There are losses, there are bad losses, and then there are humiliating losses.
Bethune-Cookman’s latest trip to Huntsville, Alabama, falls squarely into that last category.
Just a week after celebrating a signature victory over preseason SWAC favorite Alabama State, the Wildcats suffered an embarrassing 55-17 loss to Alabama A&M.
But as ugly as Saturday was, perspective matters.
One game does not define a season. And one miserable afternoon in Huntsville does not mean BCU’s goals for the season are out of reach.
What it does mean is that the Wildcats have zero room for error moving forward.
How a Competitive Game Became One-Sided
The anatomy of a blowout is rarely as simple as one team being significantly better than the other. Usually it’s a series of untimely mistakes that allow the game to get away from you.
That’s precisely what happened in Huntsville.
Despite struggling offensively and with the impact of Hurricane Isaias, BCU entered halftime trailing by just one score at 17-10. The Wildcats were hardly playing their best football, but they were very much in the contest and set to receive the opening kickoff of the second half.
It was an opportunity to regroup, establish their identity, and potentially tie the game early in the 3rd quarter.
Instead, the wheels fell off.
Cookman went three and out to open the half.
A&M responded immediately with a Cornelious Brown to Jarel Williams 60 yard touchdown pass, extending the Bulldogs’ advantage to 24-10.
On the ensuing kickoff, Isaiah Daniel fumbled the return, giving A&M possession deep in Wildcat territory.
The Bulldogs converted that mistake into a field goal, 27-10.
Tyler Jefferson threw an interception on the very next possession setting up another Alabama A&M touchdown.
In less than eight minutes, a seven-point halftime deficit had ballooned into a 34-10 disaster.
Offensive failure. 👎
Defensive failure. 👎
Special Teams failue. 👎
Game. Set. Match.
That is how blowouts happen.
I don’t want to say they quit but… let’s just say once they fell behind in those awful weather conditions, and with their anemic passing attack, getting out of “The Rocket City” quickly seemed to be the greater priority.
Ironically, the last time a BCU team seemingly quit before the final whistle came against this same Alabama A&M program in Huntsville two years ago, when BCU was dealing with the disruption caused by Hurricane Milton.
Saturday’s storm force the game to be moved ahead 6 hours from a 7pm start to a 1pm start.
But the Wildcats didn’t lose because of the weather or the game’s start time.
The Bulldogs were the better team on Saturday.
BCU was way too one dimensional offensively. And they made too many mistakes.
The Passing Game Can No Longer Be Ignored
It’s impossible to ignore the role the lack of a passing game played in Cookman losing the game and failing to mount anything close to a comeback.
The Wildcat offense managed just 26 passing yards on 12 possessions on Saturday.
It’s hard to quantify just how poor that is. You simply can’t win Division I Football games with that type of performance.
And especially when you add 4 turnovers to the mix.
The bigger issue is the passing attack has been alarmingly ineffective all season, averaging just 96 yards per game.
So you can’t just blame the weather for what we saw on Saturday; and Head Coach Raymond Woodie can no longer ignore this issue.
Surely the rest of the SWAC will setup their defenses to take away the run and force BCU to pass the ball over the last six games.
Quarterback Tyler Jefferson and the Wildcats’ passing offense has to find some productivity through the air.
That doesn’t necessarily mean throwing the football 30 times per game or abandoning the team’s run-first identity.
It does mean completing manageable throws and making opponents respect the possibility of a successful forward pass.
Righting the Ship Begins With Accountability
If Jefferson can’t get it done, Coach Woodie will have to give someone else a chance or else he risks losing the locker room.
That demands an honest evaluation from everyone associated with the program.
If that doesn’t happened, this season can unravel as quickly as Saturday’s game did.
Beware of the Devils
Mississippi Valley State use to be everyone’s get right game. But if you haven’t been paying attention, this ain’t your daddy’s Devils.
Valley has won consecutive conference games, defeating reigning SWAC Champs Prairie View A&M 28-27 two weeks ago before staging a remarkable fourth quarter comeback to stun Texas Southern 38-34 in Houston this past Saturday.
Against TXSO, Valley scored 24 fourth quarter points, including the winning touchdown with just 42 seconds remaining.
The Wildcats travel to Itta Bena on Saturday for a game that suddenly carries enormous significance and raises some questions.
A victory would restore some confidence, stabilize the season, and keep BCU firmly engaged in the SWAC East race.
Another loss and…well let’s not think about that!
Welcome to the Wacky, Chaotic SWAC
Fortunately for the Wildcats, they’re not the only team trying to make sense of this increasingly unpredictable conference.
There is chaos everywhere.
Florida A&M upset Alabama State in Montgomery on homecoming…again.
Grambling State upset Jackson State…again.
Prairie View got upset by Southern in Texas…again.
Valley upset someone…again.
AAMU didn’t upset BCU but they did run the Wildcats out of Huntsville…again.
The SWAC has become a weekly exercise in unpredictability.
Luckily for our Wildcats, that chaos presents opportunity.
Everything Is Still in Front of the Wildcats
At 3-3 overall and 1-1 in conference play, Bethune has plenty of football remaining and everything to play for.
The trick now is to not let one loss become two because you have no more room for error.
The road back begins Saturday in Itta Bena.
Let’s Go Wildcats!!!
