By: FVSU Office of Sports Information
                                                    (Horace Holloman III, Contributor)
 
The Wildcats of Fort Valley State University (FVSU) are licking their wounds after a 49-18 loss to the Golden Tigers of Tuskegee University (TU)  on Saturday (Sept. 29th) in Abbott Memorial Stadium on the TU campus.  
 
The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) matchup featured the top teams from the East and West Divisions. The Wildcats (3-2), coming off two straight conference victories, strolled into a hostile Golden Tigers (3-1) atmosphere looking to extend their win streak to three games.
 
On the first possession of the game quarterback Antonio Henton launched a 69-yard pass between two TU defenders to wide receiver Marquavious Trice for the touchdown. Tuskegee quickly responded scoring on a 57-yard run from running back Derrick Washington to tie the game at 7-7.
 
In the second quarter the Golden Tigers offense began to tear apart the Wildcat defense. TU scored four touchdowns in the second quarter and compiled 407 yards of total offense in the first half alone. Tuskegee's 77-yard touchdown with 14:44 left in the second half and a 66-yard run with 9:52 in the second quarter gave the Golden Tigers a 21-7 lead.
 
The Wildcats attempted to chip away at the deficit on Justin Rosenbaum's 27-yard field goal after a nine-play, 48-yard drive cutting the deficit to 21-10. However Washington continued to rip the Wildcats by scoring on a 44-yard run then catching a 38-yard touchdown pass giving the Golden Tigers a 36-10 margin.
 
In the second half FVSU's troubles continued as TU scored 14 unanswered points. Linebacker Lerron Furr forced a fumble on TU's quarterback however Tuskegee recovered the fumbled and advanced it to the Wildcats 3-yard line. From the 3-yard line the Golden Tigers ran it in for another score as FVSU trailed 43-10.
 
The second score came on a 5-yard touchdown run with 5:10 left in the game. The extra point was blocked and the Golden Tigers led by 39-points in the fourth quarter, 49-10.
 
The Wildcats mustered a scoring drive with 3:10 left in the fourth quarter on a 5-yard slant pass from Henton to wide receiver Eric McCree. FVSU converted a two-point conversion cutting the deficit to 49-18 but the Golden Tigers lead was insurmountable.
 
Tuskegee finished the game with 671 total yards of offense; 447 yards on the ground and 224 yards through the air. FVSU quarterback Henton finished the game with 243-yards on two touchdowns and four interceptions. Wide receiver McCree had seven catches for 93-yards and a touchdown. Furr led the team in tackles with 12.
 
The next test for the Wildcats will come at home when they host the Thorobreds of Kentucky State University on Saturday (Oct. 6^th) at 6 p.m. in Wildcat Stadium. The game has been dubbed “blue-out” day. All fans are encouraged to wear blue shirts in support the Wildcats.
 
General admission for the game is $10.00 and tickets are available through the FVSU Cashiers office or online at www.wildcatticketoffice.com.
 
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