South Carolina HBCU Sports This Week

*Gore Named CIAA Men's Cross Country Runner of The Week*

CHARLOTTE, NC - It didn't take long for Claflin freshman Reginald Gore to make an impact as he was named the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Men's Cross Country Runner of the Week, Wednesday morning. The honor came after his performance at the Carolina Challenge, the first collegiate competition of his career.

During the Carolina Challenge, Gore had a terrific performance. He led all Claflin runners in the men's 5K run with an 18:39.50 and he placed 21st in the event. The level of competition at the meet was especially impressive as he competed against runners from two NCAA Division I teams as well as one of the top teams from the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAC).

Gore and the Panthers will return to action, Saturday, when the team takes part in the Furman Invitational. For more information on Panthers cross country, contact the Claflin University.

*Allen Falls At Fort Valley On Last Minute TD*

FVSU scored a last-minute touchdown to overtake the Yellow Jackets 29-27.

Allen was led by a rushing touchdown and two-point conversion from sophomore RB Beau Herrington as well as two touchdowns from sophomore QB David Wright, one passing and one rushing. Wright threw for 295 yards while sophomore WR Jayden Horace had a big game catching 9 passes for 125 yards. Fellow sophomore wideout Jamal Jones also caught a touchdown on 5 receptions for 74 yards.

FVSU got on the board first with a 28 yard pass in the opening minutes of the game. However, Allen answered right back with a score of their own as Wright ushered a 78 yard 9 play drive ending with his one yard scamper to tie the game.

After an FVSU field goal, Allen came back with a Herrington 2-yard TD run in the second quarter to cap off a 10-play 73 yard drive. The Yellow jackets then added another TD right before halftime with a Wright 18-yard pass to freshman WR Armone Harris to put Allen up 19-10. AU then went for two and Herrington again cashed in for the Jackets giving AU the 21-10 lead at the break.

FVSU then responded quickly in the third quarter with a 50 yard TD pass to get within 4 points. AU would again respond with a 23-yard TD pass fom Wright to Jamal Jones but AU failed on the two point conversion as AU led just 27-17 late in the third. Fort Valley then added another score to close out the quarter before Allen blocked the extra point to retain their four-point lead after three quarters, 27-23.

The fourth was then scoreless with each team trading possessions until FVSU went on a long 6-minute 12-play 66-yard drive that ended in a 10-yard TD run giving the Wildcats the two-point lead at 29-27 as AU again blocked the extra point. However, Allen could not answer back on their next possession turning the ball over on downs.

Defensively, senior linebacker Gary Bourrage led the Jackets with 8 tackles and a sack while sophomore DB Reginald Jones had 7 tackles. Sophomore DB Justin Eaton led with two tackles for loss as well.

FVSU improves to 3-0 on the year while Allen falls to 0-2. Allen will go back on the road next Saturday to Tuskegee, AL for another SIAC battle at 2:00 PM.

*Benedict Tigers Roll Over Savannah State, 24-6*

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Benedict College Tigers are off to their best start since resuming their football program in 1995 with a 24-6 victory over the Savannah State Tigers on Thursday night in Charlie W. Johnson Stadium in front of a national ESPNU television audience.

Benedict improves to 3-0 on the season, and 1-0 in the SIAC. Savannah State falls to 1-2 overall and 1-1 in the SIAC. Records and scores prior to 1966, when Benedict ended its football program for 28 years, are incomplete, but there is no historical record of a Benedict football team ever starting the season 3-0.

After a scoreless first half, the Tigers got on the board on a 35-yard field goal by John Diaz with 9:46 left in the third quarter. The key play on the drive was a 43-yard pass from Eric Phoenix to Reginald Harden.

Benedict's Loobert Denelus, the reigning SIAC Defensive Player of the Week, came up big for the Tigers again with a strip sack of Savannah State quarterback JT Hartage to give Benedict the ball at the SSU 29-yard line. The Tigers kept the ball on the ground, running eight rush plays before Noah Zaire Scotland busted into the end zone from the 1-yard line. Diaz added the extra point to give Benedict a 10-0 lead with 5:04 left in the third quarter. Scotland led the Benedict rushing attack with 112 yards on 22 carries.

Savannah State scored on an 11-yard run by Jadon Adams with 12:18 left in the game, but the extra point was blocked by Denelus.

Benedict added another score on an 11-yard pass from John Lampley to Christopher Williams III with 9:19 left in the game to cap off a nine-play, 83-yard drive. The Tigers took advantage of several penalties by Savannah State, and an 18-yard run by Tayven Grice on that drive.

Deondra Duehart added an insurance touchdown for the Tigers with 5:01 left in the game on an 11-yard run.

The Benedict offense out-gained Savannah State 356 to 237 yards.

Benedict returns to action with another home game next Saturday, taking on the Kentucky State Thorobreds at 6 p.m. in Charlie W. Johnson Stadium.

*SCSU’s Kendrell Flowers Named Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Football Player of The Week*

NORFOLK, Va., Sept. 12, 2022 – South Carolina State running back Kendrell Flowers was named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Football Offensive Player of the Week, presented by Coca-Cola, the conference announced today.

The Bulldogs' BJ Davis was named Defensive Player of the Week, while North Carolina Central linebacker Max U'Ren was named Rookie of the Week. North Carolina Central's Torricelli Simpkins III was named Offensive Lineman of the Week and South Carolina State kicker Gavyn Zimmerman was named Specialist of the Week.

Flowers (RB, 6-0, 210, r-So., Columbia, S.C.) rushed for 153 yards (the third-highest single-game rushing total of his career) and two touchdowns in the Bulldogs' 33-9 win over Bethune-Cookman. He scored from one yard out near the end of the first quarter and later added a 67-yard touchdown midway through the third quarter.

Davis (LB, 6-2, 190, r-Jr., Blair, S.C.) picked off a pair of passes against Bethune-Cookman, including one he returned 59 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. He also had five tackles (two solo) as the Bulldogs held the Wildcats to just two scores.

U'Ren (LB, 6-2, 225, r-Fr., Winston-Salem, N.C.) was a key part in the Eagles posting their first shutout since 2017, a 41-0 win over Winston-Salem State. He had a team-high five tackles (three solo) in the contest, including a tackle for loss.
Simpkins (OL, 6-5, 310, So., Charlotte, N.C.) recorded seven pancake blocks and graded out at 84 percent against Winston-Salem State as the Eagles racked up 519 yards of total offense and 260 yards on the ground. In 66 snaps, Simpkins did not give up a sack or commit a penalty.

Zimmerman (PK, 5-11, 130, So., Sumter, S.C.) connected on a pair of field goals against Bethune-Cookman, from 32 and 26 yards, and he was also 3-fo-4 in extra points.

Other Top Performers

Jonathan Cardoza-Chicas (Delaware State) tied the program record with a 54-yard field goal against Delaware.

Romell Harris-Freeman (Delaware State) had four tackles and three pass breakups against Delaware.

Omakus Langley III (Delaware State) had two sacks against Delaware.

Jared Lewis (Delaware State) threw for 153 yards and a touchdown against Delaware.

Anim Dankwah (Howard) graded out at 88 percent on the offensive line against South Florida.

Robert Jones III (Howard) recorded his first career interception against South Florida and had four tackles.

Phillip Richards (Howard) averaged 39 yards per punt against South Florida, including a 50-yarder.

Ian Wheeler (Howard) ran for 73 yards and a score against South Florida.

Alfonzo Graham (Morgan State) rushed for 89 yards and a touchdown, while also recording a receiving touchdown, against Towson.

Lawrence Richardson (Morgan State) racked up 13 tackles (nine solo) and forced a fumble against Towson.

Da'Quan Felton (Norfolk State) had three catches for a career-high 131 yards against James Madison, including a 90-yard touchdown (the third-longest play in program history).

Khalil Baker (North Carolina Central) notched his second interception of the season that killed a potential Winston-Salem State scoring drive.

Latrell Collier (North Carolina Central) rushed for 118 yards and two touchdowns against Winston-Salem State.

Juan Velarde (North Carolina Central) boomed his lone punt of the night for 44 yards and recorded the tackle on the play against Winston-Salem State.

About the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference

The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is in its 52nd year of intercollegiate competition with the 2022-23 academic school year. Located in Norfolk, Va., the MEAC is made up of eight outstanding historically Black institutions across the Atlantic coastline: Coppin State University, Delaware State University, Howard University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Morgan State University, Norfolk State University, North Carolina Central University and South Carolina State University.