JCSU Travels to Winston-Salem State This Weekend
JCSU Sports Information
JCSU Football Begins CIAA Southern Division Play at Winston-Salem State This SaturdayCharlotte, N.C. (Oct. 7, 2015) – The Johnson C. Smith football team will look to end two long losing streaks this upcoming weekend when it travels to CIAA Southern Division rival Winston-Salem State.
JCSU (1-4, 0-2 CIAA) enters CIAA divisional play coming off a hard-fought 34-21 waterlogged loss to Bowie State last Saturday afternoon. In that game, JCSU scored 21 points in the second quarter to take a 21-20 lead into halftime. Junior running back
Tromecio Summers (Charlotte, N.C.) punched it in from one yard out for the Golden Bulls' first score of the game. JCSU got good field position on their next drive thanks to a 77 yard kickoff return fromÂ
Carlo Thomas (East Orange, N.J.) that put the Golden Bulls in business at the BSU 10-yard line.
After giving up a BSU touchdown pass that made it 20-7 with 4:26 left before halftime, JCSU scored two touchdowns within 1:03 of each other to give JCSU the 21-20 halftime lead. The first score, a 24 yard pass from
Jordan lane (Charlotte, N.C.) to
Roderick Carter (Miami, Fla.) at the 1:42 mark drew JCSU to within 20-14. The JCSU defense then picked up their second score of the season when defensive lineman
Daron Wright (Atlanta, Ga.) flushed BSU quarterback Matthew Goggans, forcing a fumble. Linebacker
Javard Gaines (Hackensack, N.J.) scooped it up and raced 40 yards for the score, making it 21-20 JCSU.
Neither team could manage an offensive touchdown in the third quarter, but BSU's Heleaince Gates recovered a JCSU fumble and scored from 42 yards out to give the Bulldogs the lead at 27-21 at the 3:58 mark. Bowie State would tack on another touchdown to seal the game with 1:53 left in the fourth quarter when Stephen Willis ran it in from 10 yards out to provide the 34-21 final.
Winston-Salem State (1-4, 1-1 CIAA) enters after having their five-year, 30-game CIAA regular-season winning streak snapped by falling to Chowan 27-24. After falling behind to the Hawks 27-10, the Rams attempted a furious comeback, scoring two fourth quarter touchdowns, the first a 66 yard reception by Marcel Caver. That quick strike make it 27-17 and poised WSSU to complete the comeback. A little over two minutes later, WSSU picked off a Hawk pass and returned it all the way to the Chowan five yard line. Two plays later WSSU's Bronson Greene took it in from five yards out to close the gap to 27-24.
The Rams final drive at the 2:23 mark looked to be promising, as WSSU quickly advanced to the Chowan 37 yard line thanks to a 44 yard reception by Rashan Williams. WSSU made it to the Chowan 19 yard line and attempted the game-tying field goal with 10 seconds remaining, but kicker Will Johnson's 42 yard kick came up short, allowing Chowan to escape with the 27-24 road win.
Some familiar faces will be patrolling the sidelines this week, as JCSU head coach
Kermit Blount returns to take on his alma mater for the first time. Blount served 17 years as the Rams head coach, leading WSSU to two CIAA Championships (1999, 2000). Blount also played quarterback for the Rams from 1976 to 1979, passing for 3,330 yards while winning CIAA Championships in 1977 and 1978.
JCSU has not defeated Winston-Salem State since a 14-6 win in 1996 in Charlotte. In addition, JCSU has not won in Winston-Salem since a 53-6 triumph in 1975.
Kickoff from Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem is scheduled for a 1:30 p.m. kickoff.
Fans not able to make the short trip can catch all the action on AM 1450 WGNC. Dave Friedman and Josh Diggs will have the call, with the pregame show starting at 1:00 p.m. Fans can also catch the live stream by logging into GoldenBullSports.com and clicking the audio link.
JCSU vs. WSSU Game NotesLive Audio StreamLive Video StreamLive StatsÂ
