PINE BLUFF - For the second consecutive week, Arkansas-Pine Bluff fell short at the finish.
The Golden Lions were on the edge of a successful comeback, but were stopped near the goal line with three minutes left, as Alcorn State held on for a 21-16 victory at Golden Lion Stadium on Saturday night.
Last weekend UAPB failed to score late, and lost 40-39 to Alabama State in the final minutes.
“These last two games hurt,” UAPB Coach Monte Coleman said. “Our players hurt, but that’s a good sign. We’ll take a week off, lick our wounds, and get this turned around.”
UAPB (0-4, 0-2 Southwestern Athletic Conference), with a bye next week, is scheduled to play at Jackson State on Oct. 5.
Trailing 21-16, UAPB drove from its own 19 to first-and goal at the 7 in the final minutes.
A fumble on first down by freshman running back Jeremiah Young, recovered by junior quarterback Ben Anderson, backed UAPB to the 15. From there, Anderson threw three incomplete passes.
Young, who led all rushers with 139 yards on 21 carries, said he believed he was down on the first-down play before the ball was forced from his hands.
“I thought my knee touched, and when I started to get up, someone knocked it out of my hands,” Young said.
Alcorn State (3-1, 2-0) ran out the clock on its final possession, but had to convert on fourth down to keep the possession going.
Two minutes were left, and Alcorn State faced fourth-and inches from its 24. Senior running back Arnold Walker got 3 yards to seal the victory.
“I was pleasantly surprised when they decided to go for it,” Coleman said. “We needed the stop, and they gave us a chance to get the ball with a short field. But they showed a lot of confidence by going for it.”
Alcorn State Coach Jay Hopson said he had misgivings, but they were offset by trust in his offensive line and his team’s overall running game. Alcorn State rushed for 227 yards and averaged 5.0 yards a carry.
“That was a tough call, but our players believed they could get it, and I believed they could get it,” Hopson said.
Alcorn State struck quickly in the second half, and took a 14-3 lead on junior running back Joe Price’s 53-yard run with 13:16 left in the third quarter.
But UAPB answered on its next possession with a 46-yard touchdown run by Young to pull within 14-9. Anderson’s pass on the two-point attempt was incomplete.
Following a series of punts, Alcorn State took over at midfield, and needed eight plays to score, the final a 5-yard run by Walker that gave the Braves a 21-9 lead with 11:56 left in fourth quarter.
Anderson’s 14-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver Isiah Ferguson put UAPB within 21-16 on its next possession. Ferguson caught the pass 10 yards out, put two hard fakes on defensive back Warren Gatewood, and sprinted to the end zone with 9:07 left.
“They have a very good team,” Hopson said. “I’m really impressed with their quarterback. He’s a tremendous athlete. We had to chase him around all night.”
Alcorn State took a 7-0 lead with its first possession after sophomore John Gibbs’ 6-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver Tollete George.
UAPB answered with an 11-play drive from its own 15. It included four passes from Anderson for a total of 58 yards, but stalled on thirdand-7 when an attempt from Anderson to junior tight end C.J. Branch fell incomplete from the Alcorn State 16.
UAPB settled for a 33-yard field goal by junior Tyler Strickland to cut Alcorn State’s lead to 7-3 with 4:34 left in the first quarter.
Two second-quarter turnovers by Alcorn State, deep in UAPB territory, helped keep the Golden Lions in reach. On the first, Alcorn State had driven to the UAPB 9, but senior safety T.Q. Mims intercepted a pass from Gibbs in the end zone.
Six minutes later, with 3:53 left before halftime, Walker fumbled near the UAPB goal line. Senior defensive back Gyovanni Harvey recovered at the 1 to end the first half’s last significant scoring threat.
THURSDAY’S GAME Jackson State 35, Texas Southern 7
SATURDAY’S GAMES Southern 17, Miss. Valley State 7 Alabama State 52, Grambling State 21 Alcorn State 21, UAPB 16 Prairie View 28, Alabama A&M 26
Sports, Pages 31 on 09/22/2013