Box Score
NORFOLK, Va. — Daryl Jones (Richmond, Va.) rushed 24 times for 125 yards and two touchdowns to lead a dominating offensive effort, and the Norfolk State defense did not allow a score in the Spartans' second straight win over Virginia State, 33-7 on Saturday night at Dick Price Stadium.
The Virginia Lottery Labor Day Classic crowd of 26,970 saw NSU (1-0) out-gain the Trojans (0-2) 493-154 in total offense.
"I'm very pleased with our performance tonight," NSU head coach Pete Adrian said. "We moved the ball effectively, our defense was outstanding and our special teams were also very solid."
NSU moved the ball effectively from the start, but its first two drives stalled and resulted in the first two of sophomore Justin Castellat's (Virginia Beach, Va.) four field goals. The first-year starter connected on field goals of 41 and 28 yards to give NSU an early 6-0 lead.
But on the Spartans' next possession, a pass from Casey Hansen (Norco, Calif.) tipped off the fingers of running back Vince Hicks (Detroit, Mich.), and VSU defensive back Devon Wiggins picked it out of the air and returned it 34 yards for a touchdown. Justin Parker's point-after gave the Trojans a 7-6 lead with 3:39 left in the first quarter.
NSU continued to move the ball on the arm of Hansen and the legs of Jones and Hicks, but suffered two more first-half turnovers. Still, the Trojans had little success moving the ball against a stingy NSU defense, and the Spartans broke through for 10 points in final 3:34 of the second quarter. Jones capped a 56-yard drive with a 1-yard run, and Castellat finished a 54-yard drive with a 32-yard field goal to give NSU a 16-7 lead going into the half.
The second half was all NSU. Hicks, a converted defensive back who tallied 82 yards in his first action in the backfield, scored his first collegiate touchdown. He scampered in from 4 yards out with 4:21 left in the third quarter.
Jones found the end zone one more time to complete his MVP performance, plunging in from 1 yard out with 13:38 left in the game. He topped 100 yards for the third time in his career.
Castellat closed the scoring with a 22-yard field goal with 7:11 left in the game. He was a perfect 4-of-4 on field goals and made all three of his extra points.
Hansen finished the game with 245 yards passing. Dario Walker (Ettrick, Va.) led the receiving corps with six catches for 70 yards. Fellow receiver Rashad Howard (Newport News, Va.) and tight end Dexter Bailey (Suffolk, Va.) also registered career highs with five and four receptions, respectively.
The Spartan defense allowed just 92 yards rushing in 33 carries, a 2.8 average. VSU quarterbacks Michael Terry and Lamar Blizzard were harassed into 6-of-32 passing for just 62 yards and a pair of interceptions.
Maguell Davis (Newport News, Va.) led a long list of defensive standouts for NSU, tallying a team-high 10 tackles, two tackles for losses, one interception and one sack. His twin brother, Marquez Davis (Newport News, Va.), had eight tackles in his first game as a Spartan. Terrell Whitehead (Virginia Beach, Va.) snared an interception in the end zone to thwart a VSU drive in the fourth quarter, and Brandon Daniels (Converse, Texas) registered a sack and a forced fumble.
The Spartans have a week off before venturing to Piscataway, N.J., to face nationally-ranked Rutgers at 3:30 p.m. on Sept. 15. It will be NSU's first-ever game against a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (I-A) opponent.
