Wildcats, Hatters Roll in Season Debut

Karsceal Turner – I Got NEXT!

There simply ain’t nothing in the world like some get back. In this case, revenge was a dish that best served hot. “Hot” as in a Nashville, Tennessee temperature reaching past 84 (90 on the field). It was “Hot” as in foot of B-CU’s Jonathon Cagle, and “Hot” as in the defensive unit of the Bethune-Cookman University Wildcats.

Tennessee State University fell to Bethune-Cookman in a defensive battle on Sunday night in the 15th annual John Merritt Classic. “We were able to get downfield, but just didn’t execute in the red zone,” head coach Rod Reed said. “Ultimately, we didn’t score enough and that is what got us beat.”

‘Got beat’ is right coach. TSU got into the red zone on three occasions but had to settle for field goals. Chalk that up to a defense which yielded only two field goals, forced two fumbles, and no TDs. The last time that TSU did not manage to find the end zone was Nov. 13, 2010 against UT Martin when the Tigers fell 37-0. B-CU effectively limited a high-powered TSU Tigers team which surely will want to play spoiler to FAMUs home opener Sep. 7.

The TSU offense got off to a very slow start to begin the game, only mustering one first down and 15 total yards during the squad’s first two possessions.

Meanwhile, the B-CU offense put together a pair of scoring drives that featured a good mixture of run and pass (42 yards rushing and 45 passing). The Wildcats had no problem moving down the field, but their spread-attack sputtered near the red zone, forcing the team to settle for a pair of field goals from Jonathan Cagle. By the way, Cagle was the Offensive MVP of the 15th annual John Merritt Classic.

A Jordan Murphy 6-yard pass from Jackie Wilson with 5:01 remaining was the game’s only touchdown and gave Bethune-Cookman its first victory over the Tigers since 1987. Wilson, who alternated first-half possessions with Broderick Waters, was 7 of 13 for 54 yards. Murphy (35 yards) and Eddie Poole (16) each caught three passes. The Wildcats Home opener will be against the Trojans of Virginia Union University at Municipal Stadium, Daytona Beach, FL. It will be a matchup pitting the MEAC against the CIAA, and another battle of the cats. In this case, Wildcats vs. Panthers. See you in the stands. Be sure to keep cool out there folks. I want you alive to read my trash talk.

Stetson Hatters make believers out of Warner 31-3

Any football fan worth their salt understands the intricacies of inclement weather and its effects on games. With Florida being dubbed the lightning capital of the world, it is little wonder that the Stetson Hatters fans that waited 57 years for their team to take the field again, actually had to wait 57 years plus one more day.

The Hatters’ Donald Payne made that extra wait time worth it, His energy and determination set the tone for the Stetson’s 31-3 bashing of Warner on Sunday afternoon at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium.

Stetson took a 10-3 lead on Saturday night on the strength of a Ryan Tentler touchdown pass to Rob Coggin with 12:35 to play in the first half. After the extra point, the teams were cleared from the field, and the fans were evacuated from the stands as a heavy thunderstorm rolled into DeLand.

The result was a more than 19 hour intermission. When the game resumed on Sunday, Donald Payne breathed immediate life on the very first play from scrimmage when he recovered a high snap by Warner center Travis Espich in the end zone for a touchdown.

The Hatters’ weren’t done yet. I must admit, I truly expected Stetson to have their clocks cleaned. That was before I realized Warner University hasn’t ever fielded a football team. The NAIA squad competed in their first football game in school history this weekend and it sure as hell looked like it.

The Royals’ offense sputtered the rest of the half and produced only 18 total yards in the five possessions. The Hatters however, scored 21 points in the second quarter and led 24-3 at intermission.

Coming out of the break the Royals failed to pick up a first down on their first four possessions.

“We have been rain delayed before, so we knew what we needed to do to get the momentum going again,” Payne said. “We came back with high emotion and adrenalin pumping and played ball.”

Payne wasn’t done after the touchdown. The Lawrenceville, Ga., native completely destroyed any hope Warner had of responding on the next series with a bone-rattling hit on Royals quarterback Andrew Ronriguez and a tackle in the backfield to force a punt.

Hatters coach Roger Hughes said it was amazing to him that things worked out the way they did on Sunday.

“We have been presented with circumstances that prepared us for this,” Hughes said of the weather interruption of the game. “Wednesday night we were down here and the field was soft and we moved everything back to the ATC within like 20 minutes and resumed practice. It went very well. I told the boys last night that I am the smartest coach in America because we did this on Wednesday night.”

Stetson returns to the field to defend its spotless record against Birmingham Southern at Spec Martin Stadium. Game time is 7 p.m. By the way, B-ham Southern isn’t a first year squad, they were 7-4 last season so fasten your seatbelts for a true test of what the Hatter’s can do. Even in DeLand, I’m all over the field like a line judge because ‘I Got NEXT!”