#18 Wildcats bounce back with 42-12 drubbing of Hampton

November 16, 2013November 17, 2013 / J Bell / Leave a comment

Dion Hanks

A week after losing its first MEAC contest in over two seasons, 18^th ranked Bethune-Cookman bounced back in impressive fashion thrashing the Hampton Pirates 42-12 on Senior Day in Daytona Beach.

The Wildcats racked up 557 yards of total offense including 475 rushing yards in the contest.

BCU opened the game’s scoring on an 11 play, 87 yard touchdown drive on its second possession of the contest. The Wildcats ran the ball 10 straight times on the drive with the only pass attempt resulting in a 6 yard touchdown reception from Jackie Wilson to Cary White.

The Wildcats doubled their lead on their next possession but needed just 4 plays this time to hit pay dirt. Isidore Jackson, who finished the contest with 102 yards rushing on 9 attempts, scampered down the right sideline for 53 yards to set the Cats up with 1^st and goal at the 6. Two plays later, Wilson twisted his way into the endzone on a quarterback keeper.

“We came out focused and ready to play” coach Brian Jenkins stated after the contest. “We are a good football team. A lot of people doubted us after last week and that’s okay.” “We had a talk as a team. There was no panic; it was just (about) cleaning up our act and we did that. The approach we took is we’re not going to let it go to the score cards.”

Anthony Prevost successfully converted a 34 yard field goal to give Hampton their only points of the first half. But the Wildcats would respond immediately needing to travel just 15 yards for their third touchdown of the half. Darian Baker took the ensuing kickoff 82 yards to the Hampton 15 yard line. 3 plays later, Quentin Williams finished the drive on a 1 yard option keeper.

Brodrick Waters scored on a 2 point conversion attempt and put BCU ahead 22-3 at the half.

Hampton had several chances to get back into the contest early in the 3rd but the Wildcat’s tenacious defense kept the Pirates at bay. After HU trimmed the lead to 22-6, the BCU offense fumbled on its first two possessions of the 3^rd quarter but the defense held firm and prevented the Pirates from capitalizing on either of the turnovers holding them to a missed FG attempt and stopping them on a 4^th and 1 respectively.

Freshman running back Michael Jones pushed the BCU lead to 28-6 midway through the 3^rdquarter on a nifty 30 yard run. Jones made a couple of HU defenders miss and outran a few others on his way to the endzone. “I stretched the play to the right, the defense was over-pursuing, I found a cutback lane and hit it” Jones remarked in the postgame presser.

Quentin Williams and Drexler Dixon added rushing touchdowns in the 4^th quarter for the Wildcats while the Pirates’ Marcus Hampton recorded HU’s only touchdown of the game in the final frame.

“It was good to end my last regular season home game with a (convincing) win ” senior defensive end Tevin Toney stated. He went on to state, “it goes to show you that the hard work that we put in pays off in games.”

Toney and his defensive mates forced 2 Hampton interceptions and limited the Pirate offense to just 216 yards.

BCU takes on archrival Florida A&M next week in the Florida Blue Florida Classic in Orlando. A Florida Classic win would grant the Wildcats at least a share of the MEAC crown for the third time in four years. A win would also secure BCU’s 3rd trip to the playoffs in 4 years as the Cats would be awarded the conference’s automatic bid.

Miscues doom Wildcats in 24-27 loss to Norfolk State

November 10, 2013 / J Bell / Leave a comment

One word summarizes Bethune-Cookman’s 24-27 loss to Norfolk State on Saturday; MISCUES!

The Wildcats got off to an uninspiring start and committed 5 turnovers (including 4 in the first half) in Saturday’s defeat. On the other side of the ball, Norfolk State started the game redhot and scored on its first 3 possessions.

The Spartans took the game’s opening possession 81 yards on 10 plays and scored on a 2 yard touchdown run by Rolandan Finch early in the 1^st quarter. After a BCU three-and-out, the Spartans stretched their lead to 10-0 on a 43 yard Cameron Marouf field goal.

Bethune-Cookman’s offense showed some life on its second possession and easily sliced through the NSU defense needing only 2:48 to travel 72 yards to cut into the Spartan lead. Isidore Jackson scored on a 35 yard touchdown run up the right sideline after receiving an option pitch from quarterback Quentin Williams to reduce the deficit to 10-7. Jackson’s TD run pushes him to 3^rd on BCU’s all-time rushing TD list

NSU’s offense seemed to stall inside the BCU redzone on the ensuing possession; however, 2 redzone penalties on 3 down extended the Spartan drive. Senior defensive end, Dyron Dye, was flagged for a roughing the passer call after the Wildcats stopped NSU on 3^rd and 4 from the 12. 3 plays later Tim Burke was flagged for defensive pass interference after what would have been a 3^rd and goal stop from the 5.

The drive finally ended with a 2 yard TD pass from Tyler Clark to University of Florida transfer and Miami native Lynden Trail.

Trail made his second impact play of the evening 3 plays later but this time while playing defense. The All-MEAC performer forced a fumble on an option pitch. Natturner Harris scooped the deflected pitch up and raced 31 yards to put ahead NSU 24-7 halfway through the 2^nd quarter.

Trails was all smiles after the game. “We felt like they (BCU) kind of overlooked us and we felt disrespected. They were probably thinking about next week’s game or maybe even the playoffs. But we came in here tonight, got the victory, and proved that we are a good football team.”

“It’s a blessing that this game is on our schedule. My mother is here watching. I am 6 foot 7; I weigh 260 pounds but I am still my mother’s baby. She doesn’t like the contact part of the game because I am her baby but I am sure that she appreciated the touchdown.”

“I don’t even know how many family and friends I had here tonight watching (me) but it was a lot. I am just so proud of my teammates and my coaches. They (the coaches) gave us a good gameplan and we executed.”

While NSU’s offensivie execution may have been crisp in the opening half, BCU’s execution was anything but. The Wildcats turned the ball over on four of six first half possessions.

The Wildcats were able to put together a feverish fourth quarter rally but the comeback attempt fell just short. Nick Addison made what would have been the play of the game had the outcome turned out differently when he stopped Derrick Demps just shy of the first down marker, wrestled the ball away, and scampered 14 yards to make it a two possession game (27-13).

The Wildcats took over their next possession at the NSU 44 yard line. 4 plays later the Cats had it 1^st and goal from the 1 but an illegal procedure penalty negated a touchdown and backed the Cats up to the 6. BCU was unable to punch it in on that drive and instead settled for a 23 yard Jonathan Cagle field goal to make it 27-16.

After forcing a NSU punt, Jontavious Carter hauled in a 61 yard pass from Jackie Wilson and Isidore Jackson’s 11 yard TD run capped a 2 play 72 yard scoring drive that took only 31 seconds on BCU’s ensuing possession. Brodrick Waters hit Justin Henderson on a short pass to complete the 2 point conversion attempt and cut the lead to 27-24.

BCU’s defense held the Spartans to what would have been a 3 and out and the Cats were set to take over possession at the NSU 44 yardline trailing 27-24 with over 3 minutes remaining and all the momentum. However, the Wildcats’ special teams unit was flagged 15 yards for a bizarre “snapper interference” call.

Norfolk State was able to essentially run out the clock after that call.

The Wildcats ended the contest with a dismal 15 penalties for 138 yards.

Jarkevis Fields registered 21 tackles while LeBrandon Richardson pitched in 15 of his own.

Norfolk State’s victory was the first for the Spartans in Daytona in 10 tries.

BCU runs past NCCU 38-14

November 2, 2013 / J Bell / Leave a comment

150 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The 12^th ranked Bethune-Cookman Wildcats piled up 594 yards of offense and raced to a 38-14 win over North Carolina Central.

Heading into the game, senior running back Isidore Jackson needed just 129 yards on the ground to surpass Allen Suber as BCU’s all-time career rushing yardage leader. Jackson racked up 125 of the 129 yards needed in the first half, finished the contest with 182 yards rushing on 20 attempts, and now sits in first place on the career rushing yardage list.

Jackson seemed likely to open the game’s scoring midway through the 1^st quarter but fumbled while attempting to stretch the ball across the pylon. The Wildcats would, however, get on the scoreboard later in the opening frame on a 3 yard run by Cary White with 1:17 remaining in the 1^st quarter.

Quarterback Quentin Williams hooked up with Eddie Poole for a 31 yard touchdown strike on the Wildcats’ next possession. Williams broke a tackle and extended the play with his legs before finding a wide open Poole in the middle of the field. The pass and catch put BCU up 14-0 early in the 2^nd quarter.

Jonathan Cagle pushed the BCU lead to 17-0 with a 31 yard field goal conversion for the final score of the 1^st half.

Jackson added a 9 yard TD scamper for the lone points in the 3^rdquarter.

The game action heated up early in the 4^th with 21 points being scored in a 26 second span.

Freshman running back Michael D. Jones scored on a 3 yard run to the push the Wildcat lead to 31-0. On the ensuing kickoff, NCCU return man Thomas Dixon spoiled the Wildcats’ hopes of a shutout and raced 100 yards to give the Eagles their first points of the afternoon.

True freshman Dre’Sean Nelson supplied an immediate response taking a handoff up the middle and outran the NCCU defense 75 yards for the score.

Kevin Thompson ended the game’s scoring on a 6 yard jolt off-tackle for Central.

Quentin Williams finished the contest 12/20 for 147 yards and 1 touchdown through the air.

Eddie Poole extended his pass catching streak to 44 games and supplanted James Adderley as tops on BCU’s consecutive game with a reception list.

Defensively the Wildcats limited NCCU to -1 yard rushing, 137 total yards, and forced 2 turnovers on the afternoon. Nick Addison and Rony Barrow each recorded interceptions in the contest.

Team Stats	COOK		NCCU
First Downs	27	14
Total Plays	86	56
Total Yards	594	137
Passing	158	138
Rushing	436	-1
Penalties	24/ 232	9 / 110

Top 5 B-CU/SCSU games in history

October 28, 2013October 28, 2013 / J Bell / Leave a comment

Allen Suber – Onnidan.com

Bradford Gillens-Bethune-Cookman Wildcats Examiner

Following 13th ranked (SportsNetwork) Bethune-Cookman’s pivotal 14-3 win over South Carolina State Saturday at Municipal Stadium, I started thinking about the intense battles this matchup has produced in recent history.

Although the Bulldogs lead the series 28-19-1, the Wildcats have won three of the last four meetings and have had some of their most memorable wins in school history versus their conference foes from Orangeburg, SC.

Listed below are the top five games between the Wildcats and Bulldogs.

View 5 photos

Read on: http://www.examiner.com/list/top-5-b-cu-scsu-games-history/5-suberman-runs-wild

Bethune-Cookman solidifies position atop the MEAC with 14-3 win over SCSU

October 27, 2013October 27, 2013 / J Bell / Leave a comment

Credits: BCU Athletics

The final transition in the MEAC’s changing of the guard was solidified on Saturday afternoon with #14 Bethune-Cookman’s 14-3 Homecoming victory over South Carolina State in Daytona Beach.

The Wildcat defense limited the Bulldogs to just 143 yards of total offense and forced 3 SCSU turnovers including 2 in the red zone during Saturday’s contest. Marquis Drayton undercut a Richard Cue pass intended for Temarrick Hemingway to provide BCU with their first impactful defensive play of the afternoon.

On the subsequent drive, quarterback Quentin Williams guided the “good guys” on a 9 play, 81 yard touchdown drive. Williams went 5-5 on the drive with the biggest play, a 47 yard strike to Eddie Poole, requiring a little divine intervention.

“When I tell you God is good, God is good. I lost the ball in the sun for like 3 seconds but somehow it landed softly in my hands” Eddie Poole stated when commenting on the reception that gave BCU 1^st and goal from the 1.

The drive culminated with a 4 yard pass from Williams to Isidore Jackson giving the Wildcats a 7-0 lead 10 minutes into the contest.

Two possessions later, BCU pushed its lead to 14-0 this time scoring on a 6 yard quarterback keeper by Williams.

Williams, who played the entire game at quarterback, finished the contest 12-16 for 220 yards and 1 touchdown. Eddie Poole caught 5 passes for 130 yards and moved up to 5^th place all-time on the BCU receptions list.

Jarkevis Fields paced the Wildcats with 14 tackles; none bigger than his 4^th quarter stop at the 1 yard line forcing a Justin Taylor fumble and BCU recovery in the endzone. “I saw (Taylor) coming downhill. I went down low and my helmet hit the ball. The next thing I knew the crowd was screaming so I knew it was a turnover. I looked up and thankfully Donald Smith reacted the way our coaches taught us and fell on the ball in the endzone.”

After the game, a consolatory Buddy Pough stated: “I’m going to be honest; I thought Cookman just outplayed us today.” “I have to take my hat off to Coach Jenkins and his staff. They found a couple little things that gave them a chance to get ahead early. The guy (Coach Jenkins) is a good football coach. They put together a great program. They have a great following. They have probably the most fertile group of (recruiting) talent there is in this part of the country. You put all those things together along with his connections and the great job he’s doing coaching and you win football games.”

BCU’s win over SCSU stretches their MEAC win streak to 17 games.

GAME STATS: http://www.bcuathletics.com/fls/23910/pdf/Football/BCUFB13_Gamebook_08SCSU.pdf?DB_OEM_ID=23910

Wildcats take on Bison

October 12, 2013 / J Bell / Leave a comment

WASHINGTON, DC — This Saturday’s matchup between Bethune-Cookman (4-1, 1-0 in the MEAC) and Howard University (1-4, 0-2 in the MEAC) pits the MEAC’s top offense against the league’s best defense.

BCU currently sits atop the conference rankings in both Total Defense (274.8 ypg) and Scoring Defense (18 ppg) while HU leads the MEAC in Total Offense (396.4) and Passing Offense (239.4). The Bison offense is directed by junior quarterback Greg McGhee who leads the conference in total yards (1414), passing yards (1153), and passing touchdowns (10); and only trails BCU’s Quentin Williams in passing efficiency and completion percentage. McGhee is coming off a stellar performance last week against North Carolina Central in which he completed 31 of 48 attempts for 328 yards, 4 TDs and no interceptions in a 28-37 loss.

McGhee has the luxury of throwing to 3 of the league’s Top 10 receivers in Jonathan Booker, Brandon Flanagan, and Stewart Hartman.

Despite the numbers, the Bison have struggled to translate their offensive proficiency into wins. HU pulled off a near upset in Week One against FBS foe Eastern Michigan and defeated Division II Morehouse a week later. Since then, the Bison have lost three consecutive contests being outscored 140-66 in the process.

The Wildcats (who are ranked 13^th in the FCS Coaches poll and 16^th in the Sports Network Media poll) shook off a sluggish first half against Delaware State last week in route to their 14^th consecutive MEAC win. BCU’s consecutive game win streak stretches back to October 20, 2011.

The Cats racked up 409 yards of offense against DSU including 241 yards on the ground. Four BCU running backs rushed for at least 40 yards in the contest (Cary White (65), Anthony Jordan (61), Isidore Jacskon (54) and Drexler Dixon (40)) while senior wide receiver Eddie Poole added 4 catches for 103 yards with 1 touchdown through the air.

Defensively, the Wildcats have registered 6 interceptions, 15 sacks and 36 tackles for loss this season. The aggressive and opportunistic BCU defense could be poised to have another big afternoon against HU’s high volume pass attack.

Jarkevis Fields pace the Cats D with 30 tackles while Dyron Dye leads the way with 3.5 tackles-for-loss and 3 sacks.
Other notes:

-BCU leads the overall series against HU 17-13-1 and have won 4 straight against the Bison.

-Howard University has billed Saturday’s contest as “Think Pink Day” and encourage all game attendees to wear something pink in support of breast cancer awareness. Perhaps Bethune will oblige by wearing the highly anticipated pink helmets….hmmmmm! We shall see.

Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00.

Courtesy of BCU Athletics

Who Will Ascend….at Delaware State

October 4, 2013 / J Bell / Leave a comment

Thank God it’s Friday. Not only has the busy workweek ended but we can finally get back to some good ol’ fashion Bethune-Cookman football after what seems like a forever-break. The 3-1 Wildcats are fresh off a bye week and will travel to Dover this Saturday for a 2:00 kickoff against Delaware State (1-3).

DSU secured its first victory of the season a week ago slipping past Savannah State 24-22 on the road. Senior quarterback Cory Murphy completed 8-19 passes for 190 yards and 2 touchdowns in the contest. Murphy and the DSU offense sit atop the conference rankings in passing offense averaging 232.2 yards per game. Despite their relative success through the air, the Hornets have managed to score a pedestrian 13 points per game through their first four contests. They haven’t fared much better defensively in the scoring department where they are yielding an eye-popping 41 points per game.

To DSU’s credit, their schedule has been a brutal one and all 3 of the Hornet’s losses have come at the hands of Top 25 opponents (#1-North Dakota State (51-0), #3-Towson (49-7), and #24-Delaware (42-21)). The not-so-good news for DSU is that BCU enters the contest ranked #21 in the Sports Network poll, #16 in the FCS Coaches poll, and undefeated in their last 13 MEAC matchups. To make things worse for the Hornets, Preseason MEAC Co-Offensive Player of the Year, Isidore Jackson, is scheduled to return to the BCU backfield after missing the last two games due to what coach Brian Jenkins called in-house issues. Jackson’s presence is sure to boost BCU’s already MEAC best rushing attack (234 ypg). During Jackson’s absence, Anthony Jordan filled in more than adequately and now leads the MEAC in rushing yards (302 yards) and yards per carry (6.0).

De-fense

LeBrandon Richardson -HailWildcats.com

The BCU defense has become known for taking the ball away and pressuring the opposing quarterback under coordinator Yogi Jones’s guidance. The Cats will look to turn up the heat on a Del State offense that has already turned the ball over 10 times (5 fumbles, 5 interceptions) and allowed 14 sacks this season. BCU currently leads the conference in Total Defense (287.8 ypg), interceptions, and interception returns for scores. Look for the Wildcat defense to have a big afternoon against the Delaware State attack if they perform up to their usual standards.

In the end, Bethune should have little problems taking care of business against Delaware State on Saturday.

Yes, we know that on any given Saturday upsets can occur and yes you must respect your opponent; but BCU is flat-out the better team, they are more physical in the trenches and they have superior athletes and depth across the board. Vegas odds makers list the Wildcats as 20 point favorites. We have no reason to believe that the Wildcats won’t match Vegas’ 3 touchdown prediction.

Wildcats ranked 18th/20th in latest FCS polls

September 23, 2013 / J Bell / Leave a comment

Cary White rushes for a score against FIU

Bethune-Cookman head into its bye-week losing one spot in both the FCS Coaches and SportsNetwork media polls. The Wildcats currently sit 18th and 20th respectively in the each poll.

BCU registered an impressive 3-1 mark in the month of September with out-of-conference victories over Tennessee State of the Ohio Valley Conference and Florida International from FBS’ Conference USA. The #8 ranked Florida State Seminoles handed BCU their lone defeat.

The Wildcats have won 14 straight MEAC contests and begin conference play after the bye-week when they head to Dover to take on Delaware State on October 5th.

Coaches Poll

TEAM	SCHOOL (FIRST-PLACE VOTES)	RECORD	POINTS	PREV- IOUS
1.	North Dakota State (26)	3-0	650	1
2.	Towson	4-0	616	3
3.	Eastern Washington	2-1	598	4
4.	Sam Houston State	3-1	573	5
5.	Northern Iowa	3-0	531	7
6.	South Dakota State	3-1	465	6
T-7.	New Hampshire	2-1	460	9
T-7.	Montana	3-0	460	11
9.	McNeese State	4-0	409	13
10.	Montana State	2-2	402	2
11.	Coastal Carolina	4-0	372	15
12.	Eastern Illinois	3-1	354	10
13.	Central Arkansas	2-2	326	14
14.	James Madison	3-1	283	16
15.	Wofford	2-2	278	8
16.	Fordham	4-0	217	21
17.	Lehigh	3-0	214	18
18.	Bethune-Cookman	3-1	179	17
19.	Cal Poly	1-2	169	19
20.	Richmond	2-2	156	20
21.	Villanova	1-2	155	23
22.	Northern Arizona	2-1	117	22
23.	Stony Brook	1-2	107	12
24.	Illinois State	1-2	80	24
25.	Youngstown State	3-1	47	NR

Dropped out: No. 25 Maine.

Others receiving votes: Maine 46, Tennessee-Martin 44, Gardner-Webb 35, William & Mary 27, Jacksonville State 21, Portland State 15, Southern Utah 8, Delaware 7, Tennessee State 6, Harvard 5, Chattanooga 4, Stephen F. Austin 4, Indiana State 2, North Carolina A&T 1, Sacred Heart 1.

Who Will Ascend BCU at FSU

September 21, 2013 / J Bell / Leave a comment

Bethune-Cookman is off to a hot start and the programs first ever win over a FBS opponent (a 34-13 victory over FIU). BCU will try to carry some of that early season momentum in to Tallahassee when they square off against one of the most storied programs in NCAA history on Saturday night in Doak Campbell Stadium.

Florida State overwhelmed its first two opponents (Pittsburg and Nevada) offensively outscoring them 103-20 racking up 1150 yards of offense in the process. Quarterback Jameis Winston is on everyone’s Heisman watchlist and has thrown more touchdown passes (6) than incompletions (40-45 passing with only 5 incompletions) this season.

Winston has the luxury of passing to one of the nation’s best receiving corps and/or handing the ball off to what some argue is the best running back tandem in the country in James Wilder Jr. and Devonta Freeman. Karlos Williams, recently converted from defensive back to running back, rushed for over 100 yards last week and adds even more firepower to the Seminoles already crowded backfield.

Defensively, Florida State is yielding an ungenerous 10 points and 255.5 yards per contest so to say BCU will have their hands full keeping this game respectable is an understatement.

The Wildcats have played 12 quarters of football against FBS competition in their program history. If you take out the 4^th quarters of the two Miami games in 2011/12, the aggregate score of BCU vs. the FBS is 55-61. That’s less than a touchdown difference in 10 of the 12 quarters of play.

If BCU can find a way to keep this game competitive for three quarters and avoid any major injuries, I think this trip can be considered a successful one. If…and I mean a HUGE IF…by some celestial stroke of divine serendipity BCU pulls off one of the biggest upsets in college football history…nah we won’t even allow ourselves to think that way. Let’s just say that thought was going to end with the talk of gold speedos, a maroon cape, and a Zorro mask.

Perhaps the best matchup of tonight will be ‘Let’s Go Wildcats’ vs. the ‘Seminole War Chant’. These are easily two of the best anthems in college football.

Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00 EST. The game can be viewed live on ESPN3.com

Final Rant (Week 3) at FIU

September 18, 2013September 18, 2013 / J Bell / Leave a comment

Drexler Dixon

Shortly after Bethune-Cookman’s historic 34-13 win over Florida International on Saturday night, Golden Panthers head coach Ron Turner told his team “we got beat by a better football team because they’re more of a team than we are.” Turner neglected to mention to his guys that BCU fielded a squad just as athletic as his, they were equal if not superior in overall team speed, and the Wildcats were much more physical at the point of attack than were his Panthers. In essence, Turner should have said Bethune-Cookman was simply the better football team; no qualifiers needed.

This is our house

The Wildcats set the tone for the night in the parking lot before kickoff. No, there was no pregame dust-up between the two sides; I am referring to the deluxe-size BCU tailgate taking place in the parking lot. South Florida alumni chapters put together a homecoming worthy tailgate that covered the East parking lot with an abundance of Maroon and Gold supporters. The eyeball test suggests the stands inside the stadium were filled with an equal number of BCU and FIU fans.

A collective echo of ooohhhhhhhhs rang loudly on the first play of regulation when backup running back and special teams ace Drexler Dixon leveled FIU return man De’Andre Jasper on the game’s opening kickoff. Jasper left the field under his own power but the tone was established; BCU was dead set on playing fast, playing aggressive, and they were up for the challenge of proving they could compete with any team in the nation regardless of classification. For the next 59 and half minutes, it was BCU from the NCAA’s lower tiered Division One Football Championship Subdivision who dominated play.
The Wildcats kept the momentum rolling on their first offensive possession needing only 4 plays to drive 91 yards. Junior running back Anthony Jordan capped the drive with a 58 yard TD scamper and the Wildcats never looked back.

Around the same time as Jordan’s opening score, the slightly late arriving Marching Wildcats found their seats and begin to fill Alfonso Field with that rich, dark sound for which they have become known and FIU Stadium was unofficially rebranded as “The Wildcat Den” for the next 3 hours.

Big men getting it done

Sports cliché number #117 states games are won and loss in the trenches and Saturday’s performance did nothing to dissuade this popular perception. The Wildcat offensive line paved the way for three Wildcat rushers to accumulate at least 60 yards each on the ground and a team average of 6.0 yards per attempt. My calculator tells me that’s good enough for a first down every two rushing tries. The defensive line was equally impressive limiting FIU to a pedestrian 2.2 yards per carry and just 73 yards rushing on the night. Coach Brian Jenkins stated after the game he challenged his offensive and defensive lines and based on the above-mentioned statistics, they answered the challenge pretty well.

FBS teams often enjoy their greatest level of superiority in the trenches when facing FCS opponents; so to see Bethune-Cookman’s big men not just hold up well but dominate the lines of scrimmage was a welcoming sign. Line play has been a tiresome point of criticism of HBCU squads for the better part of the last decade. Let’s hope BCU has solved this riddle as we get deeper into the season.

Take me away

Despite leading the nation in takeaways last season, BCU failed to register a turnover in week one versus Tennessee State. However, the Wildcat defense has seemed to regain their ball-hawking ways and have produced 5 takeaways in the past two games. Tim Burke’s 92 yard pick-six with 14:38 remaining in the contest ended any FIU hopes of a comeback attempt. It was BCU’s third pick-six of the season (Erik Williams and Nick Addison both returned interceptions for touchdowns in the Virginia Union game).

The Wildcats step WAY up in competition when they take on the #8 ranked Florida State Seminoles in Doak Campbell Stadium on Saturday night. This will be the first ever match up with the Noles.