In Saturday's region match up with the Statesmen of Delta State, the Wildcats of Fort Valley State University (FVSU) had a definite wish list as they entered the game. The first was to win the game and the second was to do it without suffering any major injuries to key personnel. Unfortunately, neither wish materialized for the Wildcats.

 

Not only did the 27-7 loss to the Statesmen douse the excitement of the  Wildcat's first home game of the season, the loss may have come with an even heavier price for FVSU. Starting quarterback Antonio Henton and star defensive back Ricky Johnson left the game with injuries. And while both did return to action, their subsequent play left many wondering about the significance of their injuries.

 

With 12:26 remaining in the first quarter, the Wildcats appeared poised to get their first win. On a 27-yard touchdown pass from Henton to wider receiver Christopher Slaughter, the Wildcats got the game's first score and took an early 7-0 lead after the converted extra point by Justin Rosenbaum.   As it turned out, that would be the first and last score for the Wildcats.

 

Moments later, in a statement of “whatever you can do, I can do better,” the Statesmen answered the 27-yard Wildcats touchdown pass with an identical 27-yard touchdown pass. Quarterback Miach Davis threw the touchdown pass to wide receiver Chance Dennis. The teams were tied at 7-7 after the Statesmen extra point.

The Statesmen took the lead in the second quarter when Rafael Mitchell scored on a 41-yard run. After the extra point, the 14-7 lead by Delta State gave them the advantage at the conclusion of the first half.

Early in the third quarter, the Statesmen scored again. And again, it was Mitchell who caused the damage. On a 75-yard pass from Davis, Mitchell got his second touchdown of the game and expanded the Statesmen lead to 20-7. The game's final touchdown came with six minutes left when Statesmen running back Richard Freelon scored on an 11-yard run. The made extra point gave Delta State their winning margin of 27-7.

Despite the injury, Ricky Johnson was the game's leading tackler with 12 (9 solo, 3 assists); 2.5 tackles for losses totaling 19 yards; and he finished with 2.5 sacks also totaling 19 yards.  

The Wildcats will still be in search of their first win of the season when they travel to Atlanta, Georgia on Saturday, Sept. 17^th, to meet the Panthers of Clark Atlanta University at 6 p.m. in Panther Stadium.

 

You can listen to the action live on the Wildcats Sports Network. Pre-game begins at 5:45 p.m.

 

-Wildcats Athletics-