Baltimore–Bethune-Cookman survived the cold weather and a feisty Morgan State squad to improve to 6-0 in MEAC play.
BCU’s defense limited the Bears to 197 yards of total offense and held the conference’s leading rusher, Travis Davidson, to 46 yards on the ground on 17 carries.
MSU opened the game’s scoring on a 1 play, 4 yard touchdown drive 6 minutes into the contest. The drive started after Quentin Williams was stripped from behind and fumbled inside the Wildcat s 5 yard line.
The Wildcats responded with a 13 play, 71 yard drive that ended with a 24 yard Sven Hurd field goal.
BCU took their first lead of the game (10-7) when Quentin Williams hit Eddie Poole in the back of the endzone for a 5 yard TD reception. The Cats did not have to travel far for the go-ahead score. Dawud Lane intercepted a Robert Council pass and returned it to the Bear’s 8-yard line. Williams hit Poole 5 plays later for the score. Lane’s interception extended BCU’s consecutive game with an interception streak to 16.
On Morgan State’s next possession, BCU defensive back Dion Hanks was ejected for striking a Morgan State player. Coach Brian Jenkins vehemently disagreed with the official’s ruling, received 2 consecutive unsportsmanlike penalties for excessively protesting and was subsequently ejected from the game himself.
The NCAA does not officially track ejections, but NCAA representatives said Jenkins could be the first head football coach ever ejected from a college football game.
Morgan State tied the contest at 10-10 on a 32 yard Earvin Gonzalez field goal just before halftime.
The Wildcats took advantage of a Morgan State special teams miscue to begin the second half. MSU fumbled the 3rd quarter kickoff and 5 plays later, quarterback Brock Waters scored on a 6 yard TD run to give the Wildcats a 17-10 lead.
Gonzalez kicked his 2nd field goal of the contest, this time a 38 yarder, which cut the BCU lead to 17-13 early in the 4th quarter. However, the Bears could get no closer.
Junior running back Isidore Jackson, who finished the contest with 111 yards rushing on 19 attempts, quelled any lingering thoughts of a Morgan State upset when he raced 19 yards for the game’s final score with just over 2:00 left in the contest.
Dawud Lane led the BCU defense with 6 tackles, an interception, and a blocked field goal.
The Wildcats travel to Savannah, Georgia next week to take on Savannah State Tigers. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.
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