WILDCATS PUSH 14TH RANKED TUSKEGEE TO THE LIMITS
By: FVSU Office of Sports Information
No one was under any illusions about the challenge confronting the Wildcats of Fort Valley State University (FVSU) in Saturday's football match up with the Golden Tigers of Tuskegee University. After all, despite suffering a loss the weekend before, Tuskegee was still ranked 14th in the nation in NCAA Division II Football and were the winners of the last three consecutive SIAC Football Championships. With that in mind, the Wildcats were well aware that anything less than a perfect game would make it difficult to break their 5-game consecutive losing streak to Tuskegee.
Before a crowd of 8,218, Tuskegee appeared ready to exact their frustrations on the Wildcats for their loss from the previous weekend. Case in point, on the game's opening possession; the Golden Tigers mounted a 13-play, 61 yard drive over a span of 6:25 that resulted in a touchdown after a two yard run by John Pascley. A botched extra point attempt gave Tuskegee an early 6-0 lead.
The Golden Tigers engaged in a little déjà vu in the early stages of the second quarter. Another 13-play drive, this time covering 43 yards and consuming 7:07 minutes of the clock, ended with a one yard touchdown run by quarterback Joshua Harris. Despite another miscue on the extra point attempt, the Golden Tigers appeared invincible with a 12-0.
However, invincibility is a state of mind. And in this case, the Wildcats were not brainwashed. To prove it, mid-way through the second quarter, the Wildcats cut the Tuskegee lead to 12-7 after the speedy Brandon Anderson took a hand off 54 yards for a Wildcat touchdown and placekicker Justin Rosenbaum converted on the extra point attempt.
The five point deficit would remain until 8:40 in the third quarter when Tuskegee's Eduardo Murillo connected on a 21-yard field goal extending the Golden Tiger lead to 15-7.
The Wildcats would answer that score by Tuskegee with a lightening strike of their own early in the fourth quarter. After a Tuskegee punt pinned the Wildcats down to their own seven yard line to start the drive, the Wildcats responded on one play with a 93-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Nathaniel Samas to sophomore wide receiver Demario Barber. The touchdown pass and converted extra point gave the 14th ranked Golden Tigers a moment of extreme pause as the Wildcats tied the game, 15-15.
The game remained tied until 7:27 remaining in the final quarter. That is when Tuskegee quarterback Jeremy Williams completed a 28-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Antoine Mitchell. Murillo's extra point gave Tuskegee the margin of victory, 22-15.
The loss drops FVSU to a 1-2 overall record and a 1-2 conference mark. The win by Tuskegee elevates their record to 2-1 overall and 2-1 in the SIAC. The Wildcats are back in action next week in another SIAC contest. They will host the Dragons of Lane College at Wildcat Stadium on Saturday, September 19th at 7 p.m.
In the Wildcats stiff challenge to nationally ranked Tuskegee, several Wildcat players had notable performances.
Quarterback Nathaniel Samas: Completed 13 of 22 passes for 164 yards with one touchdown (93yards)
Tight End Jerel Hall: Finished with five receptions for 62 yards.
Punter Marquette King: Averaged 34.9 yards per punt. Placed three punts inside the 20 yard line.
Linebacker Dan Foster: Game's leading tackler. Finished with 10 tackles, one quarterback sack, and three tackles for loss.
