Karsceal Tuner
I Got Next!
Special to West Orlando News Online
The Thursday night epic between Bethune-Cookman University and North Carolina A&T was billed as the “Black Out” by the Wildcat Nation.
That is exactly what the game turned out to be in more than one way. A glance up in the stands showed 8,112 fans all clad in Black T-shirts with the B-CU football logo on the front.
Down on the field the Wildcats wore their Black uniforms and the NC A&T Aggies were seeing black as they faced an uphill 19-0 battle late in the first quarter.
Camera crews danced about the field capturing the essence of HBCU football as B-CU played in front of a national TV audience on ESPN’s college-dedicated ESPNU channel,
Then, as if to drop an exclamation point on the theme of the game, Municipal Stadium in Daytona Beach went Black…literally. The outage lasted for about an hour and a half. Meanwhile, out came the cell phones. You would have sworn it was an Earth, Wind and Fire Concert.
The teams cleared the field, the band cleared the stands, and fans began filing out of the stadium just as a thunderstorm rolled in to sprinkle the stadium. However, the lull in action was short-lived. FPL restored the stadium’s power at 9:32 p.m.
The 12th ranked Wildcats picked up where it left off. B-CU tallied 621 total yards on the Aggies. Before the dust settled, we were staring at yet another basketball score.
NC A&T (1-8, 1-5) managed to put up some fight later in the first half after the power was restored. They dropped 17 points on the Cats before the half. Still B-CU enjoyed a 39-17 lead at intermission. Things would be totally different in the second half though. The Aggies did not threaten.
Matt Johnson was good for 137 yards and two touchdowns. He threw for 154 yards and another TD. Your boy Isidore Jackson rushed for 76 yards and three scores. The Wildcats rushing attack tallied a season-high 461 yards.
B-CU continues its unscathed season and advance to 8-0 overall and 5-0 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).
Jenkins: Stay in the moment
Head Coach Brian Jenkins’ only concern was keeping his team amped and in the moment. “No matter how long the delay was. We had to be ready to reach the goal we set. Regardless, we’re going to play Wildcats football,” he said.
B-CU continued the scoring frenzy and racked up 21 points in the third quarter. Johnson hit one of his favorite targets; wide-out Eddie Poole on a 37-yard TD pass. With regards to the rushing game, reserve Jackie Wilson was good for two TDs on the evening. QB backup Troy Dannehower came in and dotted the “I” in “WIN” with a fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Patrick Harris.
Meanwhile, on defense, Ryan Davis led the B-CU defense with an interception, quarterback sack and two hurries as the Wildcats forced five turnovers and held the Aggies to 74 yards passing. Basically it is safe to say quarterbacks around the MEAC always are on the look-out for #49. Problem is Davis is simply one of the weapons. If he doesn’t get wreak havoc, someone else will. Jenkins praised his entire team, but especially his offensive line and running backs.
“We came out and played Wildcat football and took advantage of opportunities given us,” Jenkins said. “Running backs ran hard and the o-line was outstanding. I’m excited about the way those guys played.”
B-CU travels to Hampton University to take on the Pirates Saturday, November 6 at 2:00 p.m.
