Chowan shocks Virginia State 43-40

Courtesy of Chowan University Athletics

40

VSU

43

 CU

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	F
VSU	0	12	14	14	40
CU	14	14	0	15	43

MURFREESBORO, N.C. – Twenty-five seconds was all the Chowan Football team needed to move the ball down the field and find the endzone for the go-ahead score to defeat Virginia State, 43-40, on Homecoming Saturday.

THE BASICS

FINAL | Chowan 43, Virginia State 40

RECORDS | Chowan 4-3 (4-1), Virginia State 4-3 (3-2)

LOCATION | Murfreesboro, N.C. (Garrison Stadium)

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE

Chowan defeated Virginia State for the first time in Murfreesboro after going 0-5 since 2010.

Rashad McKee collected 119 yards through the air and 139 yards on the ground for the Hawks.  Jordaan Bailey added 61 yards and two touchdowns on the ground, while catching two passes for 49 yards. Nijere Peoples added 60 yards on the ground with two scores.

Chowan rushed for 273 yards and five touchdowns.

Montre Moore continued his climb with 14 tackles to lead the Hawks.  Jamae Blanktallied 3.0 TFLs and a forced fumble.  Nic Wilson forced a fumble allowing Cameron Rampersaud to recover.  Kmare Careycollected his fourth interception of the season.

Jake Ray was 5-5 on PATs, while Patric Talbot posted his longest punt of the season with a 58-yard punt.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Quarter:

Rashad McKee found Laurence King for a 16-yard strike on third down to keep the chains moving.  McKee would then connect with Mailk Tobias for 23-yards to move into the redzone.  Jordaan Bailey would find space up the middle for the 17-yard touchdown run to put the Hawks up 7-0.

Chowan would force a three-and-out on the first drive by the Trojans.  The short punt gave the Hawks great field position at their own 43.  Rashad McKee would rush for 38 yards before the Hawks turned the ball over on the interception.

The defense would hold strong as Kmare Carey broke up a pass on third down to force another punt. This punt would travel 12 yards as the Hawks took over at the CU39.

The Hawks could not gain a first down as the offense was forced to punt it away.  Raydarius Freeman and Cameron Rampersaud teamed up for a sack on the first play of the drive allowing the defense to force another punt.  Caleb Hester would get his hands on the punt allowing J’Vin Farmer to scoop up the loose ball and take it in for a touchdown from 11 yards out to put the Hawks up 14-0.

Virginia State would start to move the ball on their next drive as the Trojans moved the ball into the redzone before the end of the quarter.

Second Quarter:

The defense tried to keep the Trojans out of the endzone as VSU had the ball at the one-yard line.  Kmare Carey and Montre Mooreearned a tackle for loss before Cameron Berry picked up a sack.  VSU would punch it in on fourth down and miss the extra point to close the gap to 14-6.

Nijere Peoples started the drive off with a first down run followed by a pass from Demetrius Moore to Jordaan Bailey for a long gain.  People picked up 23 more yards on the ground to put the Hawks into the redzone.  Bailey capped off the drive with a seven-yard scamper to put the Hawks up 21-6.

Virginia State used the great return to set up their next drive starting at midfield.  The Trojans used a nine-play drive before punching it into the endzone.  The extra point was blocked by Gabriel Colborn to keep the score at 21-12.

The next drive for the Hawks would move into VSU territory but a pair of 15-yard penalties backed the Hawks up to the original point of the drive.  Patric Talbotflipped the field for the Hawks with a 58-yard punt down to the VSU 5.

Chowan’s defense would not give the Trojans much breathing room as Traveon Mitchell and Gabriel Colborn forced negative yardage plays.  The Hawks would force a punt and take over at the VSU 35.

The Hawks used the short field as Rashad McKee picked up a first down with a short throw to Jake Ray.  McKee would take it himself from nine yards out to put the Hawks up 28-12 at the half.

Third Quarter:

Virginia State would use the ground attack to open the half going five-plays for 60 yards to score a touchdown to cut the deficit to 28-19.  VSU would force a punt by the Hawks and take the ensuing possession 60 yards on 13 plays before Nic Wilson forced a fumble at the Chowan 13 for Cameron Rampersaud to recover.  A botched hand-off would allow the Trojans the ball at the Chowan 5.

The defense stood tall as the Trojans were forced to go for it on fourth down before finding the endzone to trail 28-26.

After another punt by the Hawks, Virginia State started to move the ball as Jamae Blank forced a fumble and came out of the pile with the ball before the officials allowed VSU to maintain possession.  Joel Hicks came on the blitz and picked up a sack before Blank added a tackle for loss to force a punt.

Fourth Quarter:

Rashad McKee found Tyrek McNeil on a 17-yard swing pass before Jordaan Baileycollected 22 yards on three carries to move the ball into the redzone.  Chowan gambled on fourth-and-two from the VSU 13 but was unable to convert.

Virginia State moved the ball out of the shadow of the endzone quickly before a penalty and a pass break-up by Montre Moore ended the drive.  VSU forced a quick three-and-out, but the Trojans allowed the drive to continue as a roughing the punter was called to give the Hawks an automatic first down.  Rashad McKee took the new life and gashed the defense on a 47-yard run.  Nijere Peoples finished off the drive with an 11-yard run for the score to put the Hawks up 35-26.

The Trojans would strike quickly as a slant route near midfield would be taken for a touchdown to close the gap once again, 35-33, with 3:35 remaining.

Virginia State’s defense would intercept a pass near midfield to set up the go-ahead score.  VSU converted on fourth-and-four before having to convert on third down for the touchdown to put the Trojans up 40-35.

With 48 seconds remaining and the ball at the Chowan 42, Rashad McKee would find Demetrius Moore on a wheel route up the left sideline for a 51-yard gain to the VSU 7.  Jordaan Bailey moved the ball to the VSU 1 with a six-yard run before giving way to Nijere Peoples for the one-yard touchdown.  The Hawks pulled of the “Philly” special for the two-point conversion to put the Hawks up 43-40 with 23 seconds left.

Virginia State’s drive would start at their own 37-yardline after a squib kick.  The Trojans would be able to move the ball to midfield on a pass interference call.  After a completion, the Trojans had 2.3 seconds remaining for the final play.  Kmare Careywould end all hopes of the comeback with an interception at the Chowan 5 to seal the victory.

UP NEXT

Chowan makes the trip North to Maryland as the Hawks look to keep their division hopes alive against Bowie State on October 22.  Kick-off is slated for 1pm.

Team Statistics

Game Stats	VSU	CU
Total Yards	431	444
Pass Yards	301	171
Rushing Yards	130	273
Penalty Yards	5-51	10-95
1st Downs	23	20
3rd Downs	5-17	2-8
4th Downs	5-5	0-1
TOP	31:50	28:10

1ST QUARTER
11:01 – CU – Jordaan Bailey 17 yd run (Jake Ray kick), 7 plays, 71 yards, TOP 3:52	0	7
02:07 – CU – J’Vin Farmer 11 yd punt return (Jake Ray kick)	0	14
2ND QUARTER
12:57 – VSU – Clarke,Kimo 1 yd run (Ward,Matthew kick failed), 11 plays, 63 yards, TOP 4:04	6	14
10:07 – CU – Jordaan Bailey 7 yd run (Jake Ray kick), 5 plays, 85 yards, TOP 2:39	6	21
06:37 – VSU – Bailey,Upton 2 yd run (Ward,Matthew kick blocked), 9 plays, 50 yards, TOP 3:21	12	21
00:58 – CU – Rashad McKee 9 yd run (Jake Ray kick), 4 plays, 35 yards, TOP 1:06	12	28
3RD QUARTER
13:23 – VSU – Hagans,Darius 20 yd run (Ward,Matthew kick), 5 plays, 60 yards, TOP 1:37	19	28
05:37 – VSU – Clarke,Kimo 2 yd run (Ward,Matthew kick), 4 plays, 5 yards, TOP 1:39	26	28
4TH QUARTER
05:21 – CU – Nijere Peoples 11 yd run (Jake Ray kick), 6 plays, 87 yards, TOP 3:51	26	35
03:36 – VSU – Jackson,III,Roy 47 yd pass from Davis,Jordan (Ward,Matthew kick) 5 plays, 60 yards, TOP 1:38	33	35
00:52 – VSU – Bailey,Upton 25 yd pass from Davis,Jordan (Ward,Matthew kick) 7 plays, 45 yards, TOP 1:50	40	35
00:23 – CU – Nijere Peoples 1 yd run (Rashad McKee pass), 4 plays, 58 yards, TOP 0:25	40	43