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NORFOLK, Va. — The Norfolk State defense forced five turnovers and limited visiting Virginia State to 169 yards of offense as the Spartans picked up their fourth straight win over the Trojans, 28-10, on Saturday night before 24,325 fans at Dick Price Stadium.
DeAngelo Branche (Norfolk, Va.) rushed 16 times for 71 yards and two touchdowns for NSU (1-0). Donovan Cotton (Tampa, Fla.) scored his first career touchdown on a 13-yard run and P.J. Hayden (Charlottesville, Va.) did likewise on a 10-yard TD catch.
VSU (1-1) came out strong. Brian Berry returned the opening kickoff 35 yards, and the Trojans moved the ball 31 yards in nine plays before the NSU defense held. VSU settled for a 42-yard Justin Parker field goal to take a 3-0 lead.
The Spartans answered in kind, as Dwight Fluker-Berry (Miami, Fla.) returned the ensuing kickoff 30 yards. NSU then marched 54 yards in 10 plays. Quarterback Dennis Brown (Miami, Fla.) logged 25 rushing yards on the drive before capping it with a 10-yard scoring strike to Hayden. The extra point by Justin Castellat (Virginia Beach, Va.) gave NSU a 7-3 lead with 4:12 remaining in the first quarter.
NSU's defense took over from there, allowing the Trojans just 32 yards on their final five first-half possessions. Three of those ended in turnovers. The first came on an interception by NSU free safety and preseason MEAC Defensive Player of the Year Terrell Whitehead (Virginia Beach, Va.) late in the first quarter. The Spartans turned that into seven points. Branche punctuated a short 31-yard drive with a 1-yard TD run on the first play of the second quarter to give NSU a 14-3 edge.
Branche scored again on the first drive of the third quarter. NSU drove 59 yards in seven plays, the last of which was a 2-yard plunge by Branche, the preseason All-MEAC second-team running back. Cotton (career-high six rushes, 37 yards) capped the scoring for NSU with his 13-yard run with 4:48 left in the game.
The Trojans finally found the end zone on a 13-yard TD pass from Leonard Johnson to Antwain Lyde with 2:13 remaining in the contest. The 80-yard drive was aided by two 15-yard penalties against the NSU defense.
NSU outgained the Trojans 312-169 for the evening. VSU managed just 40 yards on the ground on 23 carries.
Brown finished with a game-high 72 yards rushing on 12 carries, and he also completed 13-of-22 passes for 109 yards and one score.
Chris Bell (Norfolk, Va.), Sherron Childress (Hampton, Va.) and Jeremy Wicker (Quantico, Va.) tied for team-high honors with three receptions each for the Spartans.
Whitehead earned NSU MVP honors with sixtackles, half a tackle for loss, and one interception. Cornerbacks Marcus Cooperwood (Hampton, Va.) and Dante Barnes (Virginia Beach, Va.) each snared their first career interception, while Barnes and linebacker Corwin Hammond (Louisville, Ky.) each recovered a VSU fumble.
The Spartans return to action next Saturday, Sept. 12 at North Carolina A&T. Kickoff is at 6 p.m. at Aggie Stadium in the MEAC opener for both teams.
