Sept. 26, 2009
Final Stats
ORANGEBURG, SC - The Winston-Salem State Rams (0-4) fought hard in every facet of the game, but could not find a way past the South Carolina State Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0 MEAC), Saturday evening. The Rams found a way to slow down the defending Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champions' rushing attack, but had no answer for the Bulldogs' aerial attack in the tough 27-10 loss.
In an eerie similarity in all of WSSU's games this season, the Rams managed just 10 points for the fourth straight contest.
"We're stuck on 10 right now. We certainly had the opportunity to score three more times and when you miss out on opportunities, things like that happen," WSSU head football coach Kermit Blount said after the loss. "In the other games, it's not us making penalties or a play here or not making a play there we're a young football team and we expect that."
The Rams held South Carolina State to just 172 yards on the ground, but allowed 282 passing yards to the Bulldogs. Offensively, the Rams found things tough, amassing 202 yards, including 122 rushing yards in the loss. WSSU senior quarterback Jarrett Dunston led the attack with 54 yards rushing and completing 8-of-30 passes for 80 yards and a touchdown. Three WSSU wide receivers recorded two catches each with senior Omar Kizzie and freshman Lamar Whidbee recording 20 yards each.
The WSSU defense made an early statement in the game holding South Carolina State to a 23-yard field goal with 6:38 left in the first quarter. The Rams were able to hold South Carolina State empty on their next five drives, but were not able to get any scores of their own. A South Carolina State 15-yard TD pass with 00:15 left in the first half left the Rams trailing 10-0 at the half.
After allowing a 28-yard SCSU field goal at the 12:06 mark in the third quarter, the Rams were able to answer back and break into the scoring column when freshman kicker Landen Thayer hit a career-long 41-yard field goal at the 7:56 mark that cut the WSSU deficit down to 10 points 13-3. However, the Rams were victims of a quick strike when South Carolina State answered back with a three-yard TD run by Ford. The SCSU scoring drive lasted just 53 seconds, highlighted by a 48-yard pass completion to set up the score.
The Rams were able to reach the endzone in the fourth quarter when WSSU senior Brian Wynn caught a six-yard touchdown pass from Jarrett Dunston at the 8:00 mark in the fourth quarter. The catch and PAT left the Rams trailing 20-10. Another SCSU score would close out the effort as a 30-yard touchdown run by Ford capped the 27-10 WSSU loss.
Both teams had ugly nights with 289 total penalty yards between the two teams. WSSU committed 13 penalties for 104 yards while South Carolina State committed 14 penalties for 185 yards.
The Rams will return to action next weekend when the team heads to Washington, D.C. to take on the Howard Bison. For more information on Rams football, contact the WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations at (336) 750-2143 or log on to www.WSSURams.com.
