Fayetteville State fended off its nearest challenger in the South. Elizabeth City State stunned the undefeated leaders of the North.
Welcome to another wild day of college football in the CIAA. Livingstone and Winston-Salem State also were among the winners during week eight action.
Here are all the finals from Saturday’s action, followed by highlights and updated league standings.
Scoreboard
- Fayetteville State 14, Johnson C. Smith 7
- Winston-Salem State 24, St. Augustine’s 17
- Livingstone 27, Shaw 26
- Elizabeth City State 17, Virginia State 16
- Virginia Union 57, Lincoln (Pa.) 0
- Bowie State 40, Bluefield State 11
Gigantic Upset
Elizabeth City State may have engineered the biggest upset of the season in the state — and possibly in all of Division II.
Virginia State had been 7-0 overall and 5-0 in CIAA play, carrying a No. 24 ranking in the latest D2Football.com media poll. The Vikings meanwhile, had lost five in a row, with their only win of the season coming against St. Augustine’s 13-0.
Elizabeth City State scored first with a 25-yard field goal from Carson Hancock. Virginia State got on the board with a 1-yard TD run from Jordan Davis early in the second period.
The Vikings took the lead for good when Donoven Davenport hit Ian Edwards on a 50-yard scoring play.
Elizabeth City State carried a 10-7 lead into the break, then added to it when Dev’on Grant took an interception back 25 yards for a score.
Virginia State scored twice in the fourth quarter to pull within a point. But a missed PAT attempt after a touchdown with 1:20 remaining proved the difference. The Vikings recovered the onsides kick and took a couple of knees to seal the monumental victory.
“Great team win today! So proud of my guys,” Elizabeth City coach Marcus Hilliard said in a post on Twitter/X after the game, the picture of the final scoreboard in the background. “We have been knocking at the door all year! 1st time in over 15 years we knocked off a ranked opponent! It’s only up from here!”
Zechariah Adams-Duckson didn’t find the end zone but had a workman-like day in the ECSU backfield. He rushed 32 times for 136 yards, with a long of 19.
Tracey White (12 tackles) and Demorian Smith (10 tackles) paced the Vikings’ defense. Traveon Freshwater had two tackles for loss. Teonne Porter recorded an 11-yard sack.
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Championship Clinched?
Fayetteville State doesn’t seem to need offense to win games. The Broncos recorded just 114 total yards and still beat Johnson C. Smith by a touchdown, 14-7.
FSU relied on a stern defense of its own to take firm command of the CIAA Southern Division race. Fayetteville State improved to 6-0 in the league, 6-2 overall. Johnson C. Smith dropped to 4-2, 5-3 overall.
The Broncos recorded 11 tackles for loss and four sacks. Shi Gaskin recorded 12 tackles to lead the way. JCSU managed only 188 yards on 65 plays.
Two first-half touchdowns by Caden Davis stood up for FSU. Johnson C. Smith got its only points on a 10-yard touchdown throw from Jamere Cherry to Reggie Bryant.
Fayetteville State closes the regular season at Shaw next week and home against Winston-Salem State on Nov. 4. The only way the Broncos don’t win the CIAA South is if they lose both games, and Winston-Salem State wins out. Johnson C. Smith, effectively, has been eliminated from capturing the division crown. Even if FSU loses its final two games and the Golden Bulls win out, the Broncos hold the tie-breaker based on Saturday’s result.
Home team wins on homecoming
Winston-Salem State hasn’t played a homecoming game in four years. The wait proved worth it, and the Rams won for the fourth time in CIAA action to keep division title hopes alive.
Daylin Lee threw for 259 yards and two touchdowns for WSSU. Lee also rushed for the game-winning score from one-yard out with 11 seconds to go.
Jobann Esparza had a key field goal for Winston-Salem State with 3:21 to play to tie the game 17-17. Myles Dillon and Jashawn Middletown had touchdown receptions from Lee earlier in the game.
Winston-Salem State improved to 4-4 overall and 4-2 in CIAA play. St. Aug’s dropped to 0-8.
The Falcons, who saw their head coach let go less than two weeks ago, came close to snagging their first victory. Marquis Munoz scored on a 14-yard run in the opening period. Ty’quere Hines returned an interception 80 yards for a score.
A James Hobson 26-yard field goal gave St. Augustine’s a 17-7 lead with 9:04 left in the third quarter. But the Falcons couldn’t hold the lead down the stretch, falling to 0-6 against CIAA foes.
Blue Bears > Bears
Shaw’s Sidney Gibbs had touchdown runs of 64 and 45 yards in the third quarter, becoming the school’s all-time rushing leader in the process. But Livingstone answered with two touchdowns in the final period to steal the win, 27-26.
William Tims and Marcus Drish each had TD throws for Livingstone. JyMikaah Wells rushed for a pair of scores. Matthew Henry caught two touchdown passes for the Blue Bears.
Gibbs finished with 183 rushing yards in the game, averaging 13.1 yards per carry on 14 totes.
Ah’sha Belcher caught a 16-yard TD pass from Silas Cruse to give Shaw a 26-14 lead with 9:16 left in the game. But the game turned after that play, leaving the Blue Bears on the winning end.
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CIAA Standings
| SCHOOL | DIVISION RECORD | DIVISION PCT. | CONFERENCE RECORD | CONFERENCE PCT. | OVERALL RECORD | OVERALL PCT. | STREAK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NORTHERN DIVISION | |||||||
| Virginia Union | 3-0 | 1.000 | 5-1 | .833 | 7-1 | .875 | W4 |
| Virginia State | 2-1 | .667 | 5-1 | .833 | 7-1 | .875 | L1 |
| Lincoln (PA) | 2-1 | .667 | 3-3 | .500 | 4-4 | .500 | L1 |
| Bowie State | 1-2 | .333 | 3-3 | .500 | 4-4 | .500 | W1 |
| Elizabeth City State | 1-2 | .333 | 1-5 | .167 | 2-6 | .250 | W1 |
| Bluefield State | 0-3 | .000 | 0-6 | .000 | 1-7 | .125 | L7 |
| SOUTHERN DIVISION | |||||||
| Fayetteville State | 3-0 | 1.000 | 6-0 | 1.000 | 6-2 | .750 | W6 |
| Winston-Salem State | 2-1 | .667 | 4-2 | .667 | 4-4 | .500 | W2 |
| Johnson C. Smith | 1-2 | .333 | 4-2 | .667 | 5-3 | .625 | L1 |
| Livingstone | 2-1 | .667 | 3-3 | .500 | 3-5 | .375 | W1 |
| Shaw | 1-2 | .333 | 2-4 | .333 | 2-6 | .250 | L2 |
| St. Augustine’s | 0-3 | .000 | 0-6 | .000 | 0-8 | .000 | L8 |
