Oct. 7, 2006

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WINSTON-SALEM, NC - Corey Swinnie's 35-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown sealed the Rams' victory as Winston-Salem State University defeated the Howard University Bison at Bowman Gray Stadium in front of a crowd of 15,991 on Saturday afternoon.

The Rams, playing their third home game of the season used Swinnie's defensive touchdown to stretch their six point lead to double digits midway through the fourth quarter of play.

First half action started innocently enough as the Rams and Bison managed to put only six points on the scoreboard with the only points of the half coming on a Monte Purvis 37-yard touchdown strike to Josh Crawford.

The play, a slant pattern, saw Crawford run past the coverage of Howard's Thomas Clayborn as the senior wide receiver hauled in a well-thrown ball from Purvis for the Rams' second receiving touchdown of the season.  The touchdown gave Purvis his second TD pass of the year to go with his pair of rushing touchdowns.

Marvin Umanzor's kick missed its mark, and the Rams took a 6-0 lead heading into the second quarter of play.

The two teams combined for 11 more drives before Swinnie's touchdown put the icing on the Rams' Homecoming cake.

With 8:19 to play in the contest, the Bison started a drive at their own 35 yard line as Howard looked to chip into the WSSU six-point lead.  However, on the second play of the drive, Jason Holman and Williams Hayes combined to jar the ball loose from the grasp of Howard running back William Blanden.

Spinning end-over-end in the air, WSSU's Corey Swinnie snatched the ball from flight and raced 35 yards to the endzone for a touchdown, a touchdown which marked WSSU's first defensive touchdown since November 29, 2005 when DeRon Middleton recorded a 74-yard interception return for a score.

WSSU's defense successfully weathered two more Howard drives to hang on for the 12-0 win and capture the Rams' first shutout victory since a 31-0 victory over Virginia Union that came on September 24, 2005.

The win improves WSSU to 2-4 overall while Howard falls to 1-4 with the loss.  The Rams return to action on October 14, 2006 as they travel to Daytona Beach, FL to face the Wildcats of Bethune-Cookman College.  Howard returns to the field on October 14, 2006 at home in Washington, DC as they face Morgan State University for Homecoming.

For additional information on WSSU football, contact the WSSU Office of Sports Information at (336) 750-2143 or log on to the Official Website of WSSU Athletics at www.WSSURAMS.com

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