Final Stats

NORFOLK, Va. — Jamar Johnson (Norfolk, Va.) caught a 25-yard touchdown on a halfback pass from Daryl Jones (Richmond, Va.) in the second overtime, and the Norfolk State defense held South Carolina State scoreless on the Bulldogs' second OT possession to lift the Spartans to a 20-13 win on Saturday afternoon at Dick Price Stadium.

The Spartans' win over the preseason MEAC favorite Bulldogs (2-3, 1-1 MEAC) gives NSU (4-1, 3-0) its first-ever 3-0 MEAC start. The Spartans also maintain a share of first-place in the MEAC with Delaware State (4-1, 3-0).

NSU had two chances to win the game late with the score tied at 13-all. Terrell Whitehead (Virginia Beach, Va.) intercepted a Cleveland McCoy pass and returned it 37 yards to the Bulldog 37 with two seconds left in regulation. But Justin Castellat (Virginia Beach, Va.) missed a 54-yard field goal attempt into a breeze on the last play of regulation.

Both teams missed field goals in the first overtime. Stephen Grantham's 42-yard attempt was blocked by A.J. Harris (Hampton, Va.) on the first possession of overtime. After three runs by Jones moved NSU to the SCSU 15, Castellat's 32-yard attempt missed just wide right.

NSU got the ball first in the second overtime. On the first play, the left-handed Jones took the handoff from Casey Hansen (Norco, Calif.), rolled left and lofted a pass over the Bulldog secondary which Johnson snagged for his second TD in as many weeks.

SCSU gained one first down on its next possession, reaching the NSU 14. But two running plays lost five yards, and McCoy threw incomplete into the end zone on third and fourth downs to end the game. The Spartans' got a pair of pass breakups from Don Carey (Norfolk, Va.) and Dustin Johnson (Hampton, Va.) on the final two plays.

“I'm happy for our kids, because they beat us up physically last year,” said NSU head coach Pete Adrian, referring to his team's 47-10 loss in Orangeburg last season. “S.C. State is a very good team, but we played a physical ballgame today and our kids believed in themselves.”

The win also gave the Spartans their first win over SCSU since 2000, a 24-21 overtime win at Price Stadium. SCSU had won the last six meetings, and held an 11-1 series edge coming into Saturday's game.

NSU led 13-10 after a tight first half on the strength of two field goals by Castellat (42 and 31 yards) and a 1-yard TD run by Hansen, the first of his Spartan career. William Ford had a 10-yard TD run in the second quarter and Grantham connected on a 38-yard field goal on the last play of the half for SCSU.

SCSU tied the game on Grantham's 22-yard field goal with 5:32 left in the third, but neither team could score in the fourth quarter.

McCoy led the SCSU offense with 58 yards rushing in 11 carries, and he also passed for 144 yards. But NSU's pass defense, ranked third in the Division I FCS, limited McCoy to 9-of-25 accuracy. Along with Whitehead's late pick, linebacker Marquez Davis (Newport News, Va.) also had one, picking of SCSU backup Malcolm Long in the first half.

Linebacker Maguell Davis (Newport News, Va.) led the Spartan defense with 13 tackles, half for a loss. Safety Anthony Olumba (Washington, D.C.) chipped in with 10 tackles, 1.5 for losses, and half a sack.

Jones ended the day with 77 yards rushing for NSU. Hansen passed for 165 yards, completing 14-of-28 passes.

NSU hosts Hampton (4-1, 3-1) in the State Farm Battle of the Bay next Saturday at 2 p.m. at Dick Price Stadium.