KANSAS CITY, Missouri -- The Langston University football team moved up to the No. 8 ranking in the fifth edition of the 2017 NAIA Football Coaches' Top 25 Poll, the national office announced.

The Lions entered the eighth slot after tallying 236 total votes; Langston is the highest Central States Football League institution ranked, they trail No. 7 Southern Oregon 266 votes to 236 votes.

Poll Methodology
• The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the conferences.
• Each conference is given one rater for every four schools in the league.
• The Top 25 is determined by a points system based on how each voter ranks the best teams. A team receives 25 points for each first-place vote, 24 for second-place and so on through the list.
• The highest and lowest ranking for each team (a non-rating is considered a low rating) is removed and the team's ranking will be recalculated with an additional point added to each team for every ballot (including discounted ballots) that the teams appear on.
• Teams that receive only one point in the ballot are not considered "receiving votes."

For the complete NAIA Football Coaches' Top 25 Poll, click here.

2017 NAIA Football Coaches’ Top 25 Poll – No. 5 (October 9, 2017)

RANK	LAST TIME^	SCHOOL (1ST PLACE VOTES)	2017 RECORD	TOTAL POINTS
1	1	Saint Francis (Ind.) (15)	6-0	340
2	2	Baker (Kan.)	6-0	327
3	3	Reinhardt (Ga.)	5-0	312
4	4	Morningside (Iowa)	6-0	303
5	6	Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)	5-0	286
6	7	Grand View (Iowa)	5-1	271
7	8	Southern Oregon	5-0	266
8	9	Langston (Okla.)	5-0	236
9	10	Georgetown (Ky.)	5-0	235

NEXT GAME: October 14, 2 PM, Langston Lions vs. Texas College Steers at Tulsa, Oklahoma, Black Wall Street Classic

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Mississippi Valley State at Alabama A&M

When: Today, 2 p.m.

Where: Louis Crews Stadium, Normal

Records: Mississippi Valley (1-4, 1-1 SWAC), Alabama A&M (2-4, 2-1)

Radio: WJAB-FM

Four-down territory

1. Bounce-back time: Southern put a quick end to Alabama A&M’s two-game winning streak last week with a 35-14 victory over the Bulldogs. It was an unexpected loss after the Bulldogs opened SWAC play with easy wins over Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Texas Southern.

2. Where did the offense go?: After scoring 57 points in the two wins, the Bulldogs were shut out for the first half at Southern and managed only two touchdowns in the second half. Alabama A&M rushed for only 52 yards, and quarterbacks Aqeel Glass and Damion May were just 17 of 49 for 199 yards through the air. They threw two interceptions.

3. Defense stumbles: While A&M’s offense was struggling, it didn’t get much help from the defense. The Bulldogs trailed 14-0 after the first quarter and 21-0 at halftime. Southern piled up 367 yards, including 237 through the air on 23 of 25 passing.

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SSU looking to snap skid against Morgan State

SAVANNAH STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS

BALTIMORE, Maryland -- “It is what it is.”

That’s a phrase you hear a lot, the meaning not always so clear.

But coming from a football coach who has seen his top defender lost in the preseason with an injury and had his starting quarte
rback break his leg in the season opener?

Coming from a coach whose offensive line has struggled to block for the passing attack and now has his two leading running backs injured?

Coming from a coach who has seen natural disasters of hurricanes and wildfires and one mental disaster of a player attempting a somersault from the 1-yard line negating a rare touchdown?

The meaning shouldn’t be lost on anyone. That’s been the 2017 football season in a nutshell for Savannah State. Tigers coach Erik Raeburn won’t make excuses.

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