Noles Scalp Wildcats

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Despite a 48-point win, Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher saw lots of room for improvement.

Quarterback Jameis Winston completed 10 of 19 passes for 148 yards and two touchdowns, Devonta Freeman ran for 112 yards and a touchdown to lead the No. 8 Seminoles to a 54-6 win over Bethune-Cookman on Saturday night.

The defending ACC champions (3-0, 1-0) will want to clean up their offense before starting a seven-game stretch against conference foes next week.

“Had three or four dropped balls. Had two dropped touchdowns. We have a lot of room to grow,” Fisher said. “We have to clean a lot of things up. I just think it was a lack of focus. It was lack of concentration. It can happen to anybody, you have to stay focused.”

Winston entered the game with more touchdown passes (6) than incompletions (5). His highlight moment came when he scrambled from the B-C 11-yard line, spun out of a LeBrandon Richardson sack, kept his eyes downfield and connected with Benjamin for a touchdown.

Freeman had his second consecutive 100-yard game. Karlos Williams finished with 83 yards rushing and two touchdowns, and James Wilder, Jr. added 56 yards and a touchdown. Kenny Shaw tied Rashad Greene with a game-high four receptions. Shaw led all pass-catchers with 89 yards receiving.

The Wildcats (3-1) scored their lone touchdown off a seven-yard run from quarterback Jackie Wilson with 8:21 left in the third quarter.

“I feel as good as I can feel about a game like this,” Bethune-Cookman coach Brian Jenkins said. “We finished the game fighting, we finished the game strong.

“For me it’s some good and some bad too that we’ve got to get corrected.”

Florida State ran away in the second quarter and took a 33-0 lead into halftime, but all three starting receivers had dropped passes, including two for touchdowns. The defense also missed several tackles.

Both teams committed their share of unforced errors in an odd first half. Bethune-Cookman returner Darian Baker muffed two kickoffs that left the offense starting from the 2 and the 6. Tackle Alex Monroe was flagged for holding in the end zone to give the Seminoles a safety. Quarterback Quentin Williams stared down and pointed to receiver Eddie Poole just before Telvin Smith picked off the pass and returned it 68 yards for a touchdown.

Florida State receivers entered the game without a single drop this season, but that quickly changed. The usually sure-handed Greene dropped a pass in the first quarter. Kelvin Benjamin dropped a ball just outside of the end zone that would have been a score. Shaw also muffed one as he turned the corner towards the end zone just before halftime. Replay ruled it a drop instead of a fumble.

“It was a catch and I thought I was going to score,” Shaw said. “My eyes got big and I got excited. That happens in football, but we’re going to pick it up from here on out.”

Wilder, Jr. lost a fumble at the Bethune-Cookman 3. The defense even had its issues as missed tackles plagued the Seminoles.

Florida State held its opponent to a single score for the second consecutive game and was responsible for scoring nine points. The unit was down three starters as linebacker Christian Jones and defensive end Eddie Goldman were held out due to a violation of team rules. Defensive end Mario Edwards, Jr. sat out with a hand injury.

“We have to tackle in space better,” Fisher said. “I wasn’t happy with the way we tackled in space at times tonight. We have to do a better job.”

Telvin Smith posted a game-high 12 tackles and had his first sack of the season. The Seminoles’ three sacks matched their total from the first three games. Redshirt freshman defensive end Chris Casher finished with 10 tackles, including two for loss.

Team Stat Comparison

COOK

FSU

1st Downs 18 26
Total Yards 242 492
Passing 60 226
Rushing 182 266
Penalties 8-59 3-25
3rd Down Conversions 9-18 2-6
4th Down Conversions 0-0 0-0
Turnovers 1 1
Possession 35:59 24:01

Passing Leaders

Bethune-Cookman C/ATT YDS AVG TD INT
Wilson 5/10 37 3.7 0 0
Florida State C/ATT YDS AVG TD INT
Winston 10/19 148 7.8 2 0

Rushing Leaders

Bethune-Cookman CAR YDS AVG TD LG
Jordan 15 81 5.4 0 16
Wilson 12 41 3.4 1 10
Florida State CAR YDS AVG TD LG
Freeman 10 112 11.2 1 33
Williams 9 83 9.2 2 35

Receiving Leaders

Bethune-Cookman REC YDS AVG TD LG
Poole 3 46 15.3 0 23
Murphy 2 9 4.5 0 8
Florida State REC YDS AVG TD LG
Shaw 4 89 22.3 0 29
Greene 4 44 11.0 1 19

 

Wildcats secure historic 34-14 win over FBS foe Florida International

SONY DSC

Wildcats defeat FIU 34-13 – Credits HailWildcats.com

MIAMI — Anthony Jordan ran for 150 yards and a touchdown to lead Bethune-Cookman to its first victory ever over an FBS opponent, defeating Florida International 34-13.

Bethune-Cookman (3-0) improved to 3-0 all-time against Florida International (0-3) and the win extends the Wildcats’ regular season win streak to 10 games over the past two seasons.

Florida International had no answer for Bethune-Cookman’s rushing attack. The Wildcats rolled up 311 yards on the ground while dominating the time of possession. Three different backs each ran for at least 65 yards and a touchdown, including quarterback Quentin Williams.

Adding insult to injury, Bethune-Cookman’s Tim Burke intercepted a Jake Medlock pass in the fourth quarter and returned it from on his own 8-yard line for a touchdown.

FIU’s T.J. Lowder caught six passes for 125 yards and a touchdown in the loss.

More to come shortly.  Be sure to check in with us soon.

BCU leads FIU 14-7 at the half

Bethune-Cookman takes a 14-7 lead to the half over Florida International in Miami.  The Wildcats are controlling both lines of scrimmage rushing for 182 yards on offense on 25 carries.  That is a whopping 7.3 yards per carry.  Defensively BCU is holding the FIU offense to 2.3 yards per rushing attempt.

Anthony Jordan scored on a 58 yard TD run on BCU’s first offensive series capping off a 4 play, 91 yard drive that covered 1:28.  FIU evened the score at 7 apiece on an 8 yard pass from Jake Medlock to T.J. Lowder at the 6:51 mark in the 2nd.

Cary White’s 5 yard TD run pushed BCU’s lead back to 7 and capped a 66 yard scoring drive.

Anthony Jordan is averaging 12.6 yards per rush.

BCU takes over possession when we resume play after half.

Team Stats COOK   FIU
First Downs 11 5
Total Plays 36 29
Total Yards 207 171
Passing 25 128
Rushing 182 43
Penalties 2 / 25 3 / 19
Possession 14:55 14:12
Turnovers 0 0

Who Will Ascend (Week Three) at FIU

 

bethune-cookman    at    florida-international-11

Sat., Sept. 14, 2013

Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium

 

The Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (2-0) travel south this weekend to take on the Florida International Panthers (0-2) in Miami on Saturday night at 6:00 p.m.  The Wildcats will look to improve to 3-0 on the season, 3-0 all-time against FIU, and secure its first ever win over a FBS opponent (FIU had not yet made the jump to the FBS level when the teams last meet in 2003).

Vegas Wild about the Cats

The Vegas sports betting odds opened on Monday with FIU favored by 3 points. The betting line moved 5.5 points in BCU’s favor within an hour of the spread being posted and another .5 point within 2 hours.  By 3:45 p.m. on Monday afternoon, BCU had gone from 3 point underdogs to 3 point road favorites. You heard right; that is not a misprint.   Vegas has a road FCS squad (BCU) favored by 3 points over a FBS team (FIU) in their home stadium.  OUCH!!! 

Vegas sports betting trends suggests the “wise guys” otherwise known as professional gamblers saw value in BCU and bet the line in BCU’s favor.  The line has remained the same for most of the week.

The Matchup

Florida International is ranked dead last in the nation in scoring offense averaging a mere 5 points per game.  Defensively the Panthers are allowing 483 yards per game and rank 108th out of 123 FBS teams.  Ron Turner started 11 new players when FIU took on Maryland in week one. The team has dealt with a rash of injuries in their first 2 games of the year.  The injuries are compounded by the already heavy attrition issues resulting from a tumultuous offseason in which FIU’s leading receiver, Glenn Coleman; starting running back, Kedrick Rhodes, and cornerback Richard Leonard were all ruled ineligible for academic reasons.  Transfer running back Jakhari Gore was kicked off the team for off the field issues.

Meanwhile Bethune-Cookman is averaging 362 yards and 39 points per game on offense while yielding just 215 yards and 8 points per game on defense.

BCU is unbeaten in their two prior meetings with FIU defeating the Panthers 31-0 in 2002 and 24-14 in 2003.  Like this season, BCU was ranked in the FCS Top 25 at the time of their prior clashes with the Panthers (#21 in 2002 and #7 in 2003).

A win on Saturday will mark the first time in the history of the BCU football program and only the 2nd time in MEAC history that a conference school has defeated a current FBS foe.  Florida A&M defeated the University of Miami 16-13 in 1979.

Road Warriors

The Marching Wildcats will join the football team at Alfonso Field on Saturday.  “The Pride” has performed in Nashville, Daytona, Jacksonville, and now Miami in less than 14 days.  The band is also expected to travel to Tallahassee for the Florida State contest on the 21st and will soon make an appearance at Raymond James Stadium for a Tampa Bay Buccaneers game according to what we are being told.  Give it up for the band.

The game will be streamed live at FIUSports.com. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.

MEAC Power 5 (Week Two)

Credits: BlueDeathValley.com

Credits: BlueDeathValley.com

Week two is officially in the bags and all 11 MEAC teams now have at least one game under their belts.  Here is how we stack the conference’s Top 5 teams after week two.

1.  Bethune-Cookman debuts in the top spot in our first Power 5 poll of 2013.  BCU dominated an out-manned Virginia Union squad and cruised to a 66-7 victory in this past Saturday’s home opener.  The Cat’s 12-9 week one win over Tennessee State looks even more impressive after watching TSU handle Florida A&M rather easily in Tallahassee last weekend.  The Wildcats travel to Miami this week to face FBS opponent Florida International in a game in which Vegas has BCU favored to win by 3 points.

2.  You can make an argument for North Carolina A&T to hold this week’s top position after their performance against Appalachian State on Saturday night.  The Aggies dominated the run of play against App State and the final score (24-21) was not indicative of the one-sided nature of this contest.  Some have attempted to discredit A&T’s win over the Mountaineers as more of an indictment of the current state of Appalachian State football…but we’re not buying it.   App State still recruits top athletes and they simply do not lose many games at “The Rock”.  Huge congratulations are in order to coach Rod Broadway and the Aggie football team for this impressive early season victory in Boone, NC on Saturday.  NCA&T will look continue their winning ways when they face-off against Elon of the Southern conference in Greensboro on Saturday.

3.  The Howard Bison land in the third spot in our poll.  HU quarterback Greg McGhee threw for 242 yards and 3 touchdowns in Howard’s 27-16 win over Morehouse in the Nation’s Football Classic in D.C.  The HU defense registered 9 sacks in the contest.

4.  Delaware State racked up over 400 yards of total offense in their season opening loss to in-state rival Delaware on Saturday.  If the Hornets clean things up, look for them to be a factor in the MEAC race this season.

Spots 5-7 are a crap shot at this moment but we slotted South Carolina State in the 5th position based on talent alone.  Their week two loss to Clemson was fully expected and excluded from any sort of legitimate football analysis.  If anything, the Bulldogs can hang their collective hats on the fact that they only gave up 14 points to the Tigers in the second half of the contest.  On the other side of that coin is the week one loss to Coastal Carolina.  SCSU fans are still sick over that one and really feel like they let one get away against the Chanticleers.

Monroe earns 2nd Weekly MEAC honor

white helmetAlex Monroe has been named MEAC Offensive Lineman of the week for the 2nd consecutive week the conference announced on Monday evening. Monroe (LT, 6-5, 305, Sr., Jacksonville, Fla.) paved the way for a season-high 464 yards of total offense in a 66-7 win over Virginia Union.  He blocked for three different quarterbacks and aided B-CU to amass the most points since 2010 (vs. N.C. A&T 67 points; Oct. 28).  He also added two pancake blocks while receiving a grade of 93-percent on his assignments. 

Howard’s Greg McGhee was selected as the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference’s (MEAC) Offensive Player of the Week, the conference announced on Monday. D’Vonte Grant, of North Carolina A&T, was named Defensive Player of the Week.

Other Top Performers

Nick Addison (B-CU) returned an interception 28 yards for a touchdown and collected four tackles, two solo, against Virginia Union.

Jontavious Carter (B-CU) finished the game with two catches for 38 yards and two touchdowns in the Wildcats’ victory over Virginia Union.

Cary White (B-CU) rushed for 62 yards on eight attempts with one touchdown versus Virginia Union.

Cats too tough for Panthers

Credits: BCU Athletics

Credits: BCU Athletics

Associated Press

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Bethune-Cookman jumped to a 31-point halftime lead and added four second-half touchdowns to complete a 66-7 rout of Virginia Union on Saturday.

Bethune-Cookman (2-0) head coach Brian Jenkins relied on what he likes to call their three-headed monster at quarterback. Seniors Brodrick Waters and Jackie Wilson and junior Quentin Williams each threw a touchdown pass and combined to complete 13 of 20 passes for 182 yards.

Eight different receivers caught passes for the Wildcats, marking the first time that’s happened since 2010. Jontavious Carter had two touchdown receptions.

The Wildcats defense scored twice in the first half on interceptions by Nick Addison and Nesley Marcellon.

Eric Shaw led the Virginia Union (0-1) ground attack with 14 carries for 65 yards.

The game was first meeting between the two programs since the 1953 Tropical Bowl which Virginia Union won 13-0.

Scoring Summary

FIRST QUARTER  VIR COOK
FG 09:47 Jonathan Cagle 20 Yd 0 3
TD 05:39 Erik Williams 41 Yd Interception Return (Brodrick Waters Run For Two-Point Conversion) 0 11
TD 00:19 Quentin Williams 5 Yd Run (Pat Blocked) 0 17
SECOND QUARTER VIR COOK
VIR TD 08:04 Damon Kelly 1 Yd Run (Troy Krepich Kick) 7 17
TD 06:09 Cary White 1 Yd Run (Jonathan Cagle Kick) 7 24
TD 05:53 Nick Addison 38 Yd Interception Return (Jonathan Cagle Kick) 7 31
TD 03:32 Anthony Jordan 20 Yd Run (Jonathan Cagle Kick) 7 38
THIRD QUARTER VIR COOK
TD 11:25 Jontavious Carter 16 Yd Pass From Jackie Wilson (Jonathan Cagle Kick) 7 45
TD 03:05 Jontavious Carter 22 Yd Pass From Brodrick Waters (Jonathan Cagle Kick) 7 52
FOURTH QUARTER VIR COOK
TD 06:21 Drexler Dixon 12 Yd Run (Jonathan Cagle Kick) 7 59
TD 02:11 Michael Jones 16 Yd Pass From Quentin Williams (Jonathan Cagle Kick) 7 66

Team Stat Comparison

VIR

COOK

1st Downs 14 25
3rd down efficiency
6-16 8-11
4th down efficiency
1-4 0-2
Total Yards 182 464
Passing 87 182
Comp-Att
12-23 13-20
Yards per pass
3.8 9.1
Rushing 95 282
Rushing Attempts
45 44
Yards per rush
2.1 6.4
Penalties 7-74 10-68
Turnovers 3 1
Fumbles lost
0 0
Interceptions thrown
3 1
Possession 38:11 21:49

Virginia Union Passing

C/ATT YDS AVG TD INT
S. Dowdy 5/9 44 4.9 0 1
K. Graham 7/14 43 3.1 0 2
Team 12/23 87 3.8 0 3

Bethune-Cookman Passing

C/ATT YDS AVG TD INT
Q. Williams 4/5 73 14.6 1 1
J. Wilson 5/7 55 7.9 1 0
B. Waters 4/8 54 6.8 1 0
Team 13/20 182 9.1 3 1

Virginia Union Rushing

CAR YDS AVG TD LG
E. Shaw 14 65 4.6 0 20
D. Kelly 19 41 2.2 1 7
S. Dowdy 6 3 0.5 0 13
M. Parker 1 2 2.0 0 2
T. Malone 4 1 0.3 0 2
J. Reynoso 1 -17 -17.0 0 0
Team 45 95 2.1 1 20

Bethune-Cookman Rushing

CAR YDS AVG TD LG
C. White 8 62 7.8 1 23
A. Jordan 6 45 7.5 1 20
I. Jackson 6 45 7.5 0 47
D. Dixon 5 32 6.4 1 12
Q. Williams 4 32 8.0 1 15
D. Arnold 7 28 4.0 0 7
J. Wilson 4 24 6.0 0 15
B. Waters 4 14 3.5 0 9
Team 44 282 6.4 4 47

Virginia Union Receiving

REC YDS AVG TD LG
M. Holmes 4 41 10.3 0 14
D. Duchenne 1 24 24.0 0 24
J. Wright 3 12 4.0 0 8
D. Anderson 1 4 4.0 0 4
A. Davis 1 3 3.0 0 3
E. Shaw 1 2 2.0 0 2
M. Parker 1 1 1.0 0 1
Team 12 87 7.3 0 24

Bethune-Cookman Receiving

REC YDS AVG TD LG
E. Poole 1 44 44.0 0 44
J. Carter 2 38 19.0 2 22
J. Gordon 3 28 9.3 0 13
J. Davis 2 19 9.5 0 11
M. Jones 1 16 16.0 1 16
I. Virgin 1 14 14.0 0 14
A. Jordan 1 9 9.0 0 9
J. Lumas 1 7 7.0 0 7
J. Murphy 1 7 7.0 0 7
Team 13 182 14.0 3 44

Virginia Union Interceptions

INT YDS TD
J. Blanks 1 9 0
Team 0 0 0

Bethune-Cookman Interceptions

INT YDS TD
E. Williams 1 41 1
N. Addison 1 38 1
J. Richardson 1 0 0
Team 0 0 2

Virginia Union Kick Returns

NO YDS AVG LG
M. Norris 4 104 26.0 35
D. Duchenne 4 87 21.8 32
M. Parker 1 12 12.0 12
J. Lewis 1 0 0.0 0
Team 10 203 20.3 35

Bethune-Cookman Kick Returns

NO YDS AVG LG
J. Carter 1 28 28.0 28
Team 1 28 28.0 28

Virginia Union Punt Returns

NO YDS AVG LG
Team 0 0 0.0 0

Bethune-Cookman Punt Returns

NO YDS AVG LG
J. Borgella 1 14 14.0 0
P. Cleckley 1 7 7.0 7
D. Baker 1 0 0.0 0
Team 3 21 7.0 7

Virginia Union Kicking

FG PCT LONG XP PTS
T. Krepich 0/0 0.0 1/1 1
Team 0/0 0.0 1/1 1

Bethune-Cookman Kicking

FG PCT LONG XP PTS
J. Cagle 1/1 100.0 20 7/8 10
Team 1/1 100.0 20 7/8 10

Virginia Union Punting

TOT YDS AVG TB -20 LG
J. Reynoso 4 105 26.3 0 0 37
-. Team 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
Team 5 105 21.0 0 0 37

Bethune-Cookman Punting

TOT YDS AVG TB -20 LG
Team 0 0 0.0 0 0 0
ATTENDANCE: 6,478

BCU’s Fields, Monroe Garner Weekly MEAC honors

BCU LB - Jarkevis Fields

BCU LB – Jarkevis Fields

NORFOLK, Va., September 2, 2013 –  The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference announced on Monday that Jarkevis Fields and Alex Monroe were named Defensive Player of the Week and Co-Offensive Lineman of the Week respectively.

Fields (LB, 6-0, 230, Sr., Sanford, Fla.) recorded a game-high 10 tackles, six solo, in the Wildcats’ 12-9 victory over Tennessee State.  He added one sack for 10 yards and was named the John Merritt Classic’s Most Valuable Defensive Player.

Monroe (LT, 6-5, 305, Sr., Jacksonville, Fla.) anchored the Wildcats’ offensive line that accounted for 260 yards of total offense.  He graded out at 88-percent on his assignments and helped paved the way for the final game-winning drive in the Wildcats’ victory over Tennessee State.  Behind his protection, Bethune-Cookman rushed for 162 yards and tallied 98 yards through the air.

Morgan State’s Karim Barton joined Monroe as Co-Offensive Lineman of the Week.

South Carolina State’s Tyler McDonald was selected as the Offensive Player of the Week, Justin Taylor also of South Carolina State was named Rookie of the Week.  MSU’s Lawrence Forbes and SCSU’s Nick Belcher earned Co-Special Teams of the Week accolades.

 

Other Top Performers

Darian Baker (B-CU) recorded two kickoff returns for 71 yards, including a 41 yarder, in his first collegiate game.

Jordan Murphy (B-CU) caught three passes for 35 yards and one touchdown in the Wildcats’ 12-9 victory over Tennessee State.

 

BREAKING NEWS: HAILWILDCATS.COM 1st WATCH PARTY!

ALL WILDCAT NATION!!!!!

In a last minute deal struck between Hailwildcats.com staff and Buffalo Wild Wings of Daytona, Hailwildcats.com will host the 1st Hailwildcats.com Watch Party tonight at 8 p.m. EST when the Mighty Wildcats of Bethune-Cookman University take on the Tigers of Tennessee State University on ESPN 3. We will be streaming the game live on the “BIG SCREEN” of Buffalo Wild Wings at 2479 W. International Speedway Blvd  Daytona Beach, FL 32114.

If you are in the Daytona area, put on your Maroon and Gold and come out and share with the Wildcat Nation in this momentous and joyous occasion and see

“Who will ascend to the top of the mountain?”

We look forward to seeing you there! Kickoff AT 8 P.M.

Tenn State Coach Rod Reed Almost got job at BCU

Nashville– Bethune-Cookman and Tennessee State fans alike would have a hard time imagining anyone other than Brian Jenkins and Rod Reed roaming the sidelines of their respective programs over the past 3 seasons.  But four years ago, Rod Reed stood at a crossroads in his football coaching career that could have changed the portrait of both programs.

Credits – TSUTigers – TSU Head Coach Rod Reed

Reed had emerged as a finalist for the head coaching position at Tennessee State and Bethune-Cookman.

He’d spent four seasons as linebackers coach at Bethune-Cookman, met his wife there and liked living in Daytona Beach, Fla.

But TSU was his alma mater, and when athletics director Teresa Phillips offered to promote him from the Tigers’ defensive coordinator to the top job, he accepted.

Bethune-Cookman eventually hired Brian Jenkins, who has led the Wildcats to three consecutive winning seasons, including last year’s 9-3 record.

TSU and Bethune-Cookman meet at 8 p.m. today in the John Merritt Classic at LP Field in what will be an emotional game for Reed, who has so many connections with both programs.

“I am sure I would have been happy as the head coach at Bethune-Cookman. I like the school and I like the people there,” Reed said. “I went down there when the head coaching position was open, came back and interviewed with TSU, and the next day I was the coach here.”

Reed’s second college coaching position was at Bethune-Cookman (1992-95), and it was during his time there when he developed the desire to be a head coach — so much so he was willing to leave the college ranks in 1996 to take the head coaching job at Seabreeze High in Daytona Beach, Fla.

In 2000, he returned to college coaching at East Texas Baptist and three years later became TSU’s defensive coordinator.

Reed left a strong impression at Bethune-Cookman.

Continue Reading: http://www.tennessean.com/article/20130901/SPORTS06/309010059/TSU-coach-Rod-Reed-almost-got-job-Bethune-Cookman?nclick_check=1