SWAC Week 7 Review:
Charles Wells, SWAC Contributor | October 20, 2015
Thursday, October 15
Alabama State 31, Arkansas-Pine Bluff
Alabama State got their third road win of the season beating UAPB, the Hornets are winless at home. Khalid Thomas rushed for 138 yards and three touchdowns to lead Alabama State past Arkansas Pine Bluff 31-24. UAPB tied it at 24 early in the fourth quarter when Kwan Cummings recovered a fumble and raced for a 41-yard touchdown. ASU answered with a 74-yard scoring drive, highlighted by Josh Davis’ 50-yard catch. Thomas ran in the go-ahead score from the one yard line.
Daniel Duhart passed for 203 yards for the Hornets (3-4, 3-3). He faked a hand-off and broke a tackle to score from four yards out to give ASU a 24-17 lead late in the third quarter. Nolan Sorensen threw for 147 yards, rushed for 63 yards and had two touchdowns for UAPB (1-5, 0-4). He gave the Golden Lions a 14-0 lead after a 19-yard connection with John Hawkins and a one yard quarterback sneak.
Despite the loss, UAPB outrushed the ASU 207 to 165. Brian Handley rushed for 70 yards on 10 carries for the Golden Lions. Willie Duncan finished with a game high 15 tackles. ASU’s Daerius Washington was also in double figures in tackles 12 on the evening. Darien Barrett came away with a pair of sacks for the visiting Hornets.
Saturday, October 17, 2015
Grambling State 35, Alcorn State 34
Grambling defeated Alcorn for the second time in two years and maintained their SWAC West lead. Martez Carter scored on a one yard run and then booted the extra point in overtime as Grambling State rallied to defeat Alcorn State 35-34. The Braves scored on a seven yard run by John Gibbs Jr. but Haiden McCraney’s PAT kick was blocked. GSU is now the only undefeated team in conference play , Alcorn still leads the East.
Carter earned his second-straight 100-yard game, rushing for 133 yards on 11 carries. Gibbs rushed for 96 yards and two TDs, and passed for 222 yards with another score as the Braves scored four touchdowns to lead 28-14 at halftime. The Tigers scored twice in the third quarter to tie things at 28-28. Alcorn gained 218 yards on the ground with rushing touchdowns from Gibbs, Aaron Baker and Darryl Ragsdale.
Texas Southern 49, Mississippi Valley State 21
Texas Southern took their turn at the beating Valley, the Delta Devils put up more of a fight than expected. Texas Southern scored 21 points in the second quarter which proved to be the difference in a 49-21 victory over Mississippi Valley State. Averion Hurts had a career afternoon at quarterback for the Tigers passing for 311 yards and six touchdowns. Hurts also rushed for a score giving him seven on the day. MVSU scored the first points of the contest on a 14-yard pass from Thurston Rubin, Jr. to Natron Brooks to take a 7-0 lead. TSU tied the game at seven with just under five minutes remaining, The Tigers scored three more times in the second, before the Delta Devils found the end zone again. Thomas Stokes, Jr. pulled down a 13-yard pass making the score 28-14 in favor of TSU at the break.
MVSU’s Keenan Daniels scored on a 15-yard pass, Piraquive added the extra point before conceding 14 straight points to the Tigers. TSU scored oncre more the in the fourth for their final score. Thurstin completed 17 of his 33 passing attempts for 209 yards and three touchdowns but was also intercepted twice. Defensively Darion Claiborne led TSU with five tackles, Charles Moore tallied 10 total tackles to lead MVSU.
Alabama A&M 28, Jackson State 22
Alabama A&M kept Jackson State reeling and got an important victory on Saturday. Damion May passed for two touchdowns and Octavious Miles returned had a 99-yard kickoff return as Alabama A&M downed Jackson State 28-22. Miles’ score, his second career kickoff return for a touchdown, came after Jackson State’s Ryan Deising kicked a 41-yard field goal to give the Tigers a 9-0 lead. Earlier, quarterback LaMontiez Ivy connected with Jairus Moll on a seven-yard touchdown pass but Diesing’s point-after attempt hit the upright.
Miles took the ensuing kickoff at the 1, ran up the sidelines and broke to the middle, outrunning the JSU defenders. May, who started in place of the injured De’Angelo Ballard, found Juaquin Davis on a 16-yard pass in the second quarter to give the Bulldogs a 13-12 lead. A two-point conversion failed when May was wrapped up by the JSU defense. Jarius Moore scored on a 4-yard run to put JSU about midway through the third quarter for a 19-13 lead. With 6:98 left in the game, May found Jonathan Dorsey for an 18-yard TD pass and recaptured the lead at 20-19. But Jackson State regained the lead on a Deising field goal with about three minutes to play. However, Harvey Harris scored the game-winner on a three-yard run and the two-point conversion provided the final 28-22 score.
Prairie View 47, Southern 42
Our Co-Game of the Week lived up to it’s billing as PVU spoiled Southern’s homecoming. Johnta Hebert caught two touchdown passes, ran for two more and Prairie View overtook Southern in the fourth quarter for a 47-42 win Saturday. Hebert, who averages 85.6 rushing yards per game, racked up 114 yards on 17 carries and added 170 more with 10 receptions. Trey Green threw for 339 yards and the two TD throws to Hebert, De’Auntre Smiley ran in two touchdowns and Fred Anderson had a TD as well for PVAMU.
Trailing 30-27 early in the fourth quarter, the Panthers recovered a fumble at Southern’s 1-yard line and Smiley punched it in for the score, taking the lead and triggering a 20-12 run to cement the win. SUBR edged the Panthers 520-517 in total yards but had six fumbles to PVAMU’s two. Austin Howard was 18 for 28 and 377 yards, including three touchdowns and a fourth rushing TD.
Week 7 Players of the Week: October 19
Offensive Player of the Week
Averion Hurts, Texas Southern, Quarterback
Texas Southern’s 49-21 win over Mississippi Valley State was one to remember for Hurts, as he threw six touchdown passes and ran for another score to lead the Tigers to victory. The junior was 19-of-24 passing for 311 yards. He also rushed for 68 yards on 14 attempts.
Defensive Player of the Week
Daerius Washington, Alabama State, Linebacker
Washington notched a game-high 12 total stops (nine solo) in helping to lead the Hornets to a 31-24 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff Oct. 15. Washington was the lone player to notch double-figures in tackles, and he also made 1.5 tackles for loss in addition to a pass breakup and a quarterback hurry in Alabama State’s victory.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Ernest Brewer, Prairie View A&M, Cornerback
Brewer was around the ball all night for Prairie View A&M in the special teams game. The senior blocked two point-after attempts and also recovered two fumbles on special teams during the Panthers’ 47-42 defeat of Southern.
Newcomer of the Week
Will Skinner, Prairie View A&M, Defensive Back
Manning the rover position for PVAMU, Skinner racked up 15 total stops in the Panthers’ 47-42 win versus Southern, and also forced a fumble. The figure represents a career-high in tackles for the freshman, as prior to this contest his personal best for tackles in a game was six.